Janet Mackay

BIOGRAPHY

Mackay was born into a farming family in Jedburgh, Scottish Borders, Scotland, on 26 March 1910. She regularly moved around when she was younger.

In 1935, while in Dalmahoy, she met and married Alistair Mackay. The following year, she gave birth to her eldest son, Sandy. They had another son, Donald. The family moved to their new home in Carrick Knowe (Edinburgh), where she lived until relocating to West Lothian. She was a housewife but worked as a nanny before World War II and later as an insurance agent during the war. She spent a lot of time working in her garden, ensuring the family always had plenty of fresh vegetables in their meals. Her son commented that this was one of the factors contributing to her longevity. Her eldest son died at 77.

In 2013, she moved into a nursing home in Broxburn, to be closer to her son Donald. When asked about his mother’s secret to longevity, her son David said he couldn’t attribute it to a single factor. He noted that it was probably not genetics, as her parents died relatively young. He added that she was very high energy, never one to sit still for long. Although she did drink, it was only occasionally on special occasions. At the time of her 110th birthday, she had three grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren. At the time, she was still relatively well physically but suffered from macular degeneration and was almost completely deaf. According to her son, her heart was strong, and she didn’t need much medication. However, she did suffer from dementia.

Mackay passed away in Broxburn, Scotland, on 25 February 2021, at the age of 110 years, 336 days.

RECOGNITION

Following the passing of 109-year-old Annie Lean (3 November 1909 – 19 April 2019) of Dalkeith, she became the oldest living woman in Scotland.

On 4 August 2019, following the passing of 111-year-old Alf Smith, she became the oldest living person in Scotland.

Mackay’s age was verified by Dr. Andrew Holmes, Chris Law, and Rob Campbell, and was validated by the European Supercentenarian Organisation (ESO) on 29 May 2020.

ATTRIBUTION

* “Broxburn woman marks 104th birthday” – Daily Record, 17 April 2014

* “West Lothian resident celebrated her 108th birthday” – Daily Record, 28 March 2018

* “West Lothian lady now believed to be oldest in country” – Daily Record, 10 May 2019

* “West Lothian resident believed to be oldest woman in Scotland celebrates 110th birthday” – Daily Record, 1 April 2020

GALLERY

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