Kent Historical Society Museum

09/15/2026

Open Doors week is here so a quick reminder about tomorrow evening!

The Museum is open 4-7 in the evening on Wednesday! No need to RSVP or be a member. Anyone is welcome to stop by for free food and drinks and to tour the exhibits

We're one week out from a special open house party at our Museum and we hope you'll join us!

The Clapp-Woodward House at 237 East Main will be open to the public from 4-7PM Wednesday September 16th. This is one of several events we're putting on with Main Street Kent for the statewide Ohio Open Doors celebration.

We'll have free refreshments including special cocktails invented just for the event!

See our full Ohio Open Doors schedule with event details here: https://mainstreetkent.org/discover/ohio-open-doors/

09/09/2026

We're one week out from a special open house party at our Museum and we hope you'll join us!

The Clapp-Woodward House at 237 East Main will be open to the public from 4-7PM Wednesday September 16th. This is one of several events we're putting on with Main Street Kent for the statewide Ohio Open Doors celebration.

We'll have free refreshments including special cocktails invented just for the event!

See our full Ohio Open Doors schedule with event details here: https://mainstreetkent.org/discover/ohio-open-doors/

08/28/2026

Henry and Sandy Halem will be giving one tour at 10:30 tomorrow morning- Saturday - if you want to take a trip around the Kent Historical Society with our oldest living artifacts.
PLEASE RSVP -- it will help us know you're coming. Leave or post a message.

08/25/2026

Hello everyone, we're following through on a bit of a longshot request but maybe you can help!

We were sent this photo of workers at the Erie Railroad Shops, estimated to be taken in the 1920s, and asked to reach out to the community to see if anyone could potentially identify any of these people.

Happen to see a relative you recognize? Please let us know!

08/18/2026

Reminder about this evening at North Water Brewing! We'll see you there

08/12/2026

Join us Tuesday, August 18th at 7PM at North Water Brewing for a very presidential Tap Talk!

Tim Garfield, great-great grandson of 20th U.S. President James A. Garfield, will speak about his efforts to preserve and promote the legacy of James and Lucretia Garfield and their northeast Ohio family through advocacy, service, and philanthropy.

Tim, along with a core group of family and friends, created The Garfield Trail linking four main Garfield sites in northeast Ohio. According to Tim, “The Garfield Trail is not a physical trail per se, but rather a cradle-to-grave connection linking the 20th U. S. President’s Moreland Hills birthplace, Hiram College, the James A. Garfield National Historic Site in Mentor, Ohio, and Lake View Cemetery, where he is buried”

Garfield had deep ties to Portage County and to Hiram College. He enrolled there as a student in 1851. Later he returned to teach and, in 1857, served as its president. He married fellow student Lucretia Randolph on campus. In 1880, with the support of Lucretia as his primary political strategist, Garfield used the front porch of his home in Mentor as a platform to greet thousands of well-wishers during his presidential campaign. Today, the porch serves as a gateway to the story of the Garfield family.

Garfield also had ties to Kent. In 1859, he was at the historic Franklin Township Hall on Gougler Avenue when he received his first-ever nomination to serve as state senator for Portage and Summit counties.

We’ll see you there!

08/11/2026

Doug is also on our Board and is a major player in putting together some of KHS' most exciting public events. If you've enjoyed our walking tours or Tap Talks and are excited for next month's big Ohio Open Doors celebrations, you can thank him!

Cheers, Doug! 🍻

This week's featured MSK volunteer is Doug Fuller! Doug was the FIRST president of the MSK Board of Directors and remains active today. Thank you for two decades of commitment, Doug!

08/05/2026

Nice to imagine what women would be wearing walking down Kent's downtown on a hot August day.
Thanks to our university's Kent State Museum for sharing this on FACEBOOK from their amazing collection.

08/03/2026

Did someone say Tree City? 🌳

This 1957 photo shows workers from The Davey Tree Expert Company carefully moving a tree by truck through the Main & Water intersection. Nice view of Donaghy Drugs, which enjoyed a long life in the historic Shively building (built in 1839, home to Franklin Square Deli since 1983).

Does it look like the tree is going to clear the power line? 🧐

07/28/2026

Take an early 60s stroll up Water Street!

This batch of photos from our collections is definitely a treat for car enthusiasts and features plenty of downtown architecture that doesn't look much different today. Most noteworthy, though, are two buildings that wouldn't stand the test of time. The imposing Kent Block, now the site of the Hometown Bank Plaza, would burn beyond repair in 1972. The once grand Kent Opera House, seen in a sorry state in the final photo, would soon be demolished in 1963.