Elizabeth Francis,
the Oldest Living Person in the U.S.,
Dies at 115: 'America's Grandmother'


"She would always say, treat people like you want to be treated," her granddaughter said in a statement


October 24, 2024





The Houston resident who held the record of being the oldest-living person in the country has died at 115.

Elizabeth Francis died on Tuesday, Oct. 22, while surrounded by her family, granddaughter Ethel Harrison,
who was also her primary caregiver, told ABC News.

"She loved the Lord. Her faith was extremely strong,"
Harrison told the outlet in a statement.
"She was always, you know, jolly, you know, 'how you doing?
You're doing okay?' That was just her personality."

"And she would always say, treat people like you want to be treated," she added.
"That was her motto."

Francis died in the Houston home she lived in with her 95-year-old daughter,
Dorothy Williams, and her granddaughter, according to LongeviQuest,
a database tracker of the world’s oldest people.


In a statement shared with Houston Public Media, LongeviQuest spokesperson, Ben Meyers,
had kind words for Francis and the life she lived.

“Ms. Elizabeth Francis was America's Grandmother. She lived a life of faith and love, always
crediting the Good Lord for her longevity. She was beloved by her family and community,” Meyers said.

“They are in our prayers, especially her daughter Ms. Dorothy Williams, whom she lived with
until the end, and her granddaughter Ms. Ethel Harrison whose joyful dedication made it
possible for her grandmother to live at home even at age 115,” he added.


Francis was born in Louisiana on July 25, 1909 — when William Taft was president — according to LongeviQuest.

She moved to Houston as a child, and in the 1970s and early '80s,
she ran a coffee shop at KTRK-TV, according to the organization and local ABC affiliate WPVI-TV.

Her sister, Bertha Johnson, died in 2011 at the age of 106, per LongeviQuest,
which also reported that Francis has three grandchildren,
five great-grandchildren and four great-great grandchildren.

Last year on her 114th birthday, Francis was asked what it meant to reach such a milestone.
"I don't know," she told ABC affiliate KTRK-TV at the time.
"I just thank the good Lord for keeping me."

"It's hard to believe, but it's a blessing," added Dorothy.
"Because she has been a wonderful mother and grandmother to all of us.
She has been our backbone."

America's oldest living person is now Naomi Whitehead,
who was born on Sept. 26, 1910, according to LongeviQuest.