Thread: Old History Stuff

This photograph captures Mary Faust with her two children, “Coon” and “Sis,” in their cabin near Andersonville, Tennessee. Born and raised in Anderson County, Faust and her family lived a completely self-sufficient lifestyle, despite residing just twenty miles from Knoxville. Taken in 1910, the image suggests that Faust may have been the oldest woman in the United States at the time. Regardless of her exact age, she worked tirelessly from dawn to dusk, weaving cloth and sewing garments that provided all the clothing for her and her children. In addition to spinning and weaving, she took on cooking and other household tasks.

Her home remained unchanged from a century prior, untouched by the modern conveniences of 1910. Faust credited her long life and good health—both for herself and her children—to the simplicity of their existence. She recalled visiting Knoxville in the early 1800s, when it was a small town with only a few hundred residents. Making the journey on foot, she accompanied her husband, who enlisted with a group of men departing from Knoxville to fight in the Mexican War. After his departure, she returned alone and remained in the same cabin for the rest of her life