With a combined age of 216 years and 132 days, Lyle and Eleanor Gittens of Miami have been recognized by Guinness World Records as the world’s longest married couple. Both centenarians, Lyle is 108 years old and Eleanor is 107, and they also hold the record for the longest married couple ever. Their love story has lasted more than 83 years, starting during the Second World War, when they met while studying at Clark Atlanta University.
The two were married on June 4, 1942 in Bradenton, Florida, during a brief three-day leave given to Lyle, then enlisted in the Army. Shortly thereafter, Lyle was sent to Italy as part of the 92nd Infantry Division, while Eleanor, already pregnant, moved to New York City to meet her husband’s family and work in the aviation industry before becoming a teacher. Despite the distance and the difficulties of the war, their relationship continued.
After Lyle returned from the war, the couple settled in Brooklyn, where they had three children: Lyle, Angela and Ignae. Eleanor, always dedicated to education, earned her doctorate in Urban Education from Fordham at 69. Both remained active in their university’s alumni community and, in later life, moved to Florida to be near their daughter Angela.
Their longevity secrets and daily rituals
The couple attributes their extraordinary longevity and marital harmony to a few simple principles: curiosity, mutual love and moderation. Eleanor says they simply love each other and merge with each other.
Their little daily rituals include beers at lunch or a glass of red wine, and they once shared an evening martini after work. They loved cooking dishes from local and international cuisine together, from seafood to kale, keeping alive the complicity and joy of being together.
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