In 1961 columnist Fred Darragh wrote in the St. Tammany Tribune a detailed description of the people and places one would visit on a typical day in downtown Covington.
Sit back now, relax, and enjoy the "heartbeat of the town" as described by Darragh.
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COVINGTON BEAT With Fred C. Darragh
Walk down Boston street -- any Saturday morning --
AND LISTEN TO THE HEARTBEAT OF OUR TOWN!
Pick up your mail and stop at the P.P. (Parcel Post) window for a package, delivered in a flurry of good-natured insults tossed back and forth with Dick Schroeder and Russell Sharp. Stop on the post office steps to pass the time of day with Lucille Glisson, whose usual cheery greeting has been reduced to a whisper these past. few months due to a throat injury suffered in a minor car accident. Assured that the condition is a temporary one, your large legion of friends are all pulling for a speedy recover, Lucille.
Wave cheerfully to Julia Stone, whose twinkling toes seem to fly over. rather than on, the ground. as she covers the distance between office and bank. Something in her return wave seems to carry the assurance that "God's in His heaven -all's right with the world."
Stop in the middle of the block to exchange chit - chat with Frank Patecek and Randy Powell, two of Covington's leading realtors who speak of deals in the hundred thousands. but who daily settle for less -- MUCH LESS. Randy was my landlord for a number of years, and Frank has been a fellow conspirator with me in many schemes and varied, to sell projects ranging from Tung Festivals to Lions' Club Barbecues, to the general public, for community improvement and welfare.
Step into the cool cavern of Tugy's Bar, an institution in the Southern Hotel since the mid-1930s when Julius Tugendhaft assisted by the late, well loved, Barney Carey, Sr., and Tony Bacarisse, quit tending bar for Sam Haik to open what has affectionately come to be known as "The Office" by a large segment of both genders of the community.
It's a bit early for the post-prandial customers who drop by for an exchange of gossip or discussion of the various sports activities ranging from bowling, through Little League ball, to Country Club golf. It's a bit early for the usual evening routine, so what do we find?
Tugy and Jack Brown sharing a shaker of coffee from the hotel dining room, as Otis Heintz jots down his weekly order, while Jake Seiler (as much a regular as Tugy himself drops by to report progress on his new house.
Joe Ward and Shelby West lend a nautical touch to the gathering. Joe, just in from a stint in the Gulf, joins happily in the general conversation. Shelby sits, silent and withdrawn, at one of the tables, darkly pondering, not where his next meal may come from, but where and with whom it will be enjoyed. A gourmet of note. and bachelor to boot, Shelby loves nothing better than to dine with friends on a fare that he usually provides.
This is the quiet time. The place will empty and fill a number of times before eleven o'clock closing, with a variety of people seeking momentary escape from the hurley-burley of the workaday world, but if you listen real hard you will begin to hear the HEARTTHROB OF OUR CITY.
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At the bank corner you may bump into Art Lemane and Dan Berlin, escaping their bank cages for a few minutes "coffee break". Their conversation may range from baby care to carnival balls. but I'm willing to bet a stale cooky that it's far removed from debits and credits.
Crossing the street to Hebert's Drug Store we get a friendly wave from deputies Anna Lee Koepp and Joyce Keifer, the most decorative fixtures in St. Tammany's law enforcement structure. They may be OFFICE deputies but they do make an ARRESTING sight in their trim uniforms.
Back in the drug department pharmacist Stanley Bridges is busily counting pills for numerous prescriptions, while making occasional side remarks to Lucille Hebert or salesman John Felker who keeps all of the drug stores on the COVINGTON BEAT well supplied with panaceas for our numerous aches and pains. The only thing to make Stanley miss count is to call him "papa", a title of which he is inordinately proud.
Passing the time of day with O.J., we pause at the perfume display which John Cannon is regarding with slightly jaundiced eye. I bring him out of his reverie by asking him to find a buyer for two completely equipped tropical fish aquariums which I possess, knowing full well that if there is a buyer within 90 miles of Covington salesman John. (who is also a minister and deputy sheriff) will find him.
St. Tammany Tribune Newspaper May 12, 1961
