Tränkner was born Elisabeth Triem in Frankfurt am Main, the most populous city in the German state of Hesse, on 11 August 1906. She lost her mother shortly after her second birthday; she spent the next two years living with her grandparents in Pirmasens, Rhineland-Palatinate.

When her father, Jakob Triem, remarried to Lina Lenzholz, Tränkner returned to Frankfurt to live with them. Her step-grandparents, Düsseldorf residents both, regularly visited her and showed her a great amount of love.

Following an attack on Frankfurt by the French during World War I, Tränkner moved to the Taunus mountain range to live with a friendly farming family. She and the granddaughter of the farmers, Elli, soon became firm friends.

In 1919, Tränkner and her family moved to Rottenburg am Neckar. The developing city was rife with rural sounds and smells, and animals freely roaming unpaved streets. Her father had purchased a hammer forge with a large water wheel. Tränkner and her two younger brothers thoroughly enjoyed playing in the grounds.

As a teenager, Tränkner travelled in a horse-drawn carriage to church every Sunday. She attended a two-class Protestant elementary school and was later trained in home economics. After a year as a housekeeper, Tränkner was employed by the Rottenburger Volksbank. Her career was cut short following her stepmother suffering a cerebral haemorrhage with lifelong consequences. She assisted in looking after the family and working in her father’s business. Her free time was spent meeting with friends at youth groups or dance class.

Tränkner’s father died in 1938. The following year, she married engineer Walter Tränkner, wearing black to her wedding due to mourning her father. The couple had two children, but Tränkner was widowed in 1945 after just six years of marriage.

Tränkner worked for a health insurance company until her retirement. She lived independently until the age of 104, when she moved into a nearby nursing home. On her 112th birthday, she was able to move herself in her wheelchair and was still mentally sharp, though her hearing and vision were declining. She was predeceased by both of her children, her son-in-law, and three of her four grandchildren. She had at least two great-granddaughters.

Tränkner died in Rottenburg am Neckar on 7 November 2018 at the age of 112 years, 88 days.