Poetic Sketches

Thomas Gent was born in Ireland on 4th May 1693 and baptised as a Presbyterian. In 1707 he was given an apprenticeship with Stephen Powell, a printer in Dublin. It turned out to be an unhappy time for Gent and in 1710 he took his leave and stowed away on a ship bound for England. In London he obtained another printing apprenticeship under Edward Midwinter. After completing this in 1713, he worked briefly for a Mrs Bradford, and then a printer named Mears. Unsatisfied with his progress he turned