Emmett Covell House

5802 Broadway Street

—Written by Gail Drabant

This house, located at 5802 Broadway, was built by Emmett and Cora Covell at the turn-of-the-century. Emmett was the son of Charles and Phebe Covell who were fanning settlers just northwest of town. Although Emmett and Cora already had six children before building this house, Emmett and Cora had three more for a total of nine children who were raised in this house.

Cora was the eldest of the six children of George and Susan McConnell. She was raised two blocks from here in the house on the southeast comer of George and West Streets. The McConnells were one of the first settlers of the area.

Although Emmett’s primary business ventures were agricultural, he was very active in the town of Richmond. Besides being active in church and fraternal organizations, he was the town mayor for 22 years and served as police magistrate. Emmett lived to be 85 years old, dying in 1941. Through inheritance, the house stayed in the family for several more years. The current owners, Bruce and Lynn Hunter, purchased this house in the 1970s, and are raising their family of four children in this house.