Mattie Ivy was a validated American supercentenarian who died in 2013 at the age of 110.
Mattie Ivy was born in Crawford County, Georgia, United States, on 14 January 1903. She was the only child of John (1848-1924) and Elberta Prater (1863-1939), both born into slavery. One of her earliest memories was a fall in her family’s log stable at around three years old, leaving a scar that endured for over 106 years. Her parents, who were sharecroppers, shared a farm with other families, including two daughters named Carabelle and Claudie, with whom Mattie played, often riding gopher tortoises near the farm. Despite helping her parents with farming from an early age, she attended school until the 9th grade.
At 25, on February 22, 1928, she married Esop Wilcox, a widower. Before her marriage, she worked as a nurse for nearly fifty years. Following Esop’s death in 1971, she married Frederick Ivy in 1976. They moved to New Jersey, where they lived until 2001, when they returned to Ocilla, Georgia.
Mattie Wilcox Ivy at 109 years old. (Source: Oral History Interview, 2012)
In 2011, at 108 years old, she received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Ocilla-Irwin Chamber of Commerce. The following year, in 2012, she participated in an oral history project conducted by Valdosta State University, sharing stories and experiences from her life.
Mattie Ivy died in Ocilla, Georgia, United States, on 7 May 2013, at the age of 110 years, 113 days.
LongeviQuest congratulates Mattie Ivy’s family on her posthumous recognition.
For more information, please view Mrs. Ivy’s Directory Profile here.
