New Jersey

New Jersey's Oldest Resident, Whose Secret to Longevity Was Alcohol, Dies at 112

Agnes Fenton was prescribed alcohol by a doctor for a benign tumor in 1943

She drank whiskey and beer every day for decades.

What to Know

  • Agnes Fenton was born in Holly Springs, Mississippi, in 1905 and owned a restaurant in Tennessee before moving to NJ with second husband
  • She was prescribed alcohol by a doctor for a benign tumor in 1943
  • She took heed, drinking Miller High Life and Johnnie Walker Blue Label daily for decades

New Jersey's oldest resident, who once claimed beer and whisky kept her spry, has died at the age of 112.

Agnes Fenton, of Englewood, died Thursday morning, according to The Record.

Fenton was born in Holly Springs, Mississippi, in 1905 and owned a restaurant in Tennessee before moving to New Jersey with her second husband.

AP
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Fenton was prescribed alcohol by a doctor for a benign tumor in 1943. She took heed, drinking Miller High Life and Johnnie Walker Blue Label daily for decades. When interviewed on her 110th birthday, Fenton credited the routine for her longevity.

Although old age forced her to quit drinking, friends say Fenton remained mentally sharp. Fenton always reminded those close to her of the importance of having God in their lives.

She's not the only one to credit alcohol for longevity. Florence Bearse, a 100-year-old woman who recently celebrated her birthday in Maine, says her secret is wine. 

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Young boys and homeless men on the East River waterfront south of the Brooklyn Bridge in the early 1960s. The location is currently the site of the South Street Seaport's Pier 16-17.
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A mother and her son stand on the north side of East Fourth Street, just east of Second Avenue, in the late 1960s.
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An ice vendor in a sombrero on the Lower East Side in the 1960s.
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The intersection of Delancey and Orchard streets in the late 1960s.
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Vendors and shoppers in front of 210 Canal St. in the early 1980s.
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"Mr. Purple" at the Eldridge Street Garden on Eldridge Street in 1980.
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Street artists in 1980.
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The Alamo cube on Astor Place, near Cooper Square, in the early 1980s.
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An accordion player and his audience in Washington Square Park in the 1970s.
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A mural at 500 Broome St. in the mid-1980s.
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Women on the steps of 263 E. 10th St. in the mid-1980s.
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Payphones at 36 St. Mark's Pl. in the early 1980s.
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A woman walks by 26 E. First St. in 1991.
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A man gives a haircut at Paul McGregoir Haircutters at 15 St. Mark's Pl. in 1970. The shag haircut was invented at the location, which was also the inspiration for the film "Shampoo."
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The facade of the old Penn Station in 1963. The station was undergoing demolition at the time.
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The Bread and Puppet Theater Parade on Bleecker Street in 1980.
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Orchard Street, just north of Delancey Street, in the 1970s.
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Norman Mailer campaigning for mayor in 1969.
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The skyline of Midtown as photographed from First Avenue at Fourth Street.
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A man roasts meat on a sidewalk spit.
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Lincoln Swados, the brother of writer Elizabeth Swados, in front of 99 E. Fourth St. in the early 1980s.
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A Latino church procession marching south on Second Avenue in the 1970s.
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Hare Krishnas dancing on Second Avenue in 1969.
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The filming of "The Godfather" on East Sixth Street, between avenues A and B, in 1971.
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The St. Mark's Theater in 1980. It was showing the Martin Scorsese film "Taxi Driver."
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A woman with a parrot in the early 1980s.
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Men riding a bus in the late 1970s.
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What's believed to be the Feast of San Genero in the 1970s.
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A man reading a newspaper on a couch on Second Avenue, between 3rd and 4th streets, in the late 1970s.
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People on the corner of West Broadway and Broome Street in the mid-1980s.
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