’90S BABY

‘World’s Oldest Baby’ Was Technically 31 Years Old at Birth

The baby was frozen as an embryo in the ’90s and adopted by a couple from Ohio this year.

Thaddeus Daniel Pierce, born on Saturday, July 26, has the curious distinction of being the “world’s oldest baby.” He was conceived 31 years ago and frozen as an embryo in 1994, when his adoptive parents were just toddlers. Lindsey Pierce, 35, and Tim Pierce, 34, from London, Ohio, decided to adopt the Clinton-era embryo and go through in vitro fertilization after struggling to conceive for nearly eight years. Thaddeus was one of three leftover embryos frozen for an IVF procedure. The mother, Linda Archerd, wanted to save extra embryos in case she wished to expand her family in the future. After filing for divorce, she placed the embryos up for adoption. Lindsey and Tim Pierce were matched with the embryo through a Christian embryo adoption program, Snowflake Open Hearts, which hosts embryos that are hard to place. The program seeks couples who are “open to embryos, regardless of medical history, the age of the embryos, grade, or quality assigned.” Lindsey had a difficult birth, she told the MIT Technology Review, but has recovered. She says her church and her family think that ”it’s like something from a sci-fi movie.”