George René Francis was an American supercentenarian who, at the time of death, was the oldest living man in the United States, and the second-oldest living man in the world (he shared the title with the Englishman Henry Allingham, who was born on the same day).
George René Francis was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA, on 6 June 1896 (claimed 1897) to parents George Francis and Eliza Henderson. He left the school after sixth grade.
In 1918, he married Josephine Johnson. He was briefly a boxer in his youth.
In 1949, he moved to Sacramento, California in search of a job. During his life in Sacramento, he worked as a chauffeur, an automobile mechanic and a barber.
His wife died of cancer in 1964 at the age of 63. The couple was married for 46 years.
Francis died of congestive heart failure at a nursing home in Sacramento, California, on 27 December 2008, at the age of 112 years, 204 days. It was reported he was survived by four children, 19 grandchildren, 33 great-grandchildren and 16 great-great grandchildren.
On 8 February 2007, following the death of 110-year-old Antonio Pierro of Massachusetts, he became the oldest living man in the United States.
At the time of death, he was the second-oldest validated living man in the world, the title he shared with the Englishman Henry Allingham who was born on the same day. With a combined age of 225 years, 246 days, they were the longest-lived pair of men born the exact same day.
