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Excerpt:
...More than ten years after her passing, controversy
still reigns about the correct age of Clementine Hunter.
At the time she was born, in poor, rural Louisiana,
no birth certificates were issued. Tom Whitehead searched
through early records of the rural churches and found
a christening paper for Clement dated March, 1887. Thus
the belief that she was 101 years old. But further searches
revealed that fifteen certificates were recorded in
the area for that same date! Perhaps a 'circuit rider'
or itinerant priest visited this tiny rural church and
christened all the recently born children at the same
time. Accepting her word, she was 102 years old when
she died on January 1 1988.
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Many people found Clementine to be very reserved and
shy, but this was only until she got to know and trust
you. I doubt she ever remembered my name. She referred
to me as the tall, bald-headed doctor but I was able
to visit and joke with her for one or two hours each
month when I visited her from the early 1960's until
shortly before her 'passing'. Her wit and humour were
still present as her body seemed to melt away.
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