113-Year-Old Jewish Woman Now Oldest Person in the U.S.
Goldie, at age 110. Image by Clark University
The oldest American is now a 113-year-old Jewish woman named Goldie.
After the death of 116-year-old Susannah Mushatt-Jones Friday, the reported that Goldie Michelson of Worcester, Massachusetts, became the oldest living American.
Since the death of another Goldie, 114-year-old Goldie Steinberg last year, Michelson has likely been the oldest Jew in the world too.
Michelson (neé Corash) was born in Russia in 1902 and emigrated with her family to Worcester at the age of 2. Her father, Max, was a medical student in Russia who opened up a dry goods store in the Water Street area of Worcester.
She attended the Women’s College of Brown University, which later became Pembroke University, and received a master’s degree in sociology from Clark University in Worcester. Her thesis at Clark was titled “A Citizenship Survey of Worcester Jewry” and examined why many of the city’s older Jewish-immigrant residents did not pursue American citizenship or learn English.
She told the Worcester Telegram in 2012 that her thesis was inspired by her time working with Jewish women’s organizations, like Hadassah and the National Council of Jewish Women. Michelson was also active in other community groups, including one that supported the founding of Brandeis University.
Michelson has remained in Worcester ever since. She credits her longevity to walking.
The oldest person on earth is now 116-year-old Italian Emma Morano-Martinuzzi, according to the Daily News.
“It never occurred to me that I would live this long,” Michelson told Clark University’s magazine in 2012. “I just went on and on, and I’ve loved it.”
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we still need 300 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Only 300 more gifts needed by April 30
