Moss Kent (April 3, 1766 – May 30, 1838) was a

United States Representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

from New York. Born in Kent's Parish, part of

Croton-on-Hudson, New York Croton-on-Hudson ( ) is a administrative divisions of New York#Village, village in Westchester County, New York, Westchester County, New York (state), New York, United States. The population was 8,327 at the 2020 United States census over 8,070 at ...

, he completed preparatory studies, studied law, was admitted to the

bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar ** Chocolate bar * Protein bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a laye ...

, and practiced there. He moved to

Cooperstown, New York Cooperstown is a village in and the county seat of Otsego County, New York, United States. Most of the village lies within the town of Otsego, but some of the eastern part is in the town of Middlefield. Located at the foot of Otsego Lake in ...

, and was a member of the

New York State Senate The New York State Senate is the upper house of the New York State Legislature, while the New York State Assembly is its lower house. Established in 1777 by the Constitution of New York, its members are elected to two-year terms with no term l ...

from 1799 to 1803 and the

New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Ass ...

in 1807 and 1810. He ran twice in

New York's 10th congressional district New York's 10th congressional district is a congressional district for the United States House of Representatives currently represented by Democrat Dan Goldman. The district contains all of Lower Manhattan, including Wall Street, and the west ...

while a legislator, first in 1798 and then 1808, losing by less than 10 points in both elections. He moved to

Champion A champion (from the late Latin ''campio'') is the victor in a challenge, Competition, contest or competition. There can be a territorial pyramid of championships, e.g. local, regional/provincial/state, national, continental and world champi ...

, and was appointed judge of Jefferson County on February 26, 1810. In 1812, he was elected to Congress as a

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. He was reelected in 1814, and served in the

13th In music or music theory, a thirteenth is the Musical note, note thirteen scale degrees from the root (chord), root of a chord (music), chord and also the interval (music), interval between the root and the thirteenth. The thirteenth is m ...

and 14th Congresses (March 4, 1813 – March 3, 1817) as the representative of the newly created 18th District. He pursued the daughter of friend and business associate

William Cooper William Cooper may refer to: Business *William Cooper (accountant) (1826–1871), founder of Cooper Brothers * William Cooper (businessman) (1761–1840), Canadian businessman * William Cooper (co-operator) (1822–1868), English co-operator * Wil ...

, Hannah Cooper. She died at age 23, and Kent never married. After leaving Congress he resumed the practice of law, and later moved to

Plattsburgh Plattsburgh is a city in and the county seat of Clinton County, New York, United States, situated on the north-western shore of Lake Champlain. The population was 19,841 at the 2020 census. The population of the surrounding (and separately in ...

. He died in Plattsburgh on May 30, 1838, and was interred in Plattsburgh's Riverside Cemetery. His father was Moss Kent Sr., a New York lawyer and judge. His brother was

James Kent James Kent may refer to: *James Kent (jurist) (1763–1847), American jurist and legal scholar * James Kent (composer) (1700–1776), English composer *James Kent, better known as Perturbator, French electronic/synthwave musician *James Tyler Kent ...

, another prominent jurist and legal scholar.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kent, Moss 1766 births 1838 deaths New York state court judges New York (state) state senators Members of the New York State Assembly Federalist Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) People from Croton-on-Hudson, New York People from Cooperstown, New York Politicians from Otsego County, New York People from Champion, New York Politicians from Plattsburgh, New York 19th-century members of the New York State Legislature 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives 18th-century members of the New York State Legislature Candidates in the 1798 United States elections Candidates in the 1808 United States elections