On April 20, 1812, Thomas Rotch entered a plat for the town of Kendal. He named it in honor of a town of the same name in England's Lake District for its significance to the Society of Friends and its renowned textile industry. It was oriented on the cardinal directions (due north, south, east and west) and made up of 102 lots and two greens. In April 1813, United States Postmaster General Gideon Granger, granted a post office to Kendal, with Rotch as the postmaster. In 1815, Rotch expanded the town with an addition of 45 lots. Between the years 1813 and 1823, Kendal grew to include a sawmill, woolen factory, pottery, general store, brick yard, tannery, grist mill, powder mill, blacksmith shop and Quaker Meeting House.