He settled at Brantford, where he worked as a millwright, building sawmills and gristmills in the region.
Kean served as reeve for the townships of Orillia and Matchedash from 1862 to 1869 and was warden of Simcoe County in 1868.
In 1869, with partners, he built a large sawmill at the outlet of the Hogg River at Victoria Harbour.
In 1880, he was sent by the Canadian government to the Fort Macleod area of the North-West Territories (NWT), where he built a number of sawmills, including one on Pincher Creek.
In 1883, Kean settled at Lethbridge, NWT, where he built a lumber mill and operated a number of businesses.