Possibly named for Edward Healey Sweetser (1844-1916), a jeweler-turned-real estate developer who cofounded the Palms neighborhood in 1886. The case against Sweetser as namesake: the obvious spelling discrepancy; Sweetzer Avenue is nowhere near Palms. The case for Sweetser as namesake: his name was frequently misspelled “Sweetzer” in print; he was active in local government (his department: parks and trees); there were no Sweetzers more prominent in the annals of Los Angeles. I’m on the fence about this one. Regardless, E.H. Sweetser was born in Massachusetts, fought for the Union in the Civil War, and came to California with his wife Elisabeth in the early 1870s. Initially settling in San Jose, they moved down to Ventura, then to L.A., then became permanent Santa Monicans in 1888. Sweetzer Avenue was named by 1904.
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