One of the many things Covington, GA is known for is its historic homes that have been used for filming for both television and movie productions. Let’s dig a little deeper into one home in particular, Dixie Manor. This historic home was built in the early 1800s and has an England Regency architecture, it is said to be made of bricks brought from England. It is also the only antebellum two story brick home in Covington. 
Now that you know a little bit of background information about the home, let’s talk about the first owners of the home. The first owner is said to be Thomas Jones who lived there in 1840. He was one of the earliest settlers of Newton County. He owned the home until he died in 1856. Over the next decades the historic home had an ample number of owners. One that particularly stands out was Mrs. Corrie C. Wright. She is the one who gave the home the name, “Dixie Manor.” She bought the house back in 1902 for $2000 dollars. Mrs. Wright was a native of Covington who married Joseph Allen Wright in 1900. Mrs. Wright died in 1945 and she gave the home to her physician, Dr. JR Sams, who took care of her for a long time.
Once the house was in the hands of Dr. Sams, he decides to do a little renovation to the old home. He used a portion of the bedrooms to add closets to all the room, and he also added glass-enclosed doors on the down stairs back porch. All the years Dr. Sams owned the home he furnished it appropriately. During the time that he owned the home, it was featured in Covington’s first Tour of Homes. They described the home as being quite elegant and charming. It had scenic wallpaper, delicate gold leaf molding, and the original mahogany staircase.
Once the doctor died, he gave the house to his grandson, who later sold the house after a couple years. On May 28th 1976, Billy Smith, a Covington native, bought the house. He lived there for several years with his wife, son, and daughter. Today, someone from out of town bought Dixie Manor and now resides there.
