The History of the Covington Country Club
The Covington Country Club was established in 1954 with fifteen original directors, now affectionately known as the "founding fathers." The site is the original Flowers' home. With intestinal fortitude and dedication, these directors each contributed $1000 to start. According to Charlie Noell, there were only about three or four directors that had the money. "The others, like myself", stated Mr. Noell, "had to float a bank loan to secure the money." The original membership consisted of 80 families.
The Club was remodeled and decorated beautifully during those first months. A gala Christmas open house was held on December 30, 1954 to show off the renovation and to entice membership. The event was hosted by Mrs. Jimmy Witherington, chairperson of decorations assisted by Mrs. Sterling Ruffin Jr. as co-chairperson. Mrs. Bert Johnston and Mrs. L.D. Elliston were chairpersons of the food. Assisting were Mrs. Otto Cherry, Mrs. O. J. Naifeh, Mrs. Clyde Owen, Sr., Mrs. Paul Scott, Mrs. Bill Simonton, Mrs. Odell Smith, Mrs. James Stephenson, Mrs. Max Weis, and Mrs. W. H. Wooten.
Jimmy Stephenson had selected some sturdy, attractive furniture and all Fall, while outside work was doing work on the golf course, the wives of the directors were busy inside making draperies, begging, borrowing, and as a last resort, buying kitchen and dining room equipment. One year following the open house, the membership rolls had nearly doubled to 150.
The wives clamored regularly for a pool and the directors increased their notes at the bank and built a swimming pool that opened in 1956. The first lifeguards were Jimmy and Rick Hendricks. On opening day of the new pool, everyone attended in appropriate attire, with the exception of Charlie Noell who arrived in a suit and tie. Naturally, the first thing that Bill Simonton did was toss him into the pool, wallet and all. The directors were always keeping each other in line!
When feeding large crowds, because of the space, dinners were held outside. There were big Fourth of July parties, pool opening parties in Summer, Labor Day dinners, and from the very beginning Ladies' Day. The first Ladies' Day hosted 80 guests. This enabled the directors' wives to enlist the assistance of other talented women to conduct social events and help sponsor entertainment. One of the more notable contributions was Patricia Anderson's master-minded water ballet for a pool opening party.
Max Weis introduced duplicate bridge and Nate Silverstein came out for several nights and taught lessons. Mrs. Jimmy Witherington and Bert Johnston were partners joined by about 30 or so others. Duplicate games were played several times a year and club championships were held. Now Ladies' Day is still enjoyed by 20 plus ladies and some still enjoy playing duplicate bridge.
Since near the beginning, the Club has been serving dinner on Friday nights. In the early days, many enjoyed dancing to the juke box. Although we no longer have a juke box, the crowds still enjoy the best food in town on Friday nights, along with the good fellowship of friends. In recent years, the Fourth of July festivities have been revived and our Club family brings in the New Year with a bang each January 1.
In 1966, a corporation was formed and the Club had another growth spurt. When a beer machine was installed on the back porch, many felt that they had really moved "up town!" The Club was expanded to include a bar and a lounge in the early 70s. The Club was enlarged in 1973 and the room containing the current dance floor was added.
The new directors were not exempt from trouble, "The pool floated out of the ground like a battleship... TWICE" stated Tim Sloan, unofficial club Historian and Treasurer for many years. The second time it "floated", it broke in half! Needless to say, a new pool was added and christened in the Summer 1987. This was not the end of the "pool woes." There were so many lines underground that the pool and the sewer lines were inadvertently connected. Every time they backwashed the pool, the septic tanks would fill with water. This created some really "smelly" problems that took a while to find!
Every time it rained heavily, the poor bartender would get wet because the roof leaked over one end of the bar... and, if you moved from the bar too quickly without picking up your feet, you'd hang in the holes in the carpet. These problems led to the expansion of 1988 when the new dining hall and kitchen, which we now enjoy, were ____ and the lounge was remodeled.
The Club was remodeled and decorated beautifully during those first months. A gala Christmas open house was held on December 30, 1954 to show off the renovation and to entice membership. The event was hosted by Mrs. Jimmy Witherington, chairperson of decorations assisted by Mrs. Sterling Ruffin Jr. as co-chairperson. Mrs. Bert Johnston and Mrs. L.D. Elliston were chairpersons of the food. Assisting were Mrs. Otto Cherry, Mrs. O. J. Naifeh, Mrs. Clyde Owen, Sr., Mrs. Paul Scott, Mrs. Bill Simonton, Mrs. Odell Smith, Mrs. James Stephenson, Mrs. Max Weis, and Mrs. W. H. Wooten.
Jimmy Stephenson had selected some sturdy, attractive furniture and all Fall, while outside work was doing work on the golf course, the wives of the directors were busy inside making draperies, begging, borrowing, and as a last resort, buying kitchen and dining room equipment. One year following the open house, the membership rolls had nearly doubled to 150.
The wives clamored regularly for a pool and the directors increased their notes at the bank and built a swimming pool that opened in 1956. The first lifeguards were Jimmy and Rick Hendricks. On opening day of the new pool, everyone attended in appropriate attire, with the exception of Charlie Noell who arrived in a suit and tie. Naturally, the first thing that Bill Simonton did was toss him into the pool, wallet and all. The directors were always keeping each other in line!
When feeding large crowds, because of the space, dinners were held outside. There were big Fourth of July parties, pool opening parties in Summer, Labor Day dinners, and from the very beginning Ladies' Day. The first Ladies' Day hosted 80 guests. This enabled the directors' wives to enlist the assistance of other talented women to conduct social events and help sponsor entertainment. One of the more notable contributions was Patricia Anderson's master-minded water ballet for a pool opening party.
Max Weis introduced duplicate bridge and Nate Silverstein came out for several nights and taught lessons. Mrs. Jimmy Witherington and Bert Johnston were partners joined by about 30 or so others. Duplicate games were played several times a year and club championships were held. Now Ladies' Day is still enjoyed by 20 plus ladies and some still enjoy playing duplicate bridge.
Since near the beginning, the Club has been serving dinner on Friday nights. In the early days, many enjoyed dancing to the juke box. Although we no longer have a juke box, the crowds still enjoy the best food in town on Friday nights, along with the good fellowship of friends. In recent years, the Fourth of July festivities have been revived and our Club family brings in the New Year with a bang each January 1.
In 1966, a corporation was formed and the Club had another growth spurt. When a beer machine was installed on the back porch, many felt that they had really moved "up town!" The Club was expanded to include a bar and a lounge in the early 70s. The Club was enlarged in 1973 and the room containing the current dance floor was added.
The new directors were not exempt from trouble, "The pool floated out of the ground like a battleship... TWICE" stated Tim Sloan, unofficial club Historian and Treasurer for many years. The second time it "floated", it broke in half! Needless to say, a new pool was added and christened in the Summer 1987. This was not the end of the "pool woes." There were so many lines underground that the pool and the sewer lines were inadvertently connected. Every time they backwashed the pool, the septic tanks would fill with water. This created some really "smelly" problems that took a while to find!
Every time it rained heavily, the poor bartender would get wet because the roof leaked over one end of the bar... and, if you moved from the bar too quickly without picking up your feet, you'd hang in the holes in the carpet. These problems led to the expansion of 1988 when the new dining hall and kitchen, which we now enjoy, were ____ and the lounge was remodeled.
