Covert Crossed County Lines Before It Settled

Covert’s map had to travel a little before it settled into the Seneca County place people know now. On April 7, 1817, Ovid was divided and its southern portion became Covert. That same day, Covert was taken out of Seneca County and made part of Tompkins County. On April 13, 1819, it came back to Seneca County.

That quick paper journey leaves Covert tied to more than one direction. It sits in Seneca County, but its early boundary story points toward Ovid, Tompkins County, and the southern Finger Lakes edge.

More changes followed. Military Lots 34, 40, 41, and 42 moved from Ovid to Covert in 1823, and Lodi was later formed from western Covert in 1826. The modern town center is practical and small, with municipal offices listed at 8469 Main Street in Interlaken.

Cayuga Lake keeps the story current. New parkland on the lake is planned as Three Falls State Park, in recognition of three waterfalls on and near the former Camp Barton property. Covert is easy to miss on a big map, but its paper trail and lake edge give it a real shape.