NATURAL PATH FAMILY HEALTH FOOD STORE

operated at the corner of Clark and Hendricks streets where BB&T Bank formery operated.

J.S. Anderson’s store later became a saloon that was the source of an 1883 fire, and, later, the longtime location of the Bank of Covington. It is now the Mystic Grill restaurant.

The Civil War years of 1861 to 1865 began with what is now the United Methodist Church serving as a Confederate hospital. Union Gen. William T. Sherman’s March to the Sea came through Covington in July 1864. Yankee soldiers burned the train depot, a recently completed large hospital and 2,000 bales of cotton, among other things.

Years after the war’s end, on New Year’s Eve of 1883, another destructive force came through the Square. A fire started in the R.W. Bagby saloon on the north side of the square and a majority of the Covington Square was affected.

Many of the buildings on the Square were wooden and seven ultimately were destroyed or damaged, including the brick courthouse whose wooden roof and cornice brought the blaze into the building.

Construction of the new courthouse began in August 1884 and what was built continues to stand on Clark Street on the north side of the Square. A cornerstone was laid and filled with letters, copies of newspapers, Confederate money, and a piece of a rope used to hang a criminal only days earlier.

When the Newton County Historical Society removed the stone on the 100th anniversary of the building in 1984, all but some coins and a belt buckle had been reduced to dust.

The Covington and Oxford Street Railroad began operating in July 1888. Mules pulled the cars on tracks between the Square and the railroad depot along Railroad (now Emory) Street and was timed to meet all trains. It was the last mule-driven public transit in the nation operating when it ended service in 1917.

The Jefferson-Lamar Camp No. 305 of the United Confederate Veterans unveiled and dedicated the Confederate Monument in its current spot in April 1906.

At the time, all streets and sidewalks were unpaved and dust was a constant problem for downtown residents. In 1912 the city paved downtown sidewalks, though street paving was not done until 1925.

The area maintained its status as the center of government, though larger retailers like Belk moved off the square to new shopping centers along Hwy. 278 after the highway was completed in the late 1950s.

Newton County leaders’ decisions to build new courthouse and government administrative

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We are committed to providing the highest quality services and products available, including Nature’s Sunshine and Nature’s Plus for children. • Whole Food Vitamins & Minerals • Whole Body Cleansers & Detoxifiers • Natural Sweeteners • Personal Care Items • Herbal Teas • Essential Oils Professional & Knowledgeable Staff

NUTRITION CENTER 3144 Hwy. 278 NW • Covington

(Kroger Shopping Ctr) 770-787-3400

Mon-Fri 10am-6pm Sat 10am-4pm

Natural Path

2133 Hwy. 20 SE • Suite 250 Conyers

(Publix Plaza) 770-760-0433

Mon-Wed 9am-6pm Thurs-Sat 9am-7pm Family Owned & Operated