World’s Oldest Person - The Last Surviving American Born In 19th Century - Dies Aged 116

The world’s oldest person has died at the age of 116.

Susannah Mushatt Jones passed away yesterday in a Brooklyn nursing home, following a short illness.

The last surviving American born in the 19th century, she was married and divorced once, but didn’t have children.

Though she was wheelchair-bound, partially deaf and had been blind since the age of 100, she was in otherwise good health.

She enjoyed bacon and egg breakfasts and credited plenty of sleep and no smoking or drinking for her longevity.

She is survived by more than 100 nieces and nephews.

The third of 11 children, she was born on an Alabama farm in 1899, moving to New York in her twenties.

Her death makes Italian Emma Morano, who was born in November 1899, the world’s oldest living person.

Morano is just four months younger than Jones, who was 116 years and 311 days old when she died.

Dignified: Jones continued to take pride in her appearance (Reuters)

Susannah Mushatt Jones, pictured with her niece, Lois Judge (AP)

Top image: AP