Westville was an
unincorporated community
An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...
in
Simpson County, Mississippi
Simpson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. Its western border is formed by the Pearl River, an important transportation route in the 19th century. As of the 2020 census, the population was 25,949. The county seat
...
, United States, located approximately southeast of
Pinola. It is now considered a
ghost town
A ghost town, deserted city, extinct town, or abandoned city is an abandoned settlement, usually one that contains substantial visible remaining buildings and infrastructure such as roads. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economi ...
.
History
The settlement was named for Colonel Cato West.
Westville was designated as the
county seat
A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...
in 1824 and served to 1900, when the seat was moved to
Mendenhall. In 1905, the seat was briefly returned to Westville, but was returned to Mendenhall the next year.
Westville was incorporated in 1836.
The courthouse was built in 1827, but it was destroyed by fire a few years later. It was rebuilt in brick, and burned down again. It was rebuilt a second time, again in brick.
After the county seat moved to Mendenhall, Westville declined markedly. It was essentially abandoned later in the century.
References
{{Simpson County, Mississippi
Ghost towns in Mississippi