Charlotte woman, who was oldest living American and had 125 great-grandchildren, has died.
Hester McCardell Ford, is believed to be the oldest living person in the United States and among the oldest human beings on the planet, died peacefully at her home in Charlotte on Saturday, according to her family. She was 116.
She out lived more than twice as long as her late husband, John Ford, who died at the age of 57 In 1963. She was born on a farm in Lancaster County, S.C., where she grew up plowing and picking cotton. She was married at 14 to John Ford and gave birth to the first of the couple's 12 children at the age of 15. Hester took care of the house, farm and the children while John worked at the local steel mill.
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