Kent was part of a prominent nationalist family in Castlelyons, County Cork. They were prepared to take part in the Easter Rising, but when the mobilization order was countermanded, they stayed home. The rising nevertheless went forward in Dublin, and the RIC was sent to arrest well-known sympathizers throughout the country (including, but not limited to, known members of the Irish Republican Brotherhood, Sinn Fein, and the Irish Volunteers). When the Kent residence at Bawnard House was raided they were met with resistance from Thomas and his brothers Richard, David, and William. A gunfight lasted for four hours, in which an RIC officer was killed and David was seriously wounded. Eventually the Kents were forced to surrender, although Richard made a last minute dash for freedom and was fatally wounded.
Thomas and William were tried by court martial. William was acquitted, but Thomas was sentenced to death and executed by firing squad on May 9, 1916. Apart from the singular case of Roger Casement, Thomas Kent was the only person outside of Dublin to be executed for his role in the events of Easter Week.
Locals think of Kent County as "quintessentially rural," and the community displays a grace and fluidity almost unknown in today's hurried marketplace.
It was founded in 1782 with the help of George Washington, who gave his name and 50 guineas in appreciation of Kent County's supplying flour to his troops, as well as the patriotic acts of our citizens during the War.
As George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison traveled from Virginia to Pennsylvania, they came ashore in picturesque Rock Hall (eight known times for George to be exact) on the Annapolis Ferry, then journeyed by horse north to Philadelphia to hammer out American Independence.
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