Plympton Cyrus Kent (1905-1972)

From the Kennebec Journal, June 15, 1946.

  Following the article on Kennebec County's Ernfrid Jacob Crosby, another oddly named representative from that county is profiled, Plympton Cyrus Kent. Equally as obscure as the man who preceded him, Kent owned a "retail meat and grocery store" at the time of his election to the Maine state legislature in 1946. Born in Benton, Maine on June 26, 1905, Plympton C. Kent was the son of Charles and Bertha (Roundy) Kent. 

  Little information could be found on Kent's early life or education, and on December 25, 1926, he married Angelina Perry, with who he had two children, Plympton Jr and Shirley. The owner and operator of Kent's Market in Gardiner, Maine for nearly thirty years, his business added a meat market in 1935, necessitating a move to a larger building.  A resident of Randolph, Maine beginning in 1930, he was a parishioner at the United Methodist Church of Benton and held memberships in the Hermon Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons, the Kora Temple Shriners of Lewiston, and the International Order of Oddfellows. 

  After years of prominence in the Kennebec County business community, Plympton Kent entered politics in April 1946 when he announced his candidacy for the Maine House of Representatives. Hoping to represent his hometown of Randolph, Kent won the election that November and during the 1947-49 term was a member of the Salaries and Fees committee. Reelected in November 1948, Kent served on one new committee, State Hospitals. After his reelection, Kent was profiled in the Waterville Morning Sentinel, where he is mentioned as an incorporator of the Gardiner Savings Institution, a board member of the Gardiner Board of Trade, and a member of the Gardiner Driving Club, This paper further notes his dealing in livestock in connection with his meat market.

From the Kennebec Journal, June 13, 1946.

  Following the 1949-50 session Plympton Kent announced his candidacy for the state senate on the Republican ticket, running on the slogan "A Businessman for a Business Job". One of three candidates running in that year's primary, Kent lost out that June to Gardiner farmer Foster Tabb, who polled 1,000 more votes. 

  Several months after his defeat Kent was reelected as president of the Gardiner Driving Club, a harness racing group. He was reelected to a fourth term as president in December 1952 and later retired from his meat market business. Plympton Kent died unexpectedly at his home in Randolph on June 13, 1972, shortly before his 67th birthday. He was survived by his wife and children and was interred at the Richmond Cemetery.