Washington bridge named after World War II veteran
Tribute is being paid to a Washington native who died in World War II by renaming in his honor a bridge that carries Interstate 70 over Jefferson Avenue in the city.
The Corporal Frank J. Sworden Memorial Bridge was dedicated Friday in a small ceremony attended by many members of the Sworden family at a park on Jefferson Avenue.
Aaron Sworden of Peters Township was the driving force behind the effort to honor his great-uncle.
“I’m hopeful what something like this does is when people ride by on the interstate that it makes us remember the sacrifices those people made so we can all live in a way that we get to be free,” Aaron said. “Frank didn’t get a chance to come back from the war. When Frank left to go to the war, he probably never had a thought in his head that there would be an interstate system. He probably never had a thought in his head that there would be that concrete thing over there named in his honor for what he did.”
State Rep. Tim O’Neal presented the family a framed copy of the legislation enacted to rename the bridge for Sworden.
“It is my pleasure to be a part of this and to sponsor the legislation in order to get this done in his memory,” O’Neal said. “It’s really appropriate and an honor to be with you today and to do this at the beginning of the Memorial Day weekend.”
Frank A. Sworden of Washington became emotional when he spoke of the uncle after whom he was named. He said his father, Mike Sworden, would never talk about the war or his older brother Frank, other than the fact that he taught him how to play baseball.
“Never did my dad ever cry, except one day a year,” Frank A. Sworden said. “He would get up bright and early on Memorial Day and sit on the back porch. He would sit there for hours and hours, even after (the ceremonies) were over. Tears would be rolling. That was the only time he cried. I think my dad idolized the big brother that took care of him. I couldn’t get my dad to talk about the war or Uncle Frank. It was off limits. He buried that deep in his mind, but Memorial Day was the day to honor his brother.”
U.S. Army Cpl. Frank J. Sworden was born in 1919, and the house in which he grew up on Charles Street can be seen from the bridge that now bears his name.
During his time in the service, Sworden, of the 263rd Quartermaster Battalion, was reported missing and ultimately declared dead on April 17, 1943. He is memorialized at Tablets of the Missing North Africa American Cemetery in Carthage Tunisia.
“They never recovered any dog tags or any remains of his,” Aaron said. “He never had a chance to come home, be buried here and be given back to his parents or his brothers and sisters.”
Aaron said the family was told that he was serving in Carthage, Tunisia, guarding a facility that carried explosives when it exploded.
“That potentially is where he died,” he said.
He received the Purple Heart and the American Legion Gold Star Citation.
Friday’s ceremony also featured a 21-gun salute and the playing of “Taps” by American Legion Post 175 of Washington.