World's olders person Besse Cooper dies aged 116 The world's oldest person has died at the age of 116. Born in 1896 in Tennesse, Besse Cooper moved to the US state of Georgia during the First World War to look for work as a teacher. She was first declared the world's oldest person in January 2011 until May that year when Guiness World Records heard that Maria Gomes Valentin of Brazil was 48 days older. Valentin died a month later handing the title back. Besse is said to have died peacefully at her nursing home in Monroe, Georgia. When asked the secrets of her longevity she's reported to have said: I mind my own business, and I don't eat junk food. The title of world's oldest person now belongs to 115-year-old Dina Manfredini, of Johnston, Iowa More about: Death, USA