The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1906-04-19
WORLDS OLDEST WOMAN.

States constitution was yet un-
written and the nation unborn.
there came into the world on a
farm near Knoxville, Tenn, a girl
baby destined to witness the mar
velous changes that have since
transformed the world and to sur
vive out of the old time into ours.
The child had learned to lisp when
Washington was President in the
Eighteenth century, still lives to
talk of President Roosevelt in the
Twentieth century and eyes that
a hundred years ago looked low
ingly upon her first born, today
smiles with fading light upon
the "child of her old age" a wo-
man now past IS.
Mary Ramsey Woods was born
as Mary Ramsey, on May 20, 1877.
Now in her 10th, year she lives in
Portland, Ore, and still quite ac-
tive and maintains a lively inter-
est in the world and its doings.
Daily she walks about the garden
or sits on the porch in sunny
weather, to chat or sew, or to live
over i'll memory scenes of long ago.
And what memory is'hers. She
was tiny maid when the French
Revolution was dyeing the cutters
OF Paris red; she was laughing
school girl of 7 when Tennessee
was admitted to the Union; she
was a blushing bride when the
great Napoleon coded Louisiana to
the United States, aud a proud
young mother when Lewis and
Clark trampcd over a continent
to where rolls the Oregon" And
she well remembers her father
taking down his old gun, shout
dering his blankets and going out
to fight the battles of his country
in the war of 1912.
Though probably the oldest wo-
man III the world, her intellect is
still bright and keen, as is shown by
the fact this last summer her testi,
mony decided a lawsuit and settled
the title to property which was
decided over forty years ago. Her
answers were to the point and eff
fort TO confuse her were unavail-
ing She testified regarding min
ute details, showing that the years
have not dulled her recollection.
Mary Ramsey Woods comes of
good old English stock. Her an
cestors were all long,lived people.
Her parents came from England
just after their marriage and push
ed through the Carolinas to Ten
nessee, where they settled upon a
farm that was afterward the scene
of the decisive battle of the Pudu-
dab Indian war. Here the couple
settled and their children were born
and reared. There were five girls
and three boys in the family, and
Mary was the sixth child, accord
ing to the old family Bible, Kate
Ramsey, the mother, died after a
few hours illness, at the age of
no, sixty-fve years ago. The
day before her death she had walk
ed distance of five miles, knit
ting all the way, as was her Gus
tom. A few years before, the
father, Richard Ramsey, had dead
from heart disease. He was a
brick maker and contractor and
burned the brick used and built
the first brick house in Knoxville.
When Mary was ten years old
she Joined the Methodist Episcopal
church South. For Io6 years she
has been a communicate and IS
still a devoted Methodist. Her
folks were Well-to-do, were slave
owners and possessed considerabl,
property. She was married at the
age of II to Jacob Lemons, a pros
porous farmer, and the couple lived
happily together in their Tennes-
see home for many years. She
was left a widow seventy-th three
years ago, about the time Andrew
Jackson was nearing the end OF
his first term as President. -Four
childen were born to the couple,
Mary J. Lemon, who died in Ten.