Australia’s oldest woman Lorna Henstridge celebrates 112th birthday

When Lorna Henstridge (nee Paterson) was born on June 6, 1914, the nation’s capital — Canberra — had been named and proclaimed for less than a year.

Australia was on the verge of sending her troops overseas as World War I broke out, and the Titanic had sunk to the bottom of the Atlantic two years earlier.

Today, Mrs Henstridge marks her 112th birthday, surrounded by family in her former home in Keith, in south-eastern South Australia.

Her eldest daughter, Jennie Jacobs said for Lorna, it was just another birthday

“She says occasionally, ‘I don’t know myself how I got to be so old,”‘ Ms Jacobs said.

“We look at her in a totally different light than she looks at herself.”

Mrs Henstridge, who now lives in Bordertown, previously told the ABC she doesn’t know exactly what has been the key to her (extraordinarily) long and mostly healthy life.

The mother of three, grandmother of seven and great-grandmother of eight said she grew up in a “very different” era to today’s world.

A simpler, quieter and slower world.

“When I was a child, we didn’t have much and we didn’t want for much. My father died in his 30s so my mother — who was very good to us children — had to raise us and run the farm on Yorke Peninsula on her own,” she recalled.

From the city to a long life in the country

Mrs Henstridge (then Lorna Paterson) was sent to Adelaide to begin school, where she graduated from St Peter’s Girls’ Schhol with a mind for business and an A grade hockey reputation.

She began work with a shoe importer in the city, after completing a business course.

The then Miss Paterson met her husband Alan Henstridge, and the two married before settling in Keith to run a shoe store in the town.

“We were very happy together and had three young children, our weekends were entirely taken up with sport and it was a very good life,” she said.

Mrs Henstridge played the organ in the local church for decades, and was a dab hand with a golf club and on the bowling green.

After Alan’s passing in 2003, Mrs Henstridge lived mostly independently until she moved into assisted care in nearby Bordertown.

But for her birthday, Ms Jacobs said Mrs Henstridge would head back to her home town of seven decades to mark the occasion.

“My brother will pick her up and take her to her home in Keith for just a family afternoon tea,” Ms Jacobs said.

“She needs to keep it quiet these days, it gets a bit overwhelming with too many people.”

Supercentenarian a country community treasure

Mrs Henstridge is believed to be Australia’s oldest woman and second oldest person behind Ken Weeks of Grafton in New South Wales.

She has lived through two pandemics, two world wars, the Great Depression and 26 Australian prime ministers.

In 2024 she was part of The 100 Project, celebrating the lives of centenarians and supercentenarians, where she noted her love of people, of spending time talking with friends and of reading and watching the news.

Ms Jacobs said her mother was still active for someone of her age.

“She can still go out three times a week for a cup of coffee, and she walks every day and likes talking to people and reading the paper,” she said.

“She’s a very social person and very interested in sport.

“She supports the Crows, and loves to know what they’re doing and watch their games.”

Ahead of her birthday, Member for Barker, Tony Pasin, visited Mrs Henstridge at her aged care home in Bordertown and presented her with flowers, chocolates and a birthday certificate.

“One of the great privileges of my role is to meet and talk with some of our most senior Australians and Lorna is a very active, spritely and inspiring member of that cohort.”

Mr Pasin said he listened to Mrs Henstridge’s memories and asked her the key to a long life.

“Aside from being very involved with the community her whole life, it’s clear that she’s got some very good genetics,” he said.

“One of her great-grandchildren is 18, so there’s a very real possibility Lorna may yet live to be a great-great-great grandmother.”