Electricity Rates in Kent, OH

History of Kent

The region was originally inhabited by Native Americans, including the early Mound Builders. Around 1780, Captain Samuel Brady achieved notoriety for his activities in the area, including his leap of 21 feet (6 m) over the Cuyahoga River to avoid capture by a Native band. The site, known as Brady's Leap, is now a city park. Settlement by Europeans began in the late 1790s and early 19th century. As part of the Connecticut Western Reserve, the area was divided into survey townships in 1798 and almost all of what is now Kent was originally part of Town 3 Range 9, which would eventually be known as Franklin Township. Aaron Olmsted, a wealthy Connecticut merchant, had purchased the 16,000-acre (6,500 ha) township and named it for his son Aaron Franklin Olmsted.Franklin Township was surveyed in 1803 and settled in November 1805 when John and Sally Haymaker and their three children moved west from Warren to the banks of the Cuyahoga River. They were joined by John's brother George and their father Jacob Haymaker and their families early the next year, and built a gristmill in 1807. Initial growth in the area was slow, but eventually two small villages developed due to the potential for power generated by the Cuyahoga River to be used in gristmills and manufacturing. The first village, known as Franklin Mills, or locally as the "Lower Village", developed mostly around the original Haymaker property.

Kent by the Numbers

Population

37,889

Median Age

33.6 yrs

Median Household Income

$57,415/yr

Median Home Value

$216,000

Homeownership Rate

52%

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates (2023)