Delina Filkins

Delina Ecker Filkins (May 4, 1815 – December 4, 1928) was an American supercentenarian who was the first person verified to reach the age of 113, in 1928. Her case was thoroughly investigated in the 1970s and re-investigated in 2005, and found to be fully verifiable. In fact, the number of documents located make this the second-most verified case of all time, after Jeanne Calment. Age 113 would not be reached again until Betsy Baker attained it in 1955. Filkins' age was 113 years 214 days at the time of her death in Richland Springs, New York.

Born in Herkimer County, New York, she spent all her life, except the last two months of it, within a radius of ten miles. Her father, William Ecker, lived to reach the age of 97 before he died, while her mother only made it to 78.

Filkins was married in 1834. She had six children. Only two of them were still alive at the time of her death: Frank (72) and Alonzo (86). During her lifetime, she lived through 27 U.S. presidencies, beginning with James Madison and ending with Calvin Coolidge.

See also

• A. Ross Eckler, Jr.
• List of the oldest people
• Oldest people
• Supercentenarian

External links

• http://www.rootsweb.com/~nyherkim/stark/109lady.html
• http://www.rootsweb.com/~nyherkim/stark/delinaobit.html
• http://www.demogr.mpg.de/calendar/files/23312.3112487793-Workshop%20Program.pdf (regarding the 2005 re-validation effort)
• The Oldest Human Beings