Jeralean Talley: World's oldest woman dies aged 116

She passed away at her home in Michigan

Jeralean Talley, the world's oldest-known living person, has died (REBECCA COOK/Reuters)

Jeralean Talley, the world's oldest-known person, has died in Michigan aged 116.

The centenarian passed away on Wednesday at her home in Inkster, Detroit, just 26 days after her 116th birthday.

She had shared her home with her daughter, Thelma Holloway, 77, said Christonna Campbell, a family spokeswoman.

“She was just a beautiful woman,” Campbell said.

“We enjoyed her words of wisdom.”

Jeralean Talley during her 116th birthday celebration with her congregation at the New Jerusalem Missionary Baptist Church in Inkster (Image: RENA LAVERTY/EPA)

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Born on May 23, 1899, in Georgia, Talley moved to Michigan with her husband Alfred Talley in 1935, in order for him to work at the Ford plant there.

Talley went on to survive her husband by almost three decades.

Robert Young, director of the Gerontology Research Group, which validates the ages of the world’s oldest people, said Talley's passing was a surprise, owing to her active lifestyle.

“She was walking around as of a few weeks ago,” Young said.

A service in Talleys memory will be held at the New Jerusalem Missionary Baptist Church, Inkster, where she was an active member, on 27 June.

Talley became the world’s oldest person after after Gertrude Weaver died in Arkansas in April, aged 116.

Young Susannah Mushatt Jones, 115, is likely to replace Talley on the top of the list.

Born in Alabama, she is living at the Vandalia Senior Center in Brooklyn, New York, a representative for the center confirmed on Thursday.

Additional reporting by Reuters