The exact age of Eunice Sanborn is the subject of some debate. Sanborn was born in Louisiana on July 20, 1896 according to the California-based Gerontology Research Group, which validates and keeps detailed records of centenarians. This birth date would make her 114 years old.
But according to her family, the U.S. Census Bureau made a mistake in its records, listing the date as 1896 instead of 1895, reported the Jacksonville Daily Progress. This birth date would make her 115 years of age, and older than Blanchard was.
Sanbord had little to say of the unique distinction that she now enjoys. “Oh, think of that,” she said when she learned of the news, AFP reported.
As children, Sanborn and two of her sisters were stricken with scarlet fever, and she was the only one of the three to survive, according to the Daily Progress.
In contrast to Sanborn, there were no questions surrounding the birth date of the now deceased Eugenie Blanchard, who was born on the French Carribean island of Guadeloupe in February of 1896.
Living across three centuries, Blanchard was a nun “who dedicated herself to help those who are most fragile, was a lovely and generous example of France,” Nora Berra, France’s Junior Minister for Senior Citizens said, as related by AP.
She died Thursday on the nearby French Caribbean island of Saint Barthelemy.
