A history of Covington,
since 1821
Postcards, papers and photographs of Covington from public archives, woven together by decade. Neighbors fill in the gaps.
The story
from WikipediaRead it all ↗Covington was founded by European immigrants to the United States. It was incorporated in 1821 as the seat of the newly organized Newton County. Covington was named for United States Army Brigadier General and United States Congressman Leonard Covington, a hero of the War of 1812.
The settlement grew with the advent of the railroad in 1845. Covington incorporated as a city in 1854.
In 1864, General Sherman's troops marched through during their March to the Sea. Although they looted the city, destroying numerous buildings, several antebellum homes were spared.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Timeline
built from the dates on the items belowFinish Covington’s story
Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.
2 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 🔁Retake an old viewA horsedrawn streetcar. Rapid tra…, 1888: stand where they stood+15 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10Famous people from Covington
See all 37 →
Covington, decade by decade
1990s
5 historic places in Covington
Covington has 5 listings on the National Register, and they protect 760 historic buildings, because Covington Historic District alone counts 601.
Where they are
When they were listed
Listed 1980Newton County CourthouseListed 1998Covington Historic DistrictListed 1974Floyd Street Historic DistrictListed 2000Covington Mills and Mill Village Historic DistrictListed 2000North Covington Historic DistrictThen & now
No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as A horsedrawn streetcar. Rapid transit. Covington Ga (1888) and it appears here side by side.
🔁 Retake this view · +15Stories next door
nearby towns’ historyFrom Wikimedia Commons (5) and the Library of Congress (1). Images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.