Covington, Louisiana
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| City of Covington | |
|---|---|
| City | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Louisiana |
| Parish | St. Tammany |
| Area | 6.9 sq mi (17.9 km²) |
| - land | 6.8 sq mi (17.6 km²) |
| - water | 0.1 sq mi (0.3 km²), 1.45% |
| Center | |
| - coordinates | Coordinates: |
| - elevation | 26 ft (7.9 m) |
| Population | 8,483 (2000) |
| Density | 1,248.0 /sq mi (481.9 /km²) |
| Mayor | Candice B. Watkins |
| Time zone | CST (UTC-6) |
| - summer (DST) | CDT (UTC-5) |
| ZIP codes | 70433, 70434, 70435 |
| Area code | 985 |
  Location of Covington in Louisiana
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 Location of Louisiana in the United States
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| Website : http://www.covla.com | |
The city of Covington is the parish seat of St. Tammany Parish, in the US state of Louisiana. [1] [2] It is located at a fork of the Bogue Falaya and the Tchefuncte River. The population was 8,483 at the 2000 census, and was estimated to be 9,347 in July 2005.
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[edit] History
Earliest known settlement by Europeans was in 1800 by Jacques Dreux. In 1813 John Wharton Collins established a town here with the name of Wharton. He is buried on the corner of the city cemetery directly across from the City Hall.
The city was renamed after General Leonard Covington, a hero of the War of 1812.
Commerce was brought here by boat up the Bogue Falaya, which connects through the Tchefuncte River to Lake Pontchartrain.
In 1888 the railroad came to town.
In the late 20th century many people who worked in New Orleans started living in Covington, commuting across Lake Pontchartrain on the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway. Population continues to grow. In 2003, Covington elected its first female and first Republican mayor, Candace Watkins. She since has been elected to a second term after running unopposed.
[edit] Hurricane Katrina
As Hurricane Katrina made landfall near Slidell, Louisiana, Covington proved out of reach of the massive storm surge; however, the city suffered devastating wind damage. Following the storm, Covington, along with the rest of the North Shore of Lake Pontchartrain, experienced a massive population boom as a result of many former inhabitants of the New Orleans area being forced to move out of their storm ravaged homes.
[edit] City Council Building fire
On the night of September 28, 2006, the City Hall and adjacent Police Department sustained heavy damage in a fire. John M. Thompson, who moved to Covington after Hurricane Katrina destroyed his home, was booked on a federal arson charge after setting the fire with a cigarette and hurricane evacuation pamphlets. The fire caused at least $350,000 in damage, and the council chambers will likely have to be demolished and rebuilt.[3]
[edit] Geography
Covington is located at (30.479002, -90.104029)[4] and has an elevation of 26 feet (7.9 m).[5]
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 6.9 square miles (17.9 km²), of which, 6.8 square miles (17.6 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.3 km²) of it (1.45%) is water.
[edit] Demographics
As of the census[6] of 2000, there were 8,483 people,[2] 3,258 households, and 2,212 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,248.0 people per square mile (481.7/km²). There were 3,565 housing units at an average density of 524.5/sq mi (202.4/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 77.45% White, 20.17% African American, 0.33% Native American, 0.34% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.25% from other races, and 1.43% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.56% of the population.
There were 3,258 households out of which 33.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.8% were married couples living together, 17.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.1% were non-families. 27.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 3.10.
In the city the population was spread out with 26.8% under the age of 18, 8.5% from 18 to 24, 26.1% from 25 to 44, 24.1% from 45 to 64, and 14.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 86.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 80.0 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $36,949, and the median income for a family was $50,332. Males had a median income of $36,434 versus $23,859 for females. The per capita income for the city was $21,438. About 11.8% of families and 16.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.5% of those under age 18 and 17.2% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Points of Interest
- According to the 2000 Census, Covington had 6 houses valued at $1,000,000 or more.
[edit] Notable locals
- Dr. George Boudreaux, creator of Boudreaux's Butt Paste
- Robert Higgs, a prominent American economist, currently resides in Covington.
- Lee Harvey Oswald, assassin of U.S. President John F. Kennedy, attended school at the C.J. Schoen Middle School, formerly Covington Elementary School, located in downtown Covington.
- Author and essayist Walker Percy moved to Covington in 1950 where he and wife Mary "Bunt" Percy reared their two daughters. He wrote most of his works there until his death in 1990. He is buried at St. Joseph Abbey, a monastery north of Covington.
- Philip Granville "Phil" Short is a businessman and a former Republican member of the Louisiana State Senate, who served from 1996 until his resignation in 1999. Short, who grew up in Shreveport, unseated the legendary B.B. "Sixty" Rayburn, Sr., in the 1995 general election.
- Ian Somerhalder, actor/model was born in Covington.
- Michael G. Strain, the commissioner of Agriculture and Forestry elect. Having won the seat from 28-year incumbent Robert Fred "Bob" Odom.
- Richard L. Williams Jr, Born May 13, 1964 in New Orleans, Louisiana is a former Covington High School Class of 1982 football star and Tulane University football player and graduate. Now a Sales Representitive for Butler Animal Health Supply and high school football coach at American Heritage School. (former resident)
- Coloratura sopranist Elizabeth Futral was reared in Covington. Her father was minister of Covington First Baptist church for many years. She has performed the lead roles in operas in major U.S. cities as well as in Europe.
[edit] Movies filmed in Covington
- 1995 — Dead Man Walking
- 1995 — Kingfish
- 1997 — Kasi Lemmon's Eve's Bayou
- 2007 — Gretchen Zieske
[edit] References
- ^ "Covington, Louisiana (LA) Detailed Profile" (notes), City Data, 2007, webpage: C-Covtn.
- ^ a b "Census 2000 Data for the State of Louisiana" (town list), US Census Bureau, May 2003, webpage: C2000-LA.
- ^ Paul Rioux. "Blaze Hits City Hall, Police Department." The Times-Picayune. September 30, 2006. Retrieved on 2006-09-30.
- ^ US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ US Board on Geographic Names. United States Geological Survey (2007-10-25). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
[edit] External links
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