THE COVINGTON HISTORY DATABASE

The nucleus of my work is included in The Covington Database, it is a wide-ranging study into all the Covingtons that have I have found to have been recorded or mentioned initially in any of the UK genealogical sources, but latterly via the World Wide Web. Obviously it is not in anyway totally complete, as I have yet to track down all the genealogical sources known to man! However it can now be considered as a firm foundation on which to build and assist other Covingtons wishing to trace their particular Covington lineage.

The records detail all the Covingtons for whom I have been able to trace a significant event in their lives. This may be birth, baptism, marriage or death. The source for this material is mainly the General Record Office (G.R.O.) Index at St Catherine's House, Aldwych, London or The International Genealogy Index (I.G.I.) of the Church of Latter Day Saints, although many other sources have also been used, including Army, Navy and Air Force service records, various library entries, press extracts, census records, extensive personal correspondence with fellow Covingtons and extracts from their family diaries.

This part of my research also holds some detailed autobiographies supplied by the individual, or biographies from their families, in addition to extracts from various library sources about the more successful, or infamous, Covingtons throughout the years. Service history records are included for the late 19th century Covington soldiers where obtainable, as well as details of medals awarded to Covingtons in World War 1.

Within these pages you can read about a Covington who played cricket for Middlesex, two who were hung for murder, another who made a speech in the presence of H.R.H. The Prince of Wales, and of course, the talented singer/actress Julie Covington, who topped the U.K. pop charts in 1977 with "Don't cry for me Argentina" from the musical "Evita".

Amongst our namesakes we can also boast a recipient of The Military Cross and French Croix de Guerre, as well as professors, doctors, an optician, numerous servicemen, teachers, a sailor from Charles Darwin's HMS Beagle, a researcher of the Pyramids and a Canon, plus a few Mormons There is even a Mary Anne Coventon who married Prince Charles, or was it Charles Prince?

It is a worrying thought that many of our forefathers left so little recorded information about their lives for others to read and use as research after their demise. Often only baptism, marriage & death dates can be found. Occasionally details of children and service history add to their epitaph and create a slightly more enlightening picture of their life for future genealogists.

Having spent many years researching the Covingtons, it would be nice to think that future generations might have the foresight to keep a diary, be it only an annual review of the activities of themselves and their family. Unfortunately the saying "We came into this world with nothing, and will leave it with nothing" remains true and particularly tough on genealogists who thirst for biographical information, usually about the dead, who are unable to tell us their own life story now. Unless, of course, you believe in séances and life after death.

Some of the more unusual christian names that are included in The Covington Database are; Agneta, Augusta Pengelly, Baard, Barry Blue, Boyer, Ebenezer, Elias, Frauncies, Gyp, Inez, Jentylia, Lorenzo Dow, Lyma, Manford, Mordaunt, Myrtilla, Piddia, Simeon Reuben, Vertis & Willmus.

James & Susannah Covington who after having named 11 children, obviously ran out of ideas and named a daughter, born in September, Septima and a son Decimus, born Christmas Day 1839.

Horace Ernest Covington married a Miss World in 1914. This was Lily World. Sadly he was killed in action during the First World War along with another 13 Covingtons, plus 6 more who died in World War 2.

Cecil Norman M Covington obviously enjoyed The Wedding March as he married 5 times between 1933 and 1962.

Henry & Maud A Covington had 15 children, of which 12 were boys, to become the most prolific contributors to keeping the Covington name going in the UK. The U.S. record, I believe belongs to Henry Eligh Covington who between 1907 and 1940 sired 16 children, be it by 2 wives.

A more recent addition to the database has been a cross reference facility to record data on those women fortunate enough to have married into the Covington dynasty, thereby becoming honorary Covingtons!

Many of the U.S. have unusual names, at least in British eyes, as it is their custom to often include the wife's maiden name as a middle name for their offspring, hence; George Milburn, George Morse, Treadwell Downing, Oscar Brandford etc etc.

Another problem with researching the US Covingtons is the fact that they have initially obtained their surname by a mixture of normal means, either, hereditary from UK explorers or convicts, or, as is the case with descendants of former slaves, by adopting the name of their slave-owners or the name of the place in which they were born.

 ACCESS TO THE DATABASE

Due to the size of such a large database I have had to split the data into a number of pages, over 1000 in all. These can be accessed via the Search Engine facility in this site. Simply click on the link below and type in the name, place or word that you would like more details on.

You will then be given a list of all the pages that include your selected search word. Click on the hyperlink to be transported to the full entry.

For information: All those Covingtons born as a Covington are shown in uppercase, those who married into the family name are in lowercase. The Ref number against each name, allows you to cross reference with other entries, and should be quoted in any correspondence please. To help find individuals where an actual birth date is not known I have established some simple rules, they are as follows:

Marriage date known but not birth date = Marriage date - 22
Child birth date known but not marriage date = Child birth date -1
Birth date known but not marriage date = Birth date + 22

It's not particularly scientific but based on the fact that until recent years the average age at marriage was 22. I never guess at death dates and always use the terms "around " if I don't really know for sure a date, and "during" if I know the year but not the exact date. Occasionally where it is totally impractical to guess at a date I'll use the terms "before" or "after". 

My kind of genealogy is not an exact science as I rely on compiling information often collected by others. It is impossible for me to be sure that the data is accurate, because, as I do, other researchers take a best guess on occasion to make things fit. These best guesses are not pure speculation but based on likelihood, experience and, in cases of mixed data from separate sources on known reliability. As I said it sometimes isn't perfect, but why ruin a good story with the truth, particularly when the truth is not out there. 

With so many entries, the cost of downloading the files is restrictive so I can make the full Covington Database available on CD in a number of formats, MS Access, MS Word, MS Excel, or HTML. Should you require any further details on how to purchase this CD or have any queries regarding entries found, please E-Mail me at the address below and I’ll try to help. 

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If you have the time please complete the Covington Questionnaire which will guarantee you and your family a place in the Covington History Database - Please click on the arrow

E-mail to: covingtonhistory@btinternet.com

Copyright Martin H Covington 1956, updated 19 Jan 2007