Covington is a city in

Hill County Hill County is the name of two counties in the United States: * Hill County, Montana Hill County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Montana. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 16, ...

in central

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

, United States. Located at the intersection of FM 67 and State Highway 171, north of Hillsboro, it is near the northern boundary of Hill County. It was founded by Colonel James Jackson Gathings, formerly of

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and

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, in the spring of 1852, and is named for his wife's family. Gathings secured about of land in what is now Hill County, 100 of which were set aside for the new town of Covington. The population of Covington, 168 years later, was 261 at the 2020 census.

Geography

Covington is located in northern Hill County. State Highway 171 leads southeast to Hillsboro, the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

, and northwest to Cleburne, while Farm to Market Road 67 leads northeast to

Interstate 35 Interstate 35 (I-35) is a major Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates that end in a five, it is a major cross-country, north–south route. It stretches from Laredo, Texas, near the Mexican bo ...

and southwest the same distance to

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. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, Covington has a total area of , of which , or 0.78%, are water.

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 282 people, 111 households, and 79 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 122 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 90.78%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 3.19%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.35%

Native American Native Americans or Native American usually refers to Native Americans in the United States. Related terms and peoples include: Ethnic groups * Indigenous peoples of the Americas, the pre-Columbian peoples of North, South, and Central America ...

, 2.84% from other races, and 2.84% from two or more races.

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or Latino of any race were 6.38% of the population. There were 111 households, out of which 31.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.0% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, and 28.8% were non-families. 22.5% 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 2.54 and the average family size was 2.99. In the city, the population was spread out, with 27.0% under the age of 18, 10.3% from 18 to 24, 26.2% from 25 to 44, 24.1% from 45 to 64, and 12.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 86.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.3 males. The median income for a household in the city was $38,214, and the median income for a family was $45,179. Males had a median income of $35,972 versus $23,750 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $18,874. About 13.9% of families and 9.6% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 4.4% of those under the age of eighteen and 23.4% of those 65 or over.

Education

The city is served by the Covington Independent School District. In the early 1860s, Gathings College was founded by brothers James and Philip Gathings. It quickly became the largest school in the state with an enrollment that exceeded 200 students. The first president of the college was one Dr. Church, who brought his own staff of teachers. The school offered classes in languages, literature, music, and art. Attendance dwindled to nearly nothing after the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

. Some manner of school continued to operate in the building until it became incorporated into the Covington Independent School District. The original building no longer stands, but the site is marked with an historical placard.

References

External links

Covington, Texas
in the ''

Handbook of Texas The Texas State Historical Association (TSHA) is an American nonprofit educational and research organization dedicated to documenting the history of Texas. It was founded in Austin, Texas, United States, on March 2, 1897. In November 2008, the ...

''
Gathings College historical marker
at StoppingPoints.com {{authority control Cities in Texas Cities in Hill County, Texas