Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use

The copyright status of this collection is unknown. Copyright restrictions may apply. Contact Special Collections and University Archives for assistance in determining the use of these materials.

Reproduction or digitization of materials for personal or research use can be requested using our reproduction/digitization form: http://bit.ly/scuareproduction . Reproduction or digitization of materials for publication or exhibit use can be requested using our publication/exhibition form: http://bit.ly/scuapublication . Please contact Special Collections and University Archives (specref@vt.edu or 540-231-6308) if you need assistance with forms or to submit a completed form.

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for research.

Existence and Location of Copies

Some of this collection has been digitized and is available online.

Preferred Citation

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [identification of item], [box], [folder], James Randal Kent Papers, Ms1987-031, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Source of Acquisition

The collection was donated to Special Collections and University Archives over several accruals from 1987 to 1990.

Processing Information

The processing, arrangement, and description of the James Randal Kent Papers was completed in 2001.

Biographical Note

James Randal Kent was born on October 23, 1792, to Joseph and Margaret McGavock Kent in Virginia. He married Mary Cloyd Kent, the daughter of Gen. Gordon and Elizabeth McGavock Cloyd. Gordon Cloyd left a tract of land along the New River know as Buchanan's Bottom to Mary and James. They moved there and lived at first in the old Trigg house. Later, they built Kentland mansion, which stands to this day. James and Mary Kent had five daughters, Elizabeth Cloyd, born 1819, Sarah James, born 1822, Mary Louisa, born 1824, Cynthia, born 1827, and Margaret Gordon, born 1840.

James Randal Kent was an enslaver, landowner, and farmer in Montgomery and Pulaski counties, Virginia. He also held several minor public offices including Sheriff of Montgomery County from 1822 to 1823 and served as a Justice and a land surveyor. Throughout the 1830s and 1840s, Kent bought up land; he owned around 8,000 acres in 1860. In 1855, construction began on a resort at Montgomery White Sulphur Springs, a hotel that later served as a hospital during the American Civil War. In 1860, James Randal Kent became a founder of the Preston and Olin Institute, a Methodist school in Blacksburg that was the predecessor to present day Virginia Tech. He was among the wealthiest men in Montgomery County with an estimated wealth of $196,000.

During the Civil War, Kent was a staunch supporter of the Confederacy and slavery, and he enslaved more than 100 people at the start of the war. He served as an organizer for the Confederate Army, as well as a supplier of foodstuffs, providing grain and beef to the Confederate Army all the way up to the day Gen. Robert E. Lee surrendered at Appomattox in 1865. Though Kentland survived the war, many barns and out-buildings were burned, including the plantation office with the majority of Kent's personal papers, and in 1867 his land was valued at 41% less than it had been in 1860. James Randal Kent died on May 29, 1867.

Scope and Contents

The collection includes court records, correspondence, titheables to the Sheriffs of Montgomery and Pulaski counties, photographs, court summons, and other notes concerning Kent's property (Kentland), his business affairs, and estate. The collection also includes a letter from Kent at Bank of Blacksburg to William H. MacFarland of Richmond, Virginia.

Arrangement

The collection is arranged in chronological order.

Related Material

See the following materials related to the Kent family, which are also at Virginia Tech Special Collections and University Archives:

Black, Kent, and Apperson Family Papers, Ms1974-003

Elizabeth Kent Adams Papers, Ms1990-045

Bell, Kent, Cloyd, Withrow Family Collection, Ms2008-040

"Whitethorne Photographs of Kentland for Margaret K. Cowan" Photograph Album, Ms2021-020

Francis Bell Letter, Ms2024-088

Subjects and Indexing Terms

• Blacksburg (Va.)
• Kent family
• Kentland Farm
• Local/Regional History and Appalachian South
• Montgomery County (Va.)

Rights Statement for Archival Description

The guide to the James Randal Kent Papers by Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, is licensed under a CC0 ( https://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/public-domain/cc0/ ).