How old was your great-grandfather when you were born?

We have a family member who has the unusual distinction of having a great-grandfather who was born in 1791.

Thomas Lee Combs, was born on August 30, 1947, in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Tom's father was born on January 7, 1897.

Tom's grandfather was born on July 28, 1850.

Tom's great-grandfather was born in 1791.

     Tom's father, George, was the youngest of five surviving boys, born in Stoney Creek, Washtenaw Co., Michigan. George was married to Fannie Barnum (1896-1940). They had two children: Ester and Dean. The babysitter for the children was Elberta D. Alber (1916-1979). George married Elberta on 3 Aug 1942, and they are Tom's parents.

     George's parents were: Seymour Erastus Combs and his wife, Frances J. Potter. Seymour was the youngest of six children. His parents were:

     Richard, born in 1791.His wife was Anna Coffee (or Hill) Crosby. Richard was born in England and came to the United States probably in the late 1820s or early 1830s and settled in New York. He was married to Clarissa. At some point, he abandoned Clarissa (she eventually divorced him) and settled in Michigan, probably traveling via the newly built Erie Canal. He met Anna Crosby, probably in New York, wife of Lemuel Crosby. Anna had three children with Lemuel. Richard and Anna married in 1843. They had six children, at least three were born before they married: Charles, Hiram, Alice, Mary, Almon (who died as an infant), and Seymour. Seymour was born a few months after his father, Richard, was gored by a bull and died.

     For those who are math-challenged (!) - George, was 50 years old when Tom was born, George's father, Seymour, was 47 at the time of his birth, and HIS father, Richard, was 59 when Seymour was born. A lot of years in between - 156 to be exact. Naturally, the mothers of these men were younger than their husbands. Richard's and George's wives were both 19 years younger. Frances was 8 years younger than Seymour.

     Seymour was about five years too young for the Civil War, but he had many contemporaries who served. I don't see any evidence that his older brothers served in the Civil War, but more research needs to be done. Many of Tom's contemporaries had fathers who served during WWII. Tom's father was in the very last days of WWI.

     On the other end of the spectrum: A cousin was born in 1954, she had her first child when she was 18. This child had his first baby in 1993 at the age of 20, so she  was a grandmother at 38. Her mother was born in 1936, which made this woman a great-grandmother at 57. The great-great-grandmother of the child born in 1993, was born in 1914. If she had lived to 79, they could have posed for a five-generation portrait.

     Tom's great-grandfather was 156 years older than he was, whereas the cousin's lineage had 57 years between a baby and her great-grandmother. So, I got curious about my great-grandfathers - 111, 102, 99 and 76 when I was born. None were alive and neither were any of my great-grandmothers. How old were yours?