[Deathwatch] George Rene Francis, oldest living man in America, 112

[Deathwatch Central]

SACRAMENTO, CA - Sacramento's George Rene Francis, officially
recognized as the oldest living man in America and the joint
second-oldest living man in the world, died this weekend at 112 years
old.

Francis, who lived in Sacramento's Eskaton Care Center Greenhaven
retirement community, passed away Sunday after being hospitalized
recently for heart problems.

After living through 19 U.S. presidencies, Francis, who just last month
celebrated the election of Barack Obama as president after living
through six decades of Jim Crow laws, told News10 last month that he
was thrilled to be able to cast a vote for a black president.

"I voted for a black man," said Francis. "I made up my mind when they
put him in the newspaper." (click here for the full story)

Francis, whose 78-year-old daughter Lelia LaRue helped him fill out his
absentee ballot, never thought he would see an African-American become
president. Born in New Orleans in June 1896, Francis said he felt the
sting of Jim Crow laws in the segregated South.

"When my dad left the house, my mom didn't know if he was coming back
dead or alive," LaRue explained. "He was the kind of man who wasn't
going to let anybody call him any names."

At 112 years, 206 days old, Francis was one of the 20 oldest verified
men in recorded history. Francis shared a birthdate with the
co-second-oldest man alive, Henry Allingham of Britain. The world's
oldest living man is Japan's Tomoji Tanabe at 113 years old.

Many thanks to Deathwatch Central for posting this obituary