| Eli Lindsay | |
 | |
| Birth: | 28 February 1858 Hednesford, Staffordshire, England, UK |
| Death: | 24 November 1968 Arborfield, Saskatchewan, Canada |
| Age: | 110 years, 270 days |
| Country: |  UK  CAN
|
| Unvalidated | |
Eli Lindsay (27 February 1858 – 24 November 1968) was a British-born Canadian supercentenarian whose age is currently unvalidated by the Gerontology Research Group (GRG). He is a candidate for the title of world’s oldest man since the death of John Mosley Turner, and may also be the fourth-oldest man ever to die in Canada. He originally claimed to be 109 years old, but several early and mid-life records support a final age of 110.
Biography
Early life and emigration
Lindsay claimed to have been born on 27 February 1859 (more likely 1858) in Hednesford, Staffordshire, England, as one of at least eight children born to Samuel and Caroline (née Young) Lindsay. He was christened on 3 October 1858 in nearby Kingswinford. As a young teenager, he acquired a job as a coal miner in Hednesford.
Lindsay married Frances Sarah Law, a widow with four children, on 20 March 1889. The couple later had four children of their own. As an adult, he worked as a hewer, a coal miner who loosens coal with a pick, while his wife was the local postmistress.
In 1906, the family emigrated to Canada via ship, and originally settled in Rossland, British Columbia, before moving to Arborfield, Saskatchewan, in 1911.
Later life and death
Lindsay remained in Arborfield for the rest of his life, working as a farmer until his retirement at the age of 75. On his claimed 109th birthday in 1968, he had a tea party at his son Walter’s homestead, where he spent the day entertaining guests. As a supercentenarian, he enjoyed watching hockey games on the television and meeting his friends.
Lindsay died on 24 November 1968 at the likely age of 110 years, 271 days. He was survived by several of his children and stepchildren, 33 grandchildren, 96 great-grandchildren, and 23 great-great-grandchildren.
Possible longevity records
If his age were validated, Lindsay would have been the world’s oldest man from the death of John Mosley Turner on 21 March 1968 until his own death. He also would have been the oldest man to die in Canada, the fourth-oldest known man of all-time, and the ninth known male supercentenarian overall. He would not, however, have held the title of world’s oldest person, as Marie Bernatkova and Ada Roe were both older and outlived him.
References
- Eli Lindsay 1859–1968 Ancestry
- 1858 Christening Record FamilySearch
- Man, 109, Celebrates Imgur (originally from Winnipeg Free Press, 1 March 1968)
- Pioneer farmer dies at 109 The Leader-Post, 25 November 1968
| Canada's Oldest Living Man Titleholders (V • E) |
|
Joseph Saint-Amour • Unknown • Eli Lindsay • Stuart Bott • Unknown • Adam McDonald • Arthur Critchfield • Adalbert Marchand • Herman Smith-Johannsen • William Hargest • Philo McCandless • George Ives • Chester Pushie • Arthur Nash • Tokusuke Oyakawa • Gustav Wikberg • Theodore Remfert • James Grant • Romeo Tremblay • Raphael Cree • John Gard • Montague Little • Lazare Gionet • Nicholas Salamis • Harold Dunichand • Ernest MacPherson • William Thomas • Leon Robitaille • Johannes Markusson • David Wiener • Sam Baker • Joseph Ernest Poupart • Zoltan Sarosy • Robert Wiener • Ja Hyung Lee • Reuben Sinclair • James Floyd |