Harriet Coulter

BIOGRAPHY

Coulter was born in York, Pennsylvania, USA, on 7 March 1876. She had four older siblings: James, Anna, Eva, and Mary. When she was five years old, the family moved to Tyrone, where she spent most of her life.

In 1918, she started working at the Pennsylvania Railroad in Tyrone. Later, she was transferred to Harrisburg, then to Philadelphia, where she continued to work until her retirement in 1941, at the age of 65. She taught a Sunday school class for boys at the First Presbyterian Church for many years. For 30 years, she lived in an apartment on Logan avenue in Tyrone, along with her sister Mary, who was seven years her senior. She never married, nor had children.

On 8 February 1980, at the age of 103, she fell and fractured her hip. She was discharged from the hospital on 27 February. As of her 104th birthday in March, she was spending most of her time in a wheelchair. At the time, she was a resident of the United Presbyterian Home in Philipsburg. Although she was reported to be hard of hearing, she remained lucid and she enjoyed watching television shows, particularly soap operas. Shortly before her 105th birthday, she said that she had never done anything special that could have contributed to her longevity. When asked if she was looking forward to her 106th birthday, she replied, “Oh no, I really think 105 is old enough.”

Coulter passed away in Philipsburg, Pennsylvania, USA, on 8 July 1986, at the age of 110 years, 123 days.

RECOGNITION

At the time of her passing, she was the second-oldest (known) living person in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, behind Florence Knapp.

Her age was verified by Nick Eriksson, an anonymous researcher, and Jimmy Lindberg, and validated by LongeviQuest on 13 January 2024.

ATTRIBUTION

* “’Bicentennial Queen’ Miss Coulter To Be 104 Tomorrow” – Tyrone Daily Herald, 6 March 1980

* “Former Tyroner Hopes for ‘No-Fuss’ 105th Birthday” – Altoona Mirror, 5 March 1981

* “Tyrone’s Queen Harriet Is ‘Sweet 110’ Today” – Tyrone Daily Herald, 7 March 1986

* “Good-by, Miss Harriet” – Tyrone Daily Herald, 8 July 1986

GALLERY

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