Which Centenarian are you most closely connected to?

Question

This week we're looking at people who lived to see an entire century come and go in the Connection Finder, starting with renowned composer and lyricist Irving Berlin, who lived to be 101.

Here are others who lived to be 100 or more years old: 

• George Burns, American actor, 100 years
• Susanna Ramel, Swedish actress/singer/dancer, 100 years
• Paul Royle, Australian Royal Air Force pilot in WWII, 101 years
• Pierre Louis-Dreyfus, French Resistance fighter in WWII, 102 years
• Marjorie Robb, survivor of the wreck of the Titanic, 103 years
• Anna Cooper, American scholar, 104 years
• Olivia de Havilland, British actress, 104 years
• Sir Nicholas Winton, British humanitarian, 106 years
• Zhou Youguang, Chinese developer of Romanized version of Mandarin written language, 111 years
• Richard Overton, American WWII veteran, 112 years

Which one is most closely connected to you? If you're one of the 26.2 million of us who are connected to each other on our big tree you can check with the Connection Finder.

You can check for shared ancestors with the Relationship Finder. Are you a cousin to any of them? Your Relationship Finder Quick Links page (see your profile pull-down menu under "Relationships") has quick links for several notable groups.

Special feature: Check out how you're connected to other notables by using the green MyConnections button in the upper right hand corner of the category page. Browse related categories like Centenarians, Super Centenarians, and World War II Resistance.

Let us know how you're related below! If you want to share your connection on social media with cousins and friends, click the "get shareable image" below the results, e.g. Irving Berlin and Sir Nicholas Winton. Then just upload it along with the URL of your direct connection. (Please refrain from sharing your connection on the featured profiles themselves, though. It clutters conversations on research and collaboration. Thanks!)

Help us with next week's US Presidents feature by helping to choose and improve profiles for it.

Comments

I am not know about most of these Centenarians, but these are those with whom I am most familiar:

Marjorie Robb and Lynden are 19th cousins five times removed

Olivia de Havilland and Lynden are 13th cousins four times removed

 19 Degrees from Irving Berlin

 21 Degrees from George Burns

27 Degrees from Zhou Youguang (有光 周)

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I'm 10 degrees from Olivia de Havilland. Her father married Mary Conner, a second cousin three times removed on my paternal grandmother's side. Mary was a nurse and the daughter of a Yorkshire farmer. Apparently she also had "psychic visions." Her life must have been quite interesting!

Answer 1

18 degrees from Marjorie Robb (8th cousins, 4x removed)
20 degrees from Richard Overton (13th cousins, 2x removed)
20 degrees from George Burns
21 degrees from Irving Berlin
21 degrees from Olivia Galante (13th cousins, 5x removed)
21 degrees from Pierre Louis-Dreyfus
25 degrees from Susanna Ramel
27 degrees from Anna Cooper
27 degrees from 有光 周
31 degrees from Nicholas Winton
37 degrees from Paul Royle

Answer 2

I'm closest to Mr. Berlin and Mr. Overton, 19 degrees each, and maybe 14th cousins with Mr. Overton. Olivia de Havilland may be as close as my 11th cousin. Very cool.

But my nearest centenarian is, I believe, my 3rd great grandmother, Mary Ann Blood. So if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go put that lovely sticker on her profile now. :)

Comments

Nice.  I have three centenarians in the family that I'm aware of - my uncle,  father-in-law & my fifth great-grandfather.

Thanks for the reminder to add the sticker :)

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Very nice. And you're welcome for the reminder. I think we may have a couple more, but I need to dig around to find them, lol. Her husband was almost one too. Just missed his hundredth birthday by 3 months.

Nice to "meet" you, cousin. :)

Answer 3

My closest is Olivia Galante at 19 degrees followed by Susanna Ramel and Richard Overton at 20 degrees.

Answer 4

Ancestors and Cousins

• 18 degrees - Richard Overton - (14th cousin, 1x) - 2 branches (9-10)
• 20 degrees - Marjorie Robb - (14th cousin, 5x) - 3 branches (11-4-6)
• 22 degrees - Olivia de Havilland - (13th cousin, 4x) - 5 branches (10-3-3-2-5)

Connections

• 20 degrees - Pierre Louis-Drefus - 3 branches (9-10-2)
• 21 degrees - George Burns - 3 branches (19-2-1)
• 22 degrees - Irving Berlin - 3 branches (11-11-1)
• 24 degrees - Zhou Youguang - 6 branches (9-6-5-2-2-1)
• 26 degrees - Anna Cooper - 4 branches (11-5-6-5)
• 27 degrees - Susannah Ramel - 5 branches (13-2-6-4-3)
• 33 degrees - Nicholas Winton - 5 branches (11-8-1-7-7)
• 40 degrees - Paul Royal - 7 branches (11-4-7-4-6-5-4)

Answer 5

16 degrees from Richard Overton. 15th cousin once removed. MRCA John St. John (abt 1429 - bef 1490).

19 degrees from Olivia de Haviland,. 11th cousin 6 times removed. MRCA Robert Corbet (1477 - 1513),

20 degrees from George Burns.

21 degrees from Pierre-Louis Dreyfus.

22 degrees from Irving Berlin.

22 degrees from Marjorie Robb. 15th cousin 4 times removed. MRCA John Burgoyne (abt 1382 - 1435),

24 degrees from Anna Cooper.

24 degrees from Susanna Ramel.

24 degrees from Zhou Youguang.

31 degrees from Nicholas Winton.

38 degrees from Paul Royle.

Answer 6

Irving Berlin - 23 degrees

George Burns - 24 degrees

Susanna Ramel - 29 degrees

Paul Royle - 37 degrees

Pierre Louis-Dreyfus - 25 degrees

Marjorie Robb - 23 degrees (19th cousin 3x removed)

Anna Cooper - 29 degrees

Olivia de Havilland - 25 degrees (18th cousin 5x removed)

Nicholas Winton - 36 degrees

有光 周 - 27 degrees

Richard Overton - 23 degrees (18th cousin 6x removed)

Answer 7

I am most closely connected to Richard Overton and Marjorie Robb at 20 degrees of separation.

• 20 degrees from Richard Overton
  • 4 branches (7-7-5-2)
• 20 degrees from Marjorie Robb
  • 3 branches (9-7-5)
• 21 degrees from Pierre Louis-Dreyfus
  • 4 branches (2-10-5-5)
• 22 degrees from George Burns
  • 5 branches (1-2-7-11-2)
• 22 degrees from Olivia Galante
  • 5 branches (1-6-5-2-9)
• 23 degrees from Irving Berlin
  • 4 branches (1-14-4-5)
• 25 degrees from Susanna Ramel
  • 5 branches (3-4-7-10-2)
• 26 degrees from Anna Cooper
  • 5 branches (5-5-6-5-6)
• 29 degrees from 有光 周
  • 8 branches (1-2-2-7-7-4-2-5)
• 33 degrees from Nicholas Winton
  • 6 branches (7-7-1-8-3-8)
• 40 degrees from Paul Royle
  • 9 branches (4-5-6-7-4-3-1-6-5)

Answer 8

I am most closely connected to Olivia de Havilland at 23 degrees.

Answer 9

Of those featured - I'm closest to Olivia Galante at 20 degrees 

But the centenarians I'm actually closest to are:

*2 Degrees - My father's older brother - Uncle Alf Curtis - who will be 103 years next month (July) & renewed his driver's license at 99 years of age
*2 Degrees - My father-in-law, Dr John O'Hagan AM - at 101 years (still living) &
*7 degrees - my fifth great-grandfather Francis Shearman (1667 - 1773) who lived to 105 (or 103).  It was said of him (or his son) that he 'Lived to the enjoyment of good health having attained the age of 105 years being able then to crack a mouthful of hazel nuts. His death was caused by an accident received from his horse."

Answer 10

Of this week's connections, the closest is Richard Overton, at 18 degrees. Overall, the closest would be my great-aunt Elizabeth (three degrees), who lived to be 104.

Comments

I'm with you.  My closest is my second cousin twice removed, who lived to 105 (born in one century, lived through another, died in a third).  We're 7 degrees separated.

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Traversing 3 centuries! Awesome!

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I think so!  
Her sister just missed out, dying aged 98 years.

Answer 11

No blood relations. The closest I am is 20 degrees from Marjorie Robb.

Answer 12

I'm 23 years from catching up to these centenarians:

18 degrees: Marjorie Robb (8/2xr cousins)

22 degrees: Olivia (Galante) de Havilland (18/3xr cousins) and Richard Overton (20th cousins)

Other non-related Centenarians:

20 degrees: Irving Berlin; 22 degrees: George Burns; 23 degrees: Pierre Louis-Dreyfus; 25 degrees: Susanna Ramel; 27 degrees: Zhou Younguang; 29 degrees: Anna Cooper; 34 degrees: Nicholas Winton; 39 degrees: Paul Royle.

Answer 13

I am both a Centenarian (born in 1919) and a WickiTree member

Comments

Very cool!

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How wonderful, Kenneth!

Answer 14

• Irving Berlin - 21 degrees
• George Burns - 22 degrees
• Susanna Ramel - 28 degrees
• Paul Royle - 36 degrees
• Pierre Louis-Dreyfus -  23 degrees
• Marjorie Robb - 10th cousin 5x removed, 20 degrees
• Anna Cooper - 25 degrees
• Olivia de Havilland - 16th cousin 3x removed, 21 degrees
• Sir Nicholas Winton - 35 degrees
• Zhou Youguang - 28 degrees
• Richard Overton - 16th cousin 3x removed, 20 degrees

Comments

Sorry the highlighting looks funky. It's harder to highlight on mobile.

Answer 15

16 degrees from the lovely Olivia de Havilland, who is also a cousin--11th cousin, 3 times removed.

More cousins:

Marjorie Robb, Titanic survivor--14th cousin, 4 times removed

Richard Overton--12th cousin, twice removed, uncertain (dependent upon an unsourced connection to the Overton family, enslaver and potential father...maybe this has or will be proven by DNA some day and can be marked certain?)

Answer 16

19 degrees from Richard Overton, who is also a cousin--14th cousin, 4 times removed

20 degrees from George Burns, no blood relation.

Other cousins in this group:

Marjorie Robb--9th cousin, 5 times removed

Olivia de Havilland--14th cousin, 6 times removed

Answer 17

The closest to me is Marjorie Robb.  She is my 7th cousin 2x removed.

Answer 18

The closest Centenarian to me is my grandmother Cornelia Adriana Rolffs

Next would be Klaasje Willempje Bosman 4 Degrees, the wife of my granduncle. 

Answer 19

Marjorie Robb - 8th cousins twice removed

Olivia de Havilland - 18th cousins four times removed

Richard Overton - 22nd cousins four times removed

Answer 20

Closest is Marjorie Anne Robb we are 8th cousins 4x removed.

Second closest is Olivia de Havilland who is my 12th cousin 4x removed.