KENT- Putnam County is now 214 years old, and what better way to celebrate the occasion that a grand opening of the county’s Veterans Museum at the Putnam Veterans Memorial Park in Kent.
County Executive Kevin Byrne described the project as a “team effort with contributions from the Putnam Historian’s Office, Veterans Service Agency, Department of Public Works, Parks Division, Planning Department and Joint Veterans Council.”
Byrne also thanked Assemblyman Matt Slater for securing $50,000 in state grant funding that helped offset a major portion of the project’s cost.
In recognition of his efforts, Slater received the 2026 Exemplary Public History Award during the museum’s ribbon-cutting ceremony.
Founded in 1812 from part of Dutchess County, Putnam County was named for Israel Putnam, a hero of the French and Indian War and a general in the American Revolutionary War.
Putnam is one of the most affluent counties in America, ranked 21st by median household income and 43rd by per-capita income, according to the most recent American Community Survey.
The new museum holds many pieces of Putnam’s proud history. It is well known that Putnam played a critical role in the Revolutionary War but it also played an important role in the Civil War since one third of the county’s men between the ages of 15 and 55 served in the military during the war years.
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