BIOGRAPHY

Cage was born in West Feliciana Parish, Louisiana, USA, on 9 June 1874, to parents Augusta Price and Flora Scott (later married Jackson). Her maternal grandparents, Abner and Litty Scott, migrated from Richmond, Virginia, to Fort Adams in Wilkinson County, Mississippi, as slaves. According to one of her daughters, she may have had some Cherokee Indian ancestry from her mother’s side.

In 1894, at the age of 20, she married William H. Cage. The couple had 15 children: Altha, Elmore, Lula, Harrison, Jannette, Estevan, Foster, Sabre, Ossle, Torris, Ruby, Florida, Arnold, Grovelt and Foley. Her children received education at a rural school in Mount Rico, Mississippi. The family possessed 362 acres of land, and collectively, they dedicated their efforts to its cultivation. Although she was raised in the Baptist Christian faith, upon marriage, she adopted the Methodist denomination.

Her husband passed away during surgery in 1964 at the age of 88. Following his passing, she relocated to St. Francisville, Louisiana, to reside with her daughter, Jeanette. Around 1971, she made another move to Baton Rouge. At the age of 104, arthritis had confined her to a bed.

At the age of 105, reports indicated that she had 993 living descendants, encompassing great-great-greatgrandchildren. Despite her age, she remained mentally sharp and could recognize all her family members, except for those she had never met. At that time, twelve of her children were still alive. Her eldest daughter, Altha, was 85, while her youngest son, Foley, was 61. One of her daughters, Ossle Brackings, had 20 children, and one of her grandsons, John Hilliard Jr., also had 20 children. Her descendants boasted a diverse range of professions, including three ministers, a nurse, a computer science technician, teachers, and five Ph.D. holders.

One of her daughters, Altha Wilson (28 June 1894 – 22 March 2002), lived to be 107, while another daughter, Jennette Walker (11 September 1902 – 17 June 2009), lived to be 106.

Cage passed away in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA, on 3 September 1984. Her newspaper obituary highlighted that at the age of 100 in 1974, she had 1,037 descendants, noting that the family was unable to calculate how many descendants had been born in the 10 years following that period. Her daughter Jeanette reported that 18 months prior to her passing, she lapsed into a coma for two days and two nights. Upon awakening, she never fully recovered.

RECOGNITION

At the time of passing, she was likely the oldest living person in the U.S. state of Louisiana.

Her age was verified by Okiku S., an anonymous researcher, Jimmy Lindberg, and Stefan Maglov, and validated by LongeviQuest on 19 December 2023.

ATTRIBUTION

* “993 Descendants Wish Her Well” – The Advocate (Baton Rouge), 8 June 1979

* “Funeral services set for 110-year-old woman” – The Advocate (Baton Rouge), 6 September 1984

* “Baton Rouge Woman Dead At Age 110” – The Daily Advertiser, 6 September 1984

GALLERY

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