Oldest African-American, aged 113, dies in Detroit

• Share on Facebook
• Share on Twitter
• Share via Email
• Copy Link

  Link Copied

From Detroit Free Press

Daisey Bailey, believed to the oldest person of African descent in the world, died of organ failure at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit on Sunday, 23 days before her 114th birthday.

Born in Watertown, Tenn., Ms. Bailey worked on a plantation, keeping house and chopping wood, but in 1943, she decided to move to metro Detroit , ultimately settling in Pontiac. She earned money by doing housework and baby-sitting.

According to the Gerontology Research Group, she was the world’s fourth-oldest person and second-oldest American, though her family believes, despite not having documentation, that she was actually a year older.

Click here to read the rest of this story.