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Newton County, formed more than 200 years ago, has a rich history in the film industry illustrated in the mural above, located on Pace Street in Covington. File | The News
Corner of yesterday and tomorrow By TAYLOR BECK
tbeck@covnews.com
COVINGTON, Ga. — Covington Mayor Steve Horton, who has lived in Newton County all his life, said his hometown was “as close to Mayberry as I’ve ever seen.” Mayberry, of course, is in reference to the fictional, small North Carolina town where renowned television series, “The Andy Griffith Show” was set. The show aired from 1960-1968. But today, while Covington and Newton County overall are seemingly nowhere close to being sleepy, the community has maintained a small town charm reminiscent of times past while also becoming a Mecca for industry, housing and population growth. It’s a community fixated at “the corner of yesterday and tomorrow” — a phrase Horton coined around 2007. “It’s really what makes Covington and Newton County unique,” he said. “There’s a small town charm here, and heritage and hospitality are still valued greatly where that isn’t necessarily the 8 | Newcomer’s Guide
case in other places. It’s calmer and slower here. Despite growth all around you can still stand on the corner and know where you’ve been but also see where we’re going.” Horton said he hoped those values never changed. “People here care a lot about the plight of our fellow man,” he said. “We’re happy when you’re doing well and sad when you’re not. And you don’t have to see it, really. You can feel it. It was on display recently at [the city’s annual Fourth of July celebration] … I hope we never lose our compassion for other people.” COUNTY’S FORMATION Newton County was named for Revolutionary War hero Sgt. John Newton, and was formed on Dec. 24, 1821, from parts of Henry, Jasper and Walton counties. According to the online publication the New Georgia Encyclopedia, in 1821 the center of the area’s activity was a settlement called Winton at the Brick Store, a general store and stagecoach stop. The Brick Store still stands but
U.S. Hwy. 278 now covers the stagecoach route. “State law required that the seat of the new county be as close as possible to the geographical center so a site between the Ulcoufatchee (later Alcovy) and Yellow rivers was designated the county seat, and the surrounding lots were auctioned. “The new town was named Newtonsboro, but eight months later, in December 1822, the name was changed to Covington in honor of Gen. Leonard Covington, a hero in the War of 1812.” The county’s other incorporated towns date from throughout the 19th century, with Newborn settled around 1819 while still part of Jasper County; Porterdale settled in the 1820s to establish a foundry; and Mansfield flourished from about 1896, the publication stated. Oxford was incorporated in 1839 to support Emory College, which was chartered in 1836 in the Newton County town. In 1919, the college opened a second campus in DeKalb County near Atlanta
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