Westport, California

Westport (formerly Beall's Landing) is an unincorporated community in Mendocino County, California.[1] It is located on California State Route 1, near the Pacific Ocean[2], 13 miles (21 km) north of Fort Bragg[3], and at an elevation of 125 feet (38 m).[1]

Westport
Unincorporated community
Westport's town center
Westport
Location in California
Westport
Westport (the United States)
Coordinates: 39°38′09″N 123°46′59″W
CountryUnited States
StateCalifornia
CountyMendocino County
Elevation125 ft (38 m)
Population
 (2010)
 • Total60
Time zoneUTC-8 (PST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-7 (PDT)
ZIP code
95488
Area code(s)707

The first post office at Westport opened in 1879.[3] Originally called Beall's Landing in honor of Samuel Beall, its first white settler, the place was renamed in 1877 by James T. Rodgers, who built a timber loading facility for the name to contrast with his home town of Eastport, Maine.[3]

As of July 2010, the population of Westport is 60. It has a community store with gas pumps, several inns, and, as of 2020, 9 airbnb or VRBO rental homes.[4]

Though small, the village of Westport has a strong community that contributes greatly to the betterment of the village. The Westport Village Society raised over $100,000 to build a staircase down to the town beach. The residents of Westport maintain a community garden from which organically grown produce is available year-round for consumption by Westport residents and visitors alike. Through annual Westport events like the Westport Whale Festival, the Mothers Day Rubber Ducky Race and the Westport Volunteer Fire Department BBQ, folks from town and throughout Mendocino County come together to build community and raise funds for various civic needs.

Westport and its vicinity have been the locale of several disappearances and homicides over the years, including:

  • Linda Lee Lovell and Stephen Locke Packard, disappeared in June 1974;[5]
  • Christine and Craig Langford, disappeared in January 1981;[6][7]
  • Harlan Sutherland, homicide victim, remains found in August 1987;[8][9]
  • Clyde William Stanley, homicide victim, remains found in March 1988;[10]
  • Donald James Cavanaugh and David Virgil Neily, disappeared in March 2005 and April 2006, respectively, from the same address;[11]
  • Matthew Coleman, murdered in August 2011;[12][13]
  • Abigail, Ciera, Devonte, Hannah, Jeremiah, and Markis Hart, all murdered by their adoptive mothers, Jen and Sarah Hart, on March 26, 2018, when their SUV intentionally drove over a cliff in a mass murder-suicide 2 miles north of Westport.[14] The family had been living in Washington State before the road trip which culminated in the fatal crash. The bodies of Devonte and Hannah were never found.[15] Both perpetrators were known to have abused their six children before the crash.[16]

See also

References
  1. U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Westport, California
  2. DeLorme California Atlas & Gazetteer (2008) Yarmouth, Maine p.47 ISBN 0-89933-383-4
  3. Durham, David L. (1998). California's Geographic Names: A Gazetteer of Historic and Modern Names of the State. Clovis, Calif.: Word Dancer Press. p. 165. ISBN 1-884995-14-4.
  4. , author unknown, Westport Village Society. Retrieved 16 January 2017.
  5. Dwyer, William M., "A Grieving Mother Finds Hope in Art. New York Times, 13 March 1977. Retrieved 16 January 2017.
  6. , Dustin Driscoll, Case Information, NamUS Missing Persons Database, U.S. Department of Justice, 4 December 2013. Retrieved 16 January 2017.
  7. , Dustin Driscoll, Case Information, NamUS Missing Persons Database, U.S. Department of Justice, 4 December 2013. Retrieved 16 January 2017.
  8. Lois O'Rourke, "Tragedies brought families together on county's coast", Ukiah Daily Journal (Ukiah, CA), 27 November 1992, pp. 1, 14. Retrieved 16 January 2017.
  9. Bruce Anderson, Anderson Valley Advertiser (Boonville CA), 20 September 2013. Retrieved 16 January 2017.
  10. Staff, "Sheriff IDs Westport Remains", Ukiah Daily Journal, (Ukiah, CA), 10 March 1988. Retrieved 16 January 2017.
  11. "Donald Cavanaugh And David Neily: Two Missing Men, Two Unsolved Mysteries", Huffington Post, 21 November 2013. Retrieved 16 January 2017.
  12. Tim Stelloh, The New York Times, 28 September 2011, Retrieved 16 January 2017
  13. Google map. Retrieved 16 January 2017.
  14. Yan, Holly; Simon, Darran; Nieves, Rosalina. "The troubling past of a family whose car plunged off a cliff". CNN. Retrieved 11 April 2018.
  15. Hanna, Jason; Mossburg, Cheri (18 April 2018). "Hart family crash: Body ID'd as 12-year-old Ciera Hart". CNN. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
  16. Devonte Hart family mystery: Podcast sheds new light on horrific deaths



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