The Covey & Buckingham Apartment Buildings

Covey-1909, David C. Dart, SLC
Buckingham-1916 ,W. C. A. Vissing (builder), SLC

The Covey Investment Company, which built, owned, and managed many of the city’s early apartments, constructed both of these buildings. Completed in 1909, the seven-story Covey Apartments is one of Salt Lake’s few historic apartment buildings more than four stories tall. Because of its height, the Covey featured a rare luxury in early 20th-century Utah – a passenger elevator. Also note the tile ornaments dividing the upper stories and the indented porches with wrought iron railings.

The Covey Investment Company seems to have intended this “high rise” on prestigious South Temple to be its flagship apartment building. The company changed the name of the 1905 Covey Flats on 300 South to the La France Apartments so it could give the Covey name to this building.

The Buckingham Apartments, built in 1916, are more typical of the buildings constructed by the Covey Investment Company.

These “walk-up” apartments snake around two central courtyards, one opening to the street and one opening to the alley behind the building, allowing each tenant to have a front and back porch. The more humble Buckingham features much less architectural ornamentation than its upscale neighbor.*

239 East South Temple in Salt Lake City, Utah