A woman thought to be the oldest in Wales has died the day before she would have turned 110.
Esther Vickery was born in the year Queen Victoria died and spent most of her life farming in the Swansea area.A devout chapel-goer, she never drank or smoked and lived independently until 2005 when a fall forced her to move in to a care home in the city.
Jane Thomas, from Ty Waunarlwydd home, said: "It had been a pleasure to care for her."
Welsh-speaker Mrs Vickery was born and raised on a farm, and made her first milk deliveries using a horse and cart.
Her late husband Tom was also a farmer and after they married the couple started Pwll-y-Whyaid farm, which is now part of the Portmead and Blaenymaes estates.
The family moved to Papermill Farm in Ystrad Road in the 1950s.
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End Quote Jane Thomas Ty WaunarlwyddEsther lived a remarkable life and was always regaling us with stories about her up-bringing, her farming life and her family”
Mrs Vickery was widowed in 1964 and in 1986 she moved to a house in Waunarlwydd.
She moved into Ty Waunarlwydd care home after injuries sustained in a fall limited her mobility. Mrs Vickery leaves one surviving son, six grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren.
On her 109th birthday, she put her longevity down to her faith in God and attending chapel as well as her abstemious lifestyle.
She said: "It's plenty of hard work and no drink. But people that drink live a good long life too so it can't condemn them!"
Ms Thomas said: "Esther lived a remarkable life and was always regaling us with stories about her upbringing, her farming life and her family, to whom she was devoted.
"It was such a pleasure to care for her, and she was very much respected by the staff and residents of Ty-Waunarlwydd.
"This is a very sad time for all of us."
taken from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-15421370
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