BIOGRAPHY

Mattie Cisrow was born in Morgan, Georgia, USA, on 30 May 1905, to parents Clyde and Gussey Thomas.

In 1922, she married Clarence Cisrow. Weary from years of hard labor in the fields of Georgia, she, Clarence, and several of her siblings moved to Cocoa, Florida, in 1935 to begin a new chapter in life. With only a sixth-grade education, she found work as a chef at the Hob Nob, a restaurant that would later become part of Cocoa Village.

Together with her two sisters, she went on to build a successful business—the Seven Seas Restaurant. She soon earned a local reputation for making the best sweet potato pie in the region, a legacy she upheld by baking pastries well into her 100s. She was widowed in 1985.

By the age of 110, she had six grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren.

Mattie Cisrow passed away in Cocoa, Florida, on 3 March 2016, at the age of 110 years, 247 days.

RECOGNITION

Her age has not been validated.

ATTRIBUTION

* “‘The jewel of Cocoa’ prepares to turn 110” – Florida Today, 23 May 2015

* “‘The jewel of Cocoa,’ Mattie Mae Cisrow, dies at 110” – Florida Today, 8 March 2016

GALLERY