Christian Mortensen



Thomas Peter Thorvald Kristian Ferdinand Mortensen (August 16, 1882 – April 25, 1998), known as an adult as Christian Mortensen, was a Danish-American supercentenarian. By the time he died, he had become the oldest man ever whose age is undisputed. He continued to hold this record until December 28, 2012, when Jiroemon Kimura of Japan surpassed his record. He is the twelfth oldest person ever if all the disputed cases are excluded. Mortensen was baptized in Fruering Church on December 26, 1882.[2] Besides his baptismal record, other records include the 1890 and 1901 census enumerations in Denmark, and church confirmation in 1896.

In 1903, he immigrated to the United States, and lived in various areas and worked in various trades including as a milkman and in a can factory. In Denmark, Mortensen had worked as a farmhand and apprenticed as a tailor. He was briefly married, although reportedly never happy, and had no children. After his marriage, he did not date any more women. Mortensen enjoyed an occasional cigar and insisted that smoking in moderation was not unhealthy. Mortensen ate poultry and fish, but avoided red meat. He also drank boiled water.[3]

In 1973, he rode his bicycle to the Aldersly Retirement Community in San Rafael, telling the staff that he was there to stay. Mortensen lived there for his final 25 years.[4] [5] [6]

In August 1997, he expected to get the Guinness "oldest living person" title, but on August 14, 1997, Guinness named Marie-Louise Meilleur of Canada, age 116, the "world's oldest person." Mortensen, angered, said "they just did that to spoil my birthday" (he turned 115 only two days after). Later, however, when he found out that fellow American Sarah Knauss was older too (also 116), he said "c'est la vie." Mortensen could have been given the title of "oldest living man", however, but Guinness did not officially re-implement that category until mid-2000 (having let it lapse after the death of John Evans of Wales in 1990). Another milestone that could be attributed to Mortensen is that he was the first man to reach the age of 115, if the disputed case of Shigechiyo Izumi is discounted.

Mortensen was blind towards the end of his life and spent much of his time in a wheelchair listening to the radio.[3]

He is the oldest recognized man ever to die in the United States, and the oldest recognized person ever born in Denmark. At his death, Mortensen was the second-oldest recognized living person, behind only Sarah Knauss, also from the United States. He was 115 years and 252 days old.

He was the last surviving person documented as born in 1882 and is the only Nordic person to have lived beyond 113 years of age. (Astrid Zachrison of Sweden died on her 113th birthday.)