Daniel Kent

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(88).Capt. Daniel Kent, (Ebenezer, Ebenezer, Ebenezer, John1 Richard), brother to the preceding and third child of Ebenezer and Esther (Stone) Kent, was born Jan. 6, 1777, in Leicester, Mass. He married 1st June 6, 1805, in Leicester, Ruth, daughter Capt. Samuel b. Mar. 8, 1749, and Ruth (Baldwin) Watson, b. Apr. 8, 1751, m. Jan. 28, 1773, of Leicester. She was born Feb. 21, 1781, in the west part of the town about half a mile north of the Great Road. She died in Leicester, Mass., May 24, 1828, aged 47y, 3m, 3d. He married 2d Mrs. Miranda Cunningham, June 3, 1829. She was the widow and 2d wife of Reuben Cunningham and a daughter of Jabez and Eunice (Goodnow) Ayres, and was born in New Braintree, Mass., May 8, 1795. She died in Leicester, Mass., Dec. 21, 1861,aged 66y, 7m, 13d. He died May 11, 1849, aged 72y, 4m, 5d, where his grandfather and father lived and died about one and one-half miles northeasterly from the meeting-house in Leicester.

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Capt. Daniel Kent was one of the more prominent men of the town and had quite a military taste and was elected on the 13th of Dec, 1808, to be a Capt. of a Company in the First Regiment of Infantry in the 1st Brigade and 7th Division of the Militia of Mass. Jan 30, 1812, he at his own request was honorably discharged from the office. In Nov. 1810, he and Capt. Samuel Watson 2d, David Livermore and William Prouty, upon complaint by Lieut. Colonel John Brigham, were put upon trial by Court Martial holden at the County Court House at Worcester, for disobedience of orders. 1 he complaints were all alike in each case and were as follows: 1st Specification. For that your complainant in the month of July last past having received Brigade orders directing him to call out the Regiment under his command for Regimental Review and Inspection on Wednesday, the 12th day of September, 1810. August 1st, 1810, the orders were transmitted to the aforesaid Captains, directing them t0 call out the companies under their command to meet at the South Meeting House in Worcester, Sept. 12th, 1810, at 9 o'clock a. m., and there to wait further orders, and the aforesaid Captains having received said orders did refuse and neglect to obey the same inasmuch as they did neglect to issue any orders for the meeting of their companies for any of the aforesaid purposes and did refuse to appear themselves as by said orders directed. The 2d Specification was in short that they tried and did use their influence with the men under their command not to obey the order to meet at Worcester, Sept. 12, 1810. The 3d Specification was that as they had done as above stated they be put under arrest to answer to the aforesaid complaints and such other or others as may be legally exhibited against them. The above was the general tenor of the complaint and was addressed to Jonathan Davis, Esq., Major General of the 7th Division of the Commonwealth of Mass. They were put upon trial before Major Levi Lincoln, Jr., Judge Advocate of the 7th Division. Major General Davis also gave the names of President, 14 members, and a Marshall, as constituting the Court to try the several cases, each one to be tried separately. Capt. Watson was tried 1st, Capt. Livermore 2d, Capt. Daniel Kent 3d, Capt. Prouty 4th. They were all found guilty of the 1st Specification, not guilty on the others, and their sentence, except in the case of Capt. Kent's case, was to be removed from office, to be disqualifled for and incapable of holding any military office for the term of one year. Capt. Kent's sentence was simply to be reprimanded in orders. That they were all good officers and intended no wrong, but on the contrary presumed they were in the right. The trouble came from Colonel Brigham's ordering the Review to take place at Worcester, as they felt he had no right to require them by law to meet so far from the center of the men and ground, as the law had just been reconstructed with reference to this particular point and they thought it might as well be settled then as at any future time, and so all except Capt. Kent neglected to warn the men of their companies. Capt. Kent, although he agreed with the other Captains, felt disposed (to use his own words) to obey the orders of my Superior Officer. In all cases and on all occasions my language has been I mean to obey the orders of Col. Brigham, I mean my Company shall muster with the Regiment. That was my mind from first to last, and my feelings have been very much wounded that I could not carry into effect my honest intentions. I was bold in my assertion at Spencer that I would attend the muster, although a large assembly of Inhabitants were trying to dissuade me. I did on the sixth day of September last, issue my orders in good faith to one of my Sergeants and one of my Corporals to call out the company under my command to meet at the South Meeting House in Worcester on Wednesday, Sept. 12, at nine o'clock. The day after I issued said orders I was called from home on a journey and did not return until to late to issue new orders. And indeed had I kept myself at home I should not have known but my Sergeant had executed my orders, for he tells you that he intentionally kept from me his design until too late for me to remedy the evil. Three days only previous to the muster I found myself in this dilemma, either I must stay at home or appear on the muster ground without my command. I communicated my situation to Colonel Brigham, and as I thought took his advice thereon. He asked me if I did not think I should feel disagreeably in taking my place without any command, intimating as I thought, that I had better stay at home, and I governed myself accordingly. I have done all in my power to do for the purpose of carrying into effect the orders of my commandant. For the disobedience of my Sergeant I fined him Fifteen Dollars. Certain I am I have been guilty of no intentional crime. I did not undertake to judge of the legality or illegality of the Colonel's orders. I chose rather to obey them and leave this question for others to decide. If I have erred it was an error of the head and not of the heart, and for which I am confident you will say I am not guilty. Signed: Daniel Kent, And was presented to the Judge Advocate and by him read to the Court. His sentence was as before stated, viz: To be reprimanded in orders. The proceedings of the Court, Evidence, Opinions and Judgements were forwarded by Levi Lincoln, Judge Advocate of this 7th Division, to the Honorable Jonathan Davis, Esq., Major General of the Division, and he after due deliberation ordered the reassembling of the Court Martial on Monday, the 4th day of February, 1811, at precisely eleven of the clock a. m. At which time the Judge Advocate read a letter from Major General Davis to the following import, viz: That while he was highly pleased with the mode and manner of their proceedings, yet there was one thing that lay heavy on his mind, and that was the degree of punishment on Watson, Livermore and Prouty. He stated that there were three kinds of punishment specified which are left to the discretion of Court Martials, viz: Reprimand in orders, removal from office, and if removed from office, disqualification for a term of years as for life and further said the least punishment that you could have adjudged was a reprimand in orders, and that after due consideration he advised and that they should substitute in place of their former sentence. The Court however did not see fit to alter their former decision, and so informed the Major General, and he again under head of Division Orders, Headquarters Oxford, Mass., Feb. 9, 1811, deemed it his indispensable duty to reassemble this Hon. Court in order to lay before them such communication as corresponded with his opinion on the subject, and further says this Hon. Court having been reassembled pursuant to his order on the 4th instant, and decided that they will adhere to their former decision, he is compelled to enforce his own opinion. The Major General most sincerely regrets that a necessity for variance in opinion between this Hon. Court and himself should exist. But impelled by his oath of office and an imperious sense of duty, he feels himself compelled and does hereby disapprove the same. The Court Martial is hereby dissolved and the foregoing defendants, Captains Samuel Watson 2d, David Livermore, Daniel Kent and William Prouty are also hereby discharged from their arrest. By order or the Major General of the 7th Division.

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We will now give a short history of Capt. Daniel Kent's life, copied from a manuscript of a near relative and written at Leicester, Mass., soon after Capt. Kent's first wife's decease.

"Capt. Kent received good paternal instruction in his youthful days. His health was not good while young. He was employed in assisting to cultivate his father's farm until he was eighteen or twenty. He was then employed by Mr. Pliney Earle of Leicester to learn the card making business. This he followed until his health failed him. His weakness and paleness excited fears in the bosoms of his parents and friends that death would soon select him for its victim. He was advised to take a trip to the salt water by his physician, and August 1798, he, with his mother, went to Lynn, Mass., where he soon regained his health, and they returned home. But in a short time again was again brought low and again returned to Lynn, where he remained until his health was restored, and he again resumed his trade and not long after this he was married. In about seven months from this time his father and mother were taken sick and they went home to care for them. Heaven now appeared to frown upon this family. A brother, sister, himself and wife were all taken sick and brought nigh unto death, and owing to the great depth of snow and extreme cold weather this sick family suffered much, and it was said to have been the sickest family ever in the town. They all recovered except their aged parents. (The writer does not say what the sickness was). Capt. Daniel settled the estate and took the farm, and for over twenty years enjoyed almost uninterrupted health. He was now soon to feel more affliction. His dear wife passed away May 24, 1828, after a distressing sickness of about six months of quick consumption. Beloved and lamented, not by her family alone, but by all who knew her." I have copied only a small portion of the manuscript. Wish I had room to copy it entire. It will have been seen that Capt. Daniel Kent married again and had other children, and lived and died, honored and respected by all, upon the old farm where his father and grandfather had lived and died, and where his second wife also died.

The children of Capt. Daniel and Ruth (Watson) Kent, his first wife, all born in Leicester, Mass., and were: 128. 1, William Stone, b Feb. 6, 1806, m. 1st Jan. 11, 1831, Mary Howard, m. 2d Oct. 3, 1847, Mrs. Louisa Beers. 129. 2, Samuel Watson, b. Jan. 21, 1808, m. May 19, 1835, Clarrisa Watson of Leicester 130. 3, Daniel Waldo, b. May 5, 1810, m. Apr. 9, 1839, Harriet M. Grosvenor. 131. 4, Caroline Calista, b. Mar. 19, 1812, m. Feb. 22, 1848, Levi C Clapp of Worcester. 132. 5, Melinda Watson, b. Nov. 29, 1813, m. Apr. 14, 1835, Dana Hyde Fitch of Leicester. 133. 6, James Draper, b. Sept. 20, 1815, m. 1st Mar. 24, 1841, Maria Bourne, m. 2d Dec. 15, 1857, Jennie Hollister. 134. 7, Esther Stone, b. Sept. 1, 1817, m. May 10, 1842, Rufus Holman of Millbury, Mass. The children of Capt. Daniel and Mrs. Miranda (Cunningham) Kent, all born in Leicester, and were: 135. 8, Ruth Watson, b. Mar. 31, 1830, d. Apr. 19, 1833, aged 3y, om, 18d. 136- 9, John Davis, b. Apr. 28, 1834, d. July 30, 1838, aged 4y, 3m, 2d. 137. 10, Edward Everett, b. May 5, 1836, m. Feb. 20, 1862, Sarah Rice Proctor.