Edwin Polydore Seward was born in 1799, the second son of Samuel Sweezy and Mary (Jennings) Seward of Florida, NY. Edwin was a farmer by occupation and remained in Florida, New York, for his entire life. Family letters indicate that he had significant financial problems that caused great strife in the Seward family. In 1827, Edwin married Rachel Armstrong, with whom he had nine children. After the death of his first wife, Edwin remarried Mary E. Terry in 1849, with whom he had four more children. Edwin died of apoplexy, or a stroke, at his residence in Florida, New York, on April 23, 1872.