| Myrtle Edness | |
 Edness on her 106th birthday in 2020 | |
| Birth: | 17 July 1914 Paget Parish, Bermuda |
| Death: | 26 January 2023 Warwick Parish, Bermuda |
| Age: | 108 years, 193 days |
| Country: |  BER
|
| Centenarian | |
Myrtle Elizabeth Edness (née DeShield; 17 July 1914 – 26 January 2023) was a Bermudian centenarian who was the oldest known person ever from Bermuda, at the time of her death. She was the aunt of Former Premier Dame Jennifer M. Smith.
Biography[]
Myrtle Edness was born in Ord Road, Paget Parish, Bermuda on 17 July 1914. Her parents were Gerald and Adulcie DeShield. She had two siblings: Lillian and Gerald.
She did not start school until the age of 9. Her father refused to listen when her teachers suggested that she continue her studies at the Berkeley Institute because they had not done the same for her older sister. She took evening courses and went to work at The Recorder.
She married Arnold James Edness on 25 September 1944. The couple had two children: Maureen Eddy and Alan Edness, who was lost at sea during a boating accident in 2003.
She and her husband were owners of the A.J. Edness Grocery Store for many years. She got widowed in died in 1977. She retired in 1978. Her sister Lillian Smith died in February 2011 at the age of 92.
In July 2014, Edness met with Elfrida Chappell (aged 100). In March 2015, she met with Doris Corbin (aged 103), Ruth Simons (aged 100), and Muriel Lawrence (aged 100). On her 103th birthday in 2017, she met with Mary Williams (aged 101) and Lefroy Brownlow Place (aged 100).
As of July 2020, she had one living daughter Maureen Eddy, three grandchildren (Melanie Eddy, Jason Eddy and Alex Lymbery Edness) and one great-grandchild Alaya.
She became the oldest known living person in Bermuda, following the death of 107-year-old Louise Franks on 17 August 2021. She was also one of Bermuda's last people to recall the 1918 flu pandemic and the last known person in Bermuda born before the First World War broke out.
On 11 April 2022, Edness surpassed the final age of Louise Franks, becoming the oldest person ever from Bermuda.
Myrtle Edness died in Warwick Parish, Bermuda on 26 January 2023, at the age of 108 years, 193 days.
Gallery[]
![Standing [back row]: Rollin Nathan and Claudette Fleming. Seated [from left]: Doris Corbin (aged 103), Myrtle Edness (aged 100), Ruth Simons (aged 100) and Muriel Lawrence (aged 100) in March 2015](/wiki/File:Myrtle_Edness100.jpg "Myrtle Edness100.jpg (131 KB)")
References[]
- Family pay their respects to sailing tragedy victim The Royal Gazette, 4 February 2011
- Former premier?s mother remembered as avid reader The Royal Gazette, 4 February 2011
- I guess I can’t say I’m 99 years old any more The Royal Gazette, 22 July 2014
- 'Legends Of Longevity' Honours Centenarians Bernews, 31 March 2015
- Taking it all in her stride ... Myrtle, 103 The Royal Gazette, 18 July 2017
- Sprightly Myrtle marks 105th birthday The Royal Gazette, 19 July 2019
- Centenarian Myrtle swimming along at 106 The Royal Gazette, 21 July 2020
- Woman, 106, recalls 1918 pandemic - the year of church bells The Royal Gazette, 31 December 2020
- The radiant Myrtle Edness, aged 107 WeAreBermuda (Twitter), 14 September 2021
- Photographer ‘elated’ at winning place in international exhibition The Royal Gazette, 19 March 2022
- At 108 years young, Myrtle Edness says the key to a long life is to ‘swim and exercise’ The Royal Gazette, 21 July 2022
- Myrtle Edness Obituary Legacy
| Bermuda's Oldest Living Person Titleholders (V • E) |
|
Hilda Smith • A'Lona Lambert-Simons • Winnie Childs • Louise Franks • Myrtle Edness • Lefroy Brownlow Place |