Basic Information
| Field | Details |
|---|---|
| Full name | Joseph Robinette “Joe” Biden Sr. |
| Known as | Joseph R Biden Sr; Joe Biden Sr.; “Joe Sr.” |
| Birth | November 13, 1915 — Baltimore, Maryland, U.S. |
| Death | September 2, 2002 — Wilmington, Delaware, U.S. |
| Age at death | 86 |
| Spouse | Catherine Eugenia “Jean” Finnegan (married 1941) |
| Children | Joseph R. Biden Jr. (b. 1942); Valerie Biden Owens (b. 1945); James Brian “Jim” Biden (b. 1949); Francis William “Frank” Biden (b. 1953) |
| Occupations | Wartime manufacturing/ship repair; used car salesman and manager; real estate agent |
| Heritage | Irish, English, and French roots |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
| Principal residences | Baltimore, MD; Wilmington, DE; Scranton, PA; Greater Boston, MA; Wilmington/Claymont, DE |
| Resting place | St. Joseph on the Brandywine Cemetery, Greenville, DE |
| Notable for | Patriarch of a close-knit family; formative influence on his eldest son, President Joe Biden |
A Life Between Fortune and Frugality
Joseph R Biden Sr’s story moves like a pendulum between early privilege and hard-earned stability. Born in 1915 in Baltimore to a family connected to the oil industry, he experienced both comfort and collapse before he was thirty. In the 1930s, debts and a lost home impressed upon him the fragility of prosperity. Those lessons would become the bedrock of the credo he passed to his children: dignity in work, loyalty to family, and resolve in the lean times.
He married Catherine Eugenia “Jean” Finnegan in 1941, the same year he lost his father. World War II brought a surge of opportunity. Joe Sr. threw himself into manufacturing and ship-related work that supported the war effort, a period that briefly restored the high life—better houses, better cars, better prospects. The postwar years were less kind. Ventures that once looked promising foundered in peacetime. He tried more than one path—aviation-related services, small partnerships, odd jobs—to keep his family whole.
By 1953, the Bidens settled in Delaware, where Joe Sr. remade himself as a gifted used car salesman and, later, a real estate agent. He spoke out when he thought bosses were unfair, yet he stayed focused on the simple measures of success: a roof, good schools, church on Sunday, and children who knew they were wanted. The extravagances of his youth gave way to something sturdier: he and Jean built a life that, while modest by measure of money, was rich in continuity and care.
Family and Personal Relationships
Joe Sr. was the spine of a tight family lattice—Irish Catholic in faith and culture, anchored by ritual and reliability. He discouraged alcohol abuse, a recurring challenge in parts of his extended family, and rewarded his children for delaying drinking. The lessons were personal: dignity comes from how you treat people when fortunes reverse, not how you act when they soar.
| Name | Relationship | Lifespan/Year of Birth | Notable details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Catherine Eugenia “Jean” Finnegan Biden | Spouse | 1917–2010 | Family matriarch; partner in every struggle and season |
| Joseph R. Biden Jr. | Son | b. 1942 | 46th President of the United States; often cites his father’s influence |
| Valerie Biden Owens | Daughter | b. 1945 | Political strategist and campaign chair for her brother |
| James Brian “Jim” Biden | Son | b. 1949 | Business executive; active in family’s public life |
| Francis William “Frank” Biden | Son | b. 1953 | Advisor in the legal and education sectors |
| Joseph “Beau” Biden III | Grandson | 1969–2015 | Delaware Attorney General; Iraq War veteran |
| Robert Hunter Biden | Grandson | b. 1970 | Attorney and businessman |
| Naomi Christina “Amy” Biden | Granddaughter | 1971–1972 | Died in a car crash with her mother, Neilia |
| Ashley Blazer Biden | Granddaughter | b. 1981 | Social worker, advocate, and nonprofit leader |
| Natalie Naomi Biden | Great-granddaughter | b. 2004 | Beau’s daughter |
| Robert Hunter Biden II | Great-grandson | b. 2006 | Beau’s son |
| Naomi King Biden | Great-granddaughter | b. 1993 | Hunter’s daughter |
| Finnegan Biden | Great-granddaughter | b. 2000 | Hunter’s daughter |
| Roberta Mabel “Maisy” Biden | Great-granddaughter | b. 2001 | Hunter’s daughter |
| Navy Joan Roberts | Great-granddaughter | b. 2018 | Hunter’s daughter |
| Beau Biden | Great-grandson | b. 2020 | Hunter’s son |
Family rituals mattered: Sunday dinners, Catholic schools, and car rides through neighborhoods that reminded him of roads not taken. In those drives, Joe Sr. found a way to teach his children about aspiration without envy, ambition without cruelty.
Career Arc and Finances
The arc of joe biden sr’s career mirrors America’s mid-century volatility—war-fueled booms, peacetime busts, and the reinvention that defined the postwar middle class.
| Period | Role/Industry | Highlights |
|---|---|---|
| Late 1930s–1941 | Early employment; family business exposure | Learned the rhythms of industry, sales, and management |
| 1942–1945 | Wartime manufacturing and ship-related work | Rapid expansion; managerial responsibility; felt the windfall of the war economy |
| 1946–1952 | Entrepreneurial attempts; varied ventures | Postwar headwinds; several ventures failed; short-term jobs to bridge gaps |
| 1953–early 1970s | Used car salesman and manager (Delaware) | Found his natural métier; known for fairness, grit, and persuasive charm |
| 1970s–1980s | Real estate agent (Delaware) | Stable, middle-class base; transitioned away from car sales after his son’s Senate victory |
| Later years | Semi-retirement | Focused on family, faith, and community |
Financially, Joe Sr. tasted both feast and famine. Wartime prosperity evaporated after 1945, and he rebuilt with the steady commissions of auto sales and the practical rewards of real estate. He never amassed a fortune, but he retired with stability—the kind of security that allowed his children to dream beyond the month’s bills.
Values, Voice, and Influence
Joseph R Biden Sr believed that work confers dignity and that no one deserves to be belittled—least of all by the powerful. He was hard on pretension but soft on anyone doing an honest day’s work. He could be theatrical—a natural salesman with a quick wit—and he used those gifts to teach. When his eldest son began to stutter, Joe Sr. didn’t pity him; he armed him with resolve, making clear that no one had the right to look down on him. Decades later, that lesson echoes in a president’s rhetoric about the middle class and the “soul” of the country.
His household was a blend of discipline and warmth. The family budget stretched, but expectations did too: show up for one another; tell the truth; keep the faith. If the early chapters of his life were gilded and precarious, the later ones were humbler and more secure, stitched together by persistence.
Milestones and Timeline
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1915 | Born in Baltimore, Maryland |
| 1930s | Family faces debt and reversals; formative lessons in volatility |
| 1941 | Marries Jean Finnegan |
| 1942 | Birth of Joseph R. Biden Jr. |
| 1942–1945 | Wartime manufacturing and ship-related work; period of prosperity |
| 1945 | Birth of Valerie Biden |
| 1949 | Birth of Jim Biden |
| 1953 | Birth of Frank Biden; relocation and fresh start in Delaware |
| 1953–early 1970s | Success in auto sales and management |
| 1972 | Shifts away from car sales as Joe Jr. wins U.S. Senate seat |
| 1970s–1980s | Real estate career in Delaware |
| 2002 | Dies in Wilmington at age 86; interred at St. Joseph on the Brandywine |
Recent Mentions and Cultural Memory
More than two decades after his death, joe biden sr surfaces in public conversation as the moral throughline in his family’s story. When his eldest son invokes the dignity of work or speaks of middle-class respect, listeners hear the echo of a father who knew both the warmth of plenty and the chill of want. Occasional features, biographies, and family profiles revisit his journey—from Baltimore beginnings to Delaware steadiness—casting him as a quintessential mid-century American father: flawed, resilient, loyal, and unshakably present.
FAQ
Who was Joseph R Biden Sr?
He was the father of President Joe Biden, a wartime industrial manager turned car salesman and real estate agent known for his grit, humor, and devotion to family.
When and where was he born and when did he die?
He was born on November 13, 1915, in Baltimore, Maryland, and died on September 2, 2002, in Wilmington, Delaware.
What did he do for a living?
He worked in wartime manufacturing and ship-related industries, then built a long career in used car sales and real estate.
Was he wealthy?
He experienced brief wartime prosperity but ultimately lived a stable middle-class life without significant accumulated wealth.
How did he shape President Joe Biden’s values?
He stressed dignity, fairness, and loyalty, teaching his children to respect honest work and stand up to arrogance.
Who was his spouse?
He married Catherine Eugenia “Jean” Finnegan in 1941, and they remained partners for six decades.
How many children did he have?
Four: Joseph R. Biden Jr., Valerie Biden Owens, James Brian “Jim” Biden, and Francis William “Frank” Biden.
Where is he buried?
He is buried at St. Joseph on the Brandywine Cemetery in Greenville, Delaware.
What was his religion?
He was Roman Catholic, and the family’s faith shaped their routines and values.
Did he serve in the military?
No; during World War II he worked in civilian industries supporting the war effort.
