Besse Cooper Now World's Oldest Person at 114

Besse Berry Cooper of Georgia, United States, is now the world's oldest person at the age of 114 years, 158 days following the death of Texan Eunice Sanborn on 31 January 2011. Sanborn was 114 years, 195 days old at death; Cooper is 37 days younger.
Born 26 August 1896 in Tennessee, Cooper was a teacher and was thus not allowed to have children; she had her first child at 33 and her last at 48.
Cooper's age at becoming the world's oldest person has been the highest since that of Californian Gertrude Baines, who took the title at 114 years 271 days on 2 January 2009.
Cooper is currently the 56th oldest person on record, in front of fellow American Walter Breuning, born 21 September 1896, at 60th place. Breuning, who is also at 114 the world's second oldest person since Sanborn's passing, is only 26 days younger than Besse Cooper.
Besse Cooper has revealed that she thinks that her new title is 'rather great'.
Click for a report from The Walton Tribune documenting Cooper's ascension to world's oldest person.