Frederick Butterfield

Who was Frederick Butterfield?

Frederick Victor Butterfield of Harrogate, England became the world's oldest man on 5 May 1973 after the death of Friedrich Wedeking. He was succeeded by the now disputed case of Shigechiyo Izumi. Born at Thirsk, he qualified as a chemist in 1885 after training for five years. He retired from pharmacy at the age of 99, according to the 1974 Guinness World Records. However he continued to own his pharmacy until 1970, when his son died. An electroencephalogram was performed on Butterfield before his death. The doctors concluded that his brain activity was comparable to a healthy person aged 70–75.