Kent family.

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Ira Rich Kent (1876-1945) and Louise "Lulie" Andrews Kent (1866-1969) had three children, all of whom were born in Brookline, Massachusetts, and raised in Brookline and Calais, Vermont. The eldest child, Elizabeth Van Rensselaer "Kenty" Kent (1913-1985), was born on April 28, 1913, attended the Park and Winsor schools in Brookline, and graduated from Bryn Mawr College (Pa.) in 1935. She married Lorie Tarshis (1911-1993) of Toronto, Canada, a professor of economics, in 1936. They had three children, Susan Hollister (b. ca 1942), Andrew Lorie (1944-2006), and Janet Hope (b. 1946) Tarshis. In 1952, Kenty divorced Dr. Tarshis and married Albert Gay, an artist. They had a daughter, Olivia Gay. That marriage later ended in divorce. Kenty earned two master's degrees, one in psychology and one in social work. She authored several books and articles for Houghton Mifflin and other publishers, both alone and in collaboration with her mother, and served as Arts in Review editor for Vermont Life magazine. Beginning around 1970, she was employed as a social worker in Hanover, New Hampshire.

Hollister "Sam" Kent, the second child of Ira Rich and Louise Andrews Kent, was born on March 1, 1916. He was educated at the Milton (Mass.) Academy, Harvard College (B.S. in fine arts and architecture), and Cornell University (Master of Regional Planning and Ph.D. in Regional Planning and Public Administration). While a teacher at Fountain Valley School in Colorado, he was drafted into the U.S. Army and served in the 10th Mountain Division during World War II. He was injured in Italy and earned a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart. He married Fifine Johnson, daughter of Marjorie and Jerry Johnson of Plainfield, Vermont. They had a daughter, Margaret Ann Kent, in 1946. Their marriage ended in divorce after Margaret's birth. Hollister next married Edith Rudd in 1947, with whom he had four children, Bruce Rairdon, Polly Curtiss, Timothy Rudd, and Nicholas C. Kent. After World War II, Hollister Kent taught architecture at Hofstra College (N.Y.) and Cornell. From 1954-1955, he was general manager in charge of site selection for Brasilia, future capital of Brazil. From there, he moved to British Columbia as director of planning for the town of Kitimat. In 1958, he became Director of City and Regional Planning at the firm of Sargent-Webster-Crenshaw & Folley in Fayetteville, N.Y. Near the end of his life, he worked in Jordan designing refugee settlement communities. On July 9, 1974, Hollister Kent, age 58, died of a heart attack while attempting to rescue his uncle on Mount Katahdin in Maine.

Rosamond Mary "Posy" Kent, the youngest child, was born on May 16, 1922. She attended the Park and Winsor Schools in Brookline, and graduated from Bryn Mawr College in 1945. She went on to attain M.A. and Ph.D. degrees. She taught philosophy at Tulane University, University of Pennsylvania, Haverford College, Bryn Mawr College, and the University of Birmingham in England. In August of 1946, Posy married Dr. Arthur Colby Sprague, professor of English at Bryn Mawr College and noted Shakespearean scholar. In 1965, she began teaching philosophy at the University of South Carolina, becoming a full professor and remaining there for the balance of her career.

From the description of Kent family papers : series VI : generation V, 1919-2000. (Vermont Historical Society). WorldCat record id: 728715670

Archival Resources
Role Title Holding Repository
creatorOf Kent family. Kent family papers : series VI : generation V, 1919-2000. Vermont Historical Society
Role Title Holding Repository
Relation Name
associatedWith Bryn Mawr College. corporateBody
associatedWith Gay, Albert. person
associatedWith Gay, Elizabeth Kent, 1913-1985. person
associatedWith Harvard University. corporateBody
associatedWith Johnson, Fifine, b. ca. 1921. person
associatedWith Kent, Elizabeth Van Rensselaer, 1913-1985. person
associatedWith Kent, Hollister, 1916-1974. person
associatedWith Kent, Ira Rich, 1876-1945. person
associatedWith Kent, Louise Andrews, 1886-1969. person
associatedWith Milton Academy (Milton, Mass.) corporateBody
associatedWith Park School (Brookline, Mass.). corporateBody
associatedWith Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616. person
associatedWith Sprague, Arthur Colby, 1895- person
associatedWith Sprague, Rosamond Kent. person
associatedWith Tarshis, Lorie. person
associatedWith Tulane University. corporateBody
associatedWith University of South Carolina. corporateBody
associatedWith Vargas, Getúlio, 1883-1954. person
associatedWith Winsor School (Boston, Mass.). corporateBody
Place Name Admin Code Country
Brazil
Calais (Vt.)
Brookline (Mass.)
Subject
Publishers and publishing
Regional planning
World War, 1939-1945
Occupation
Activity

Family

Active 1919

Active 2000

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