She was born February 6, 1921, in Philadelphia, PA, the only child of Frederick Carlton Sweinhart and Minerva (Schwenk) Sweinhart. An ancestor, Abraham Schwenk, fought in the Battle of Valley Forge during the Revolutionary War.
Ann moved to Loveland in 2008 after 55 years in northwestern Connecticut. She spent 53 of those years in Cornwall, in her red house on Valley Road, next to the waterfall she loved.
She was born February 6, 1921, in Philadelphia, PA, the only child of Frederick Carlton Sweinhart and Minerva (Schwenk) Sweinhart. An ancestor, Abraham Schwenk, fought in the Battle of Valley Forge during the Revolutionary War.
Ann spent her early years on the family apple ranch near Delta, CO, and retained a lifelong love of the western slope of the Rockies. After graduating from Friends Select School in Philadelphia and Wilson College, Ann worked as a passenger representative for the Pennsylvania Railroad, first in Washington, DC, and later in Manhattan, assisting travelers on board some of the famous passenger trains of the late 1940s and early 1950s. She remained a proud railroader throughout her life.
After raising her children in Cornwall and at a second home in Killington,VT, Ann enjoyed an active career in retail sales in northwestern Connecticut. She worked for the Silver Guild in Washington Depot, the Connecticut Yankee in Salisbury, the Barn Shop in Kent and Matthews 1812 House in Cornwall Bridge.
Ann was always interested in fashion, and had a great sense of style. She was an excellent cook. She subscribed to the New Yorker magazine for more than 60 years and read the New York Times every day. She loved her cats, and driving fast cars. In Cornwall, she served for several years on the Democratic Town Committee.
Ann was an avid bicyclist, downhill and cross-country skier, hiker and swimmer. She served on Cornwall's first Park & Recreation Commission, and enjoyed snowshoeing, cross-country skiing and riding her bike until age 87. After moving to Loveland, she went for a walk virtually every day and participated in many exercise classes. She was a member of All Saint's Episcopal Church in Loveland.
Ann is survived by her son and daughter-in-law, Andrew and Suzanne Peterson of Loveland; her daughter, Susan Hay Cramer of Missoula, MT; and two granddaughters, Elizabeth Ann Peterson of Denver and Katherine Mary Peterson of Irvine, CA. Several cousins also survive her. She also leaves her two beloved cats, Arnold and Cyrus, and many friends of all ages.
Memorial services will be held in Loveland on Aug. 29 and at the United Church of Christ in Cornwall at 2 p.m. on Saturday, September 26, with the Rev. L. Kathleen Liles, rector of Christ & St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Manhattan, presiding.
In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorial contributions to Cornwall Volunteer Fire Department/Emergency Med­ical Services, PO Box 180, West Cornwall, CT 06796; or Alumni Annual Fund, Friends Select School, 17th and Benjamin Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia, PA 19103-1284.
Our mother was very proud of her children and grandchildren, and we were proud of her.