Supercentenarian Profile

Willie Mae Irving

Born:

1904-07-15

Tennessee

United States

Died:

2015-03-13

Collierville, Tennessee

United States

Willie Mae Viola Irving (née Walls) was an American supercentenarian.

BIOGRAPHY

Willie Mae Irving was born in Tennessee, USA, on 15 July 1904. She was born to Will and Pearlie Walls but was raised by her grandparents in rural Fayette County. They were formerly enslaved people who often spoke to her about the cruelty of their slave owner.

As a young woman, Irving worked as a cook for the local mayor. In 1927, she married her husband, George, and together they raised four children. Their marriage lasted until his passing in 1986. She worked throughout her life as a domestic worker and cook, and was a lifelong member of New Sherron Missionary Baptist Church in Cayce, Mississippi.

In January 2009, at the age of 103, Irving still enjoyed cooking and tending to her garden.

Willie Mae Irving passed away in Collierville, Tennessee, on 13 March 2015, at the age of 110 years, 241 days.