Kent, Ohio is situated in Portage County. It was part of the Connecticut Western Reserve and was divided into survey townships. Town 3, Range 9 was bought by Connecticut merchant Aaron Olmsted, who named it Franklin Mills after his son. It was settled in 1805 by John Haymaker and his wife Sally and their children Eve, Catherine, and Jacob. Haymaker built a gristmill, using the Cuyahoga River for his water-powered mill. Franklin Mills was a stop along the Underground Railroad with locals working hard to help escaping slaves. As the importance of waterways waned and that of railroads grew, the town stayed afloat by a becoming the home of the Atlantic and Great Western Railroad maintenance shops, due to the influence of local businessman Marvin Kent. In 1864, the village was renamed in his honor, and in 1867, that name change became official. In 1910, Kent's son William donated the land upon which Kent State University sits, though at that time, it was named Kent State Normal School. The school was named in honor of William Kent, not the city. In 1929, it became Kent State College, and in 1935, Kent State University.
Regular Blogs
A software consultant from Kent is the blogger who writes here about whatever strikes his fancy, including soccer, his children, movies, food, politics, and eBay auctions. He also reminds people about upcoming events such as school reunions.
https://jaymoore1756.wordpress.com/category/kent-ohio/
The official website of the City of Kent has this weblog which has varied topics such as improvement projects undertaken and scheduled, detours, budgeting decisions, neighborhood matters, and the City Manager's, in his words, philosophic ramblings.
http://www.kent360.com
Each of these entries chronicles a different athletic game or tournament played by the Kent State Golden Flashes, which is the name of Kent State's football team as well as its basketball, softball, both field and ice hockey, and every other sport the school participates in.
http://www.ohio.com/blogs/kent-state
