The borough of Kennet Square was formed from the
township of Kennet, and was incorporated in 1855. The village, which
formed the nucleus of the borough, bore the name of Kennet Square, and has been so
called from a period before the Revolutionary War. It is situated on the
line of the Philadelphia and Baltimore Central RR, in the midst of an
exceedingly fertile district of the country, at the head of the Toughkenamon
Valley.
The inhabitants of Kennet Square,
and of the township from which it was taken, are largely the descendants of the
original settlers, and are noted for their intelligence and culture. The
anti-slavery sentiment has always predominated strongly, and in the days of
slavery it was esteemed a hot-bed of abolitionism. The inhabitants,
however glorified in their sentiments, and many a wayfaring bondsman received
aid and comfort from them on his passage towards the North Star. It would
have been a dangerous experiment in those days for any of its inhabitants to
have proclaimed their nativity south of Mason and Dixon's line. Its
academies and seminaries have for years ranked high, and many youth from a
distance are educated here. The old Unicorn tavern building - said to
have been the scene of one of the outlaw Fitzpatrick's exploits - was
accidentally burned about the year 1875. The end of Bayard Taylor's
"Story of Kennet" is laid in this land and the adjoining township.
In 1769, William Dixson of New
Garden conveyed to Joseph Musgrave, of Kennet, a lot of ground 'near a place
called Kennet Square' which is the first mention of the name which has
come under notice.