Mary (Perry) Coulter Benneman/Bennaman (1769-1888)

PERRY, COULTER, BENNEMAN, BENNAMAN, BENNIMAN, BENERMAN, BLACK

Posted By: Dorian Myhre (email)
Date: 2/22/2011 at 21:36:25

From Story County Watchman May 25, 1888

Mrs. Benniman died Sunday evening aged 116 years. The remains were laid to rest the Cemetery at Bloomington in the family lot. She was one of the old residents here, and leaves a daughter, Mrs. Black.

From the Story County Watchman February 6, 1885

Grandma Brenneman is one hundred and seventeen years old next month, March. She lives with her daughter, Mrs. Black, and is a native of Maryland. She remembers to have seen General Wshington, and her recollections of events one hundred years ago is better than of those of more recent occurance. A son 80 years old paid her a visit last fall. She sent a quilt, pieced by herself, to the New Orleans exposition.

From Story County Watchman April 23, 1886

The Oldest Person Living.

The Review and Herald of Battle Creek, Michigan, has the following which is of considerable interest to Story county readers, because of the age of the person referred to, but also because it is in reference to one who has made our county her home for about a score of years, having lived at Ames about that length of time. It was written by Elder Wm Covert:

I visited a very aged lady on the 26th day of March, 1886. I will give a sketch of her history, and would then inquire if you know of another person who is so aged. I received the following from her son Peter Coulter, with whom she is now living near New London, Howard county, Ind:

Mary Perry, daughter of William Perry,* was born April 27, 1769, in Chester county, Delaware. She lived in Single life until thirty-five years old, when she was united marriage to Wm. Coulter. She lived with Mr. Coulter till he was fifty-two years of age, when he died. Several years later in life she married a man named Bennaman,* whose name she now bears. She has been living in widowhood many years since his death. Her oldest child was born on the thirty-sixth birthday, April 27, 1805. She is the mother of eight children. The youngest is a married lady about sixty years of age. I think that most of ther children are living, the oldest being about eighty-one years of age, while his mother will be one hundred and 17 April 27, 1886, if she reaches that date. She says that George Washington was at ther father's home when she was fifteen years of age.

According to these dates, she was six years old when the Revolution began, seven at the Declaration of Independence, eight when the first Congress assembled, fourteen when independence was acknowledged. She was eleven years old when the sun was darkened in 1780, and sixty-four when the stars fell in November, 1833. She is seven years older than the United States of America, and has lived under the administration of every president of this country. She has lived to see an addition of about sixty millions of people to the population of her own country.

I saw her sitting in her chair, and piecing quilts; saw her thread her own needle, and arrange the pieces with her own fingers. She plays with little folks and is a great admirer of children. I inquired into the habits of her life, and learned that she had always been even-tempered and industrious. In her younger years she often worked in the harvest field. She pulled flax, broke and spun it, wove it into cloth and made it into garments to clothe her children. She still continues to read her Bible by the evening lamp.

She has always been guarded in her diet, both as to quantity and quality. In younger days she drank but little coffee or tea, and drinks neither now; but she uses chocolate with her meals. She eats but little meat, and takes very little medicine of any kind. When she has felt the need of a remedy, she has used some simple teas of home prescription. She never was guilty of tobacco using in any form, and has enjoyed health almost without interruption during the entire period of her life. She was afflicted with a severe cold during the latter part of this past winter, but she has rallied from it and gone to work again. She still thinks it is her duty to labor to support herself, which she does by selling blocks fro quilts, pieced by her own hands, to those who desire them as a memorial of work performed by the oldest hands of industry now plying a needle.

As I beheld this lady, now almost six-score years of age, still desiring to do her part in life lest she should become a burden to some one, I felt that I would profit by the lesson. One hundred and seventeen; yet not willing to eat the bread of idleness! One hundred years since she became a full grown woman, she is till laboring six days a week! Where is there another living person of so great an age who is so able to help and support themselves?

*SUBMITTERS NOTE: According to family sources, she was the daughter of Capt. Christopher R. Perry and her second husband was John Benerman.