United Kingdom Archives

LongeviQuest is saddened to report that Madeleine Stanley, Ontario’s third-oldest living person, passed away at 110 years old. She was a British-born supercentenarian who is one of the oldest living residents of Ontario, Canada, at the time of her death.

Madeleine was born on 8 February 1913 in Harlington, Middlesex, United Kingdom.

She won many racing trophies while using her MG and AJS motorbikes. During World War II, she headed a group of female drivers.

In 1947, Madeleine emigrated to Canada and married Keith Stanley. The couple then had a son after settling on a farm in Broadbent, Ontario.

Stanley in middle age

In 1960, the family moved to Parry Sound, Ontario, where she was worked as a chef in various restaurants.

Shortly after celebrating her 108^th birthday in 2021, she claimed that her secret to longevity was “You have to live a little on the wild side.”

Mrs. Stanley passed away on 5 November 2023, in Parry Sound, Ontario, Canada.

LongeviQuest sends our deepest condolences to the bereaved family and friends of Madeleine.

For more information, please visit Madeleine Stanley’s Directory Profile here.

LongeviQuest is glad to announce the addition of Anna Traxler to our ever-growing directory of supercentenarians. Her British-born American supercentenarian status was validated by the European Supercentenarian Organisation (ESO) on 29 August 2023.

Anna Traxler was born on 4 January 1893 in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, United Kingdom.

At some point in her life, she migrated to the United States where she married Isadore Traxler (1892-1981). The couple then had two children: Jane Klitsner and Dr. Jerome Jack Traxler.

Traxler passed away on 21 April 2003 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA. She was 110 years and 107 days old at the time of her death.

For more information, please visit Anna Traxler’s Directory Profile here.

LongeviQuest is pleased to report that the European Supercentenarian Organisation (ESO) has validated the age of Dorothy Gardner at 110. She was born in Bristol, England, United Kingdom on 29 January 1911. Gardner was the third-oldest resident of the province of Ontario. She was a sister to 2 sisters, a wife, and a mother to 2 daughters.

Gardner and her husband in 1937 (Source: Simcoe)

Gardner worked at a vegetable processing plant in Brantford, Ontario for twenty years before she and her husband moved to Brampton, Ontario in the 1970s. She never learned to drive, preferring to walk instead. Gardner was a passionate Toronto Blue Jays fan since the team’s founding, and she would travel to Toronto every year to see them play. On her 100th and 105th birthdays, her barber of over 30 years gave her a free haircut. Even as a centenarian, she continued to do her own housework independently at her senior living facility in Brampton.

Gardner lived independently until 2019, when she moved to Barrie, Ontario. She died on 21 December 2021 at the age of 110 years, 326 days, and was survived by her two daughters, seven grandchildren, and eight great-grandchildren.

LongeviQuest congratulates Dorothy Gardner’s family on her posthumous recognition.

For more information, please view Gardner’s Directory Profile here.

LongeviQuest is pleased to report that the European Supercentenarian Organisation (ESO) has validated the age of Ethel Miller at 110. She was born in Windsor, Berkshire, England, United Kingdom on 8 October 1890. Miller was the second-oldest known person in the province of British Columbia, after Fanny Martland. She was a wife and a mother to 2 daughters.

Miller on her 110th birthday (Source: Vancouver Sun)

Miller celebrated her 110th birthday in 2000 with her daughter Phyllis, enjoying a sip of champagne and a small gathering with friends at her nursing home in Langara, Vancouver. Several local dignitaries attended Miller’s 110th birthday celebration; she also received a congratulatory message from Queen Elizabeth II.

She died in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada on 23 January 2001 at the age of 110 years, 109 days.

LongeviQuest congratulates Ethel Miller’s family on her posthumous recognition.

For more information, please view Miller’s Directory Profile here.

LongeviQuest is saddened to report the death of Máirín Hughes. She was born in Belfast, Down County, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom on 22 May 1914 and passed away in Chapelizod, Dublin, Ireland on 5 September 2023. At the time of her death, Máirín Hughes was the oldest living person in Ireland.

Mairin Hughes on her 109th birthday
(Source: www.independent.ie)

Máirín Hughes had two older and one sister. They grew up in Rathmore, County Kerry, Ireland. In 1924, she moved to Cork where she went on to graduate from University College Cork and work in pathology. Hughes earned a degree in science and a diploma in education at University College Cork and worked in the pathology lab in UCC’s Department of Medicine for 14 years. Hughes was honored with a UCC Alumni Achievement Award in 2018.

She became the oldest known living woman in Ireland, following the death of 107-year-old Nancy Stewart on 10 September 2021.

She became the oldest known living person in Ireland, following the death of 108-year-old Mathew Crowley on 26 August 2022.

LongeviQuest is extending our deepest condolences to the bereaved family and friends of Mrs. Máirín Hughes.

John Tinniswood, the oldest known living man in the United Kingdom, celebrated his 111th birthday on 26 August 2023. He was joined by his family and friends at The Hollies care home in Southport to celebrate with him. He was presented with a birthday card from King Charles and Queen Camilla. Tinniswood has also received several telegrams from the late Queen Elizabeth, whom he had met twice.

He was born in Liverpool, Merseyside, England, United Kingdom in 1912 – the same year as the Titanic’s tragic maiden voyage. He is a husband and a father. Prior to his retirement in 1972, Tinniswood worked as an accountant for Shell and BP. He currently lives in a care home in Southport, Merseyside, England.

On his 110th birthday in 2022.
(Source: The Hollies)

Following the death of 108-year-old Harry Fransman on 25 September 2020, Tinniswood became the oldest known living man in the UK according to Oldest in Britain.

LongeviQuest sends our warmest congratulations to Mr. John Tinniswood and his family. We wish you good health and happiness.

LongeviQuest is delighted to share that the United Kingdom’s oldest living person, Ethel Caterham, turned 114 years old. She is a British supercentenarian known as the last surviving person in the UK born in the 1900s decade.

Ethel Caterham was born on 21 August 1909 in Shipton Bellinger, Hampshire, England.

In 1927, when she was 18 years old, she worked as a nanny for a British family in India. She traveled alone by ship to India for three weeks and then worked there for three years before returning to England.

Ethel met her British Army major husband at a dinner party in 1931. Later on, they were married in Salisbury Cathedral. The couple lived together in Harnham, England, but they were stationed in Hong Kong and Gibraltar after.

On her 111th birthday. source: Gerontology Wiki

She lived most of her life in Surrey, England, for about 50 years. Caterham celebrated her 111^th birthday in August 2020 by having a tea party which earned a visit from the Mayor of Surrey Heath. This was due to the fact that she became the oldest known living person in Surrey on 17 January 2019.

LongeviQuest extends our warmest greetings to Ethel Caterham and her family on this joyful celebration of her life.

For more information, please visit Ethel Caterham’s Directory Profile here.

LongeviQuest is pleased to report that the European Supercentenarian Organisation (ESO) has validated the age of Annie Dennett at 110. She was born in Galgate, Lancashire, England, United Kingdom on 27 July 1913. She had nine siblings. At 14, she left school to work in a cotton mill.

Dennett married her husband in February 1944, after meeting him while serving with the Royal Voluntary Service during World War II. The couple had two daughters. The family initially lived with her parents-in-law in Charlton Marshall, Dorset, where she worked at Clayesmore School. Her husband worked for many years at the Hall and Woodhouse Brewery. At age 80, she became a volunteer with Help the Aged at Blandford, where she worked for two afternoons a week for the next 14 years.

On her 110th birthday in 2023.
(Source: Facebook/Mayor of Blandford Forum)

In 2021, Dennett had been invited to a garden party at Buckingham Palace, but it was postponed because of the COVID pandemic. She later received a letter from Prince Edward telling her he was sorry it had to be canceled. However, she was too frail to travel to the re-arranged party in May 2022.

For more information, please view Mrs. Dennett’s Directory Profile here.

The European Supercentenarian Organisation (ESO) is an Accredited Partner Organization of LongeviQuest. ESO researchers are represented on the Global Validation Commission by Dr. Andrew Holmes

LongeviQuest is pleased to announce the age validation of Ethel May Pease of Canada at age 110. She was born in Constable Burton, North Yorkshire, England, United Kingdom on 9 May 1888. She was the seventh of twelve children.

Pease grew up in a small village and attended the local school. After finishing school at 14, she began learning how to sew, with the goal of becoming a seamstress. When World War I broke out, she trained to become a nurse and served in a military hospital in Manchester. After the war, she returned home and taught elementary school children. Pease got married in 1920 and the couple had 2 children. Her family moved around England before settling near Leeds, where her husband worked as the manager of a meat products factory. After her husband passed away in 1964, she moved to Canada to live with her daughter.

(Source: The Ottawa Citizen, 22 Jan 1999)

Pease was diagnosed with a heart condition at the age of 63 and was advised to avoid excitement. However, she remained active and healthy throughout her life. In her 80s, she started drinking a teaspoon of whiskey in her warm milk at bedtime. Pease never went to the hospital and traveled to England every year until she was 93. At the age of 103, she moved into a nursing home and started using a walker. Pease remained lucid until a few weeks before her death.

Pease passed away in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, on 19 January 1999, at the age of 110 years, 255 days. At the time of death, she was the third-oldest living person in Canada, behind Maria Mallozzi (born 25 September 1887) and Zelda McCague (born 28 March 1888).

LongeviQuest congratulates Ethel May Pease’s family on her posthumous recognition.

For more information, please view Pease’s Directory Profile here.

LongeviQuest is delighted to announce the age validation of Gertie Nesbitt of Australia at age 110. She was born in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England, United Kingdom on 3 July 1882 and passed away in Burwood East, Victoria, Australia on 5 August 1992 at the age of 110 years. She was a devout Catholic and attended mass regularly. She worked as a milliner and a typist.

Nesbitt was 67 years old when she moved to Australia in 1949. She never married and had no children. She worked as a housekeeper for two priests from the age of 70 to 90. She lived with her niece, Sadie Ramsay, in Burwood, Victoria, until she was 106 years old. She then moved into a nursing home in Burwood East, a suburb of Melbourne. On her 110th birthday, she claimed that she had no secret for her longevity, but offered advice to young people, “Be good and kind.”

Nesbitt at the age of 110

In 1991, Nesbitt received a telegram from Australia’s then-Prime Minister Bob Hawke, congratulating her on her 109th birthday. On 30 July 1992, six days before her death, she became Australia’s oldest resident following the death of 111-year-old Beatrice Pollock. Upon her own death, the title passed to Kit St. Clair, then aged 109.

LongeviQuest congratulates Gertie Nesbitt’s family on her posthumous recognition.

For more information, please view Nesbitt’s Directory Profile here.