Christian Mortensen
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| Christian Mortensen | |
| Born | Thomas Peter Thorvald Kristian Ferdinand Mortensen August 16, 1882 Skårup, Skanderborg, Denmark |
|---|---|
| Died | April 25, 1998 (aged 115 years, 252 days) San Rafael, California, United States |
| Known for | Undisputed oldest recorded man ever Oldest Danish person ever Oldest emigrant ever |
| Title | Supercentenarian |
Thomas Peter Thorvald Kristian Ferdinand Mortensen, known as an adult as Christian Mortensen (August 16, 1882 – April 25, 1998), was a Danish-American supercentenarian. By the time he died,[1] he had become (and still is) the oldest male ever whose age is undisputed, although the Guinness Book of World Records still ranks him second to the disputed case of Shigechiyo Izumi. Mortensen was baptized in Fruering Church on December 26, 1882.[2] Besides his baptismal record, other records include the 1890 and 1901 census enumerations in Denmark, and church confirmation in 1896.
In 1903, he immigrated to the United States, and lived in various areas and worked in various trades including as a milkman and in a can factory. In Denmark, Mortensen had worked as a farmhand and apprenticed as a tailor. He apparently was married only briefly and never had children. Mortensen enjoyed an occasional cigar, and, very unusually for a supercentenarian, was known to show a bit of feistiness even in his final years. In August 1997, for instance, he expected to get the Guinness "oldest living person" title, but on August 14, 1997, Guinness named Marie-Louise Meilleur of Canada, age 116, the "world's oldest person." Mortensen, angered, said "they just did that to spoil my birthday" (he turned 115 only two days after). Later, however, when he found out that fellow American Sarah Knauss was older too (also 116), he said "c'est la vie." Mortensen could have been given the title of "oldest living man", however, but Guinness did not officially implement that category until mid-2000.
In 1973, he rode his tricycle to the Aldersly Retirement Community in San Rafael, boldly telling the staff that he was Danish, and that he was there to stay. Mortensen lived there for his final 25 years.[3][4][5]
He is the oldest recognized male ever to die in the United States (and in the entire world if the disputed case of Izumi is discounted), and the oldest recognized person ever born in Denmark. At his death, Mortensen was the second-oldest recognized living person only behind Sarah Knauss, also from the United States. He was 115 years and 252 days old.
He was the last surviving person documented as born in 1882 and is the only Nordic person to have reached at least 113 years of age.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ New York Times, "Christian Mortensen, 115, Among Oldest," 1998-05-03. Accessed 2007-02-16
- ^ Christian Mortensen's birth record (see image) shows his birthplace as the village of Skårup, Denmark, which was located in Sogn Fruering parish, Herred Hjelmslev Hundred, Skanderborg County, which is now part of Skanderborg municipality.
- ^ Torri Minton, San Francisco Chronicle, "One of World's Oldest Dies in His Sleep," page A-18, 1998-04-28. Accessed 2007-02-16
- ^ John Wilmoth, Christian Mortensen, 1882-1998. Accessed 2007-02-16
- ^ Karyn Hunt, San Francisco Examiner, "Guinness book checking after death of woman, 112, " page A-5, 1997-08-05
[edit] External links
- Scandinavian obituaries: Dagbladet (Norwegian) and Aftonbladet (Swedish)
- Aldersly Garden Retirement Community
- Fruering Church article at Danish Wikipedia
| Preceded by Frederick L. Frazier |
Oldest Recognized Living Man June 14, 1993 – April 25, 1998 |
Succeeded by Johnson Parks |
| Undisputed Oldest Recorded Man Ever January 2, 1996 – Present |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
