(Photo via Library of Congress)
From 1778 to 1782, Daniel Frederick Bakeman was a soldier in the Continental Army. On the final day of his life--April 5, 1869--he was the last surviving American veteran of the Revolutionary War. Kathy Benjamin describes his extraordinary longevity:
In 1867, Daniel Bakeman finally applied for a military pension, even though his service had been almost 90 years before. At that point he claimed to be 107, and was 109 when he died two years later. It's also claimed that he was married to his wife for 91 years and 12 days, which, if true, would make it the longest marriage ever recorded.
You can read about the last survivors of other major events, including the Boston Tea Party and the Battle of Thermopylae, at Mental Floss.
-via The Presurfer
Yes, it appears he has an extra finger--but remember this was a photo taken in the early days of photography. In those days, the shot took minutes--and the people being photographed had to stay perfectly still (this is why no one was smiling in early photos). My guess is that since this guy was about as old as dirt when this picture was taken (well, okay, he was just over 100 years old) his hand shook involuntarily--what we are seeing is how that shaking got imprinted on the photo.