| Eva Morris | |
 Morris (aged 114) on 14 January 2000. | |
| Birth: | 8 November 1885 Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, England, UK |
| Death: | 2 November 2000 Stone, Staffordshire, England, UK |
| Age: | 114 years, 360 days |
| Country: |  UK
|
| Validated | |
Eva Morris (née Sharpe; 8 November 1885 – 2 November 2000) was a British supercentenarian who was the oldest living person in United Kingdom and in Europe, and the second-oldest living person in the world at the time of her death, behind Ella Miller of the United States. Her age is also validated by the Gerontology Research Group (GRG).
Morris was the world's last surviving person who was verifiably born in 1885 and 2nd earliest-born person to live in the 2000s, after Ella Miller. She is also the fourth-oldest British person ever recorded, after Charlotte Hughes, Annie Jennings and Ethel Caterham.
Biography
Morris was born on 8 November 1885 in Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, England. She worked as a domestic help. She was married to Joseph Morris, who died in the 1930s. They had one child, Winnie, who died of cancer in 1975 aged 62.
Morris attributed her longevity to "whisky and boiled onions". She lived in her own flat until she was 107. After suffering from a chest infection, she moved in to a nursing home in Stone, Staffordshire. In her final years, she was deaf and partially sighted. She died on 2 November 2000, six days before she would have celebrated her 115th birthday.
Longevity Records
On 22 October 1998, after the death of 113 year-old Ruby Gilliam, Morris became the last surviving British person born in 1885, and also she became (with Jennings born in 1884) the last British person born before 1887, as they had outlived everyone in Britain born in 1886.
On 8 November 1999, she celebrated her 114th birthday becoming the fifth British to reach this age (after Anna Eliza Williams in 1987, Charlotte Hughes in 1991, Lucy Askew in 1997 and Annie Jennings in 1998).
On 20 November 1999, 12 days after her 114th birthday, she became the oldest living person in the United Kingdom and in Europe after the death of Jennings who was 115.
On 30 December 1999, she became the second-oldest living person in the world (behind Ella Miller almost 1 year older) after the death of the American Sarah Knauss aged of 119.
On 4 June 2000, she surpassed the age of Anna Eliza Willams to become the third oldest British ever.
On 25 June 2000, 21 days later, Morris became the last survivor born in 1885 after the death of Myrtle Dorsey of the United States who was 12 days younger.
She died just 6 days before her 115th birthday, on 2 November 2000 at the age of 114 years and 360 days. At the time of her death she was the second-oldest living person in the world behind Ella Miller who outlived her by only 19 days. Therefore, thanks to the death of Morris, Miller became the last survivor born before 1886. Morris remains the fourth-oldest British person ever recorded (surpassed only by Charlotte Hughes, Annie Jennings and Ethel Caterham). She's also currently the oldest person to die at 114, breaking the previous record held by Mary Bidwell who was 114 years and 352 days.
Following Morris's death, 113 year-old Amy Hulmes became the oldest living person in the UK, while 114 year-old Marie Bremont of France became the oldest living person in Europe.
Gallery
References
- Verified Supercentenarians (Listed Chronologically By Birth Date) Gerontology Research Group
- All Validated British Supercentenarians Oldest in Britain
- Woman (114) is world's oldest Irish Times, 3 March 2000
- The lively art of defying death The Guardian, 19 April 2000
- World’s Oldest Woman Dies at 114 Associated Press, 2 November 2000
- World's oldest woman dies in Britain CNN, 2 November 2000 (via The Wayback Machine)