World's oldest person dies in US at 114

BOSTON, Jan 29 (Reuters) A Connecticut woman who just last week set a record as the world's oldest person has died, her great-nephew said today. She was 114.

Emma Faust Tillman died Sunday night in the Hartford, Connecticut nursing home where she had lived for the last four years, said John Stewart Jr.

Tillman was born on November 22, 1892, near Greensboro, North Carolina. The child of former slaves, she was one of 23 children in a long-lived family. Three of her sisters and a brother lived past 100.

But Tillman's longevity topped them all. She lived independently until the age of 110. In the nursing home, she spent much of her time caring for an ailing roommate who was more than 20 years her junior.

''Her comment is always, 'If you want to know about longevity and why I lived so long, ask the man upstairs,''' Stewart said in an interview last week after Guinness World Records confirmed Tillman was the world's oldest person.

Tillman never smoked, drank or wore eyeglasses, Stewart said. For a time, Tillman worked as a servant for American actress Katharine Hepburn, he noted.

She is survived by an 80-year-old daughter, Marjorie, and a large number of grandchildren and great-grandchildren, Stewart said.

According to the International Committee on Supercentenarians, the world's next oldest person is Yone Minagama, 114, of Japan.

Guinness World Records by today had not verified that claim, according to spokeswoman Amarilis Espinoza.

REUTERS BDP BST1950