Mary Parr

Mary Parr (January 29, 1889 – October 29, 2002) was an American supercentenarian. She was believed to be the oldest person in the United States and second oldest in the world when she died. (After her death, it was discovered that Mae Harrington was actually older). She was born in Mishawaka, Indiana and spent many years working for the American Red Cross in Cape May, New Jersey, first as a volunteer during World War I and then as a paid employee. She often said the secret to her longevity was never getting married.

Long believed to be born on February 1, after her death her birth records showed she was born January 29, 1889. In the 1880s, children's birth-dates were often ignored by parents (who also often did not give their children names) until they were sure the child would survive. Later, the parents would 'guess' the birth-date of the child. "February 1" appears to have been concocted in this manner.

On January 19, 2007, Parr's Indiana state record of 113 years 273 days was broken by Edna Parker (1893–2008), who went on to become the world's oldest person on August 13, 2007.

External links

• http://slick.org/deathwatch/mailarchive/msg00901.html
• http://www.sptimes.com/2002/09/24/news_pf/TampaBay/She_s_America_s_oldes.shtml

Persondata
Name	Parr, Mary
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Date of birth	January 29, 1889
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Date of death	October 29, 2002
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