The Ford Family

Born	September 16, 1892 Cleveland, Ohio
Died	April 15, 1959 Cleveland, Ohio
Father	William Thomas Sweeny
Mother	Mary Sweeny
Siblings	Joseph Thomas Sweeny John Leo Sweeny Catherine Grady Nora Sweeny William Daniel Sweeny Vera Grane

Spouse	Altie Viola Sweeny
Married	June 14, 1921 Westport, South Dakota
Children	Mary Jean Sweeny Edward J Sweeny Janet Sweeny

Bio
Edward Joseph Sweeny was born to a large Irish immigrant family living in the "Angle," an area in Cleveland which was north of Detroit Rd and east of W. 28th, down to and including Whiskey Island. This was a closely knit community of Irish who mostly worked in the shipyards and didn't like outsiders. It was a very poor area and even described as a ghetto. Edward's father was a ship's carpenter.

Before long new warehouses were going up crowding the residents out of The Angle. By 1910 the family had saved enough to build a new home west of the area and move to 6711 Bridge Avenue. While a teenager Edward apprenticed as a plumber and steamfitter. He worked on large projects in Cleveland, including the original Hollenden House hotel. These skills learned early in life would serve him well, especially in the upcoming war.

Edward's WWI draft record states he was "tall with blue yes and light hair." Perhaps his charming good looks, and certainly his skills and knowledge, lead him to work in Washington D.C. for the U.S. Navy, steam fitting ships at the Naval Yard on the Potomac River. Here he met his future wife, Altie Viola Anderson, at a party, and courtship soon followed. In 1919, he traveled to Westport South Dakota to marry Altie in her hometown, returning to Cleveland on a steamer.

The newlyweds lived briefly with his parents on Bridge St, and then rented an apartment at 7314 Carnegie Avenue on Cleveland's east side (undoubtedly to be closer to the new East Side plumbing and heating business that Ed founded with Ray Wise called Sweeny & Wise Plumbing and Heating). Business is good and in 1925, the family moved to a new house at 2509 Queenston Rd in Cleveland Heights. There they raised their three children, Mary Jean, Edward, and Janet.

Upon retiring in 1954, they built a new house in the East Cleveland section of the Forest Hills subdivision. The address was 15821 Cleviden. (Please do not confuse it with 15812 Cleviden, once the home of TopDog and Linda ... and the part-time childhood home of Bill, Sue, Kathleen, and Beth Ford who are great nieces and nephew of Ed and Altie!)

During retirement, Ed and Altie wintered in Miami, Florida. Edward died there at the age of 64.

Military Record
Plumber