Westwood, a neighborhood in South Memphis, has many pleasant homes. Also, the neighborhood is home to several churches, recreation facilities, businesses and schools including the more than 4,000 member Mt Vernon Baptist Church Westwood, Big Momma's Kitchen, Charles Powell Community Center, South Memphis Flea Market (formerly The Twin Drive-In), Westwood Swimming Pool, Westwood Shopping Center, Doubletree Montessori School, Westwood Elementary School and Westwood High School.
Westwood is bounded by the ICRR on the west, South Third on the east, Raines Road on the north and West Shelby Drive on the south.
The Weaver Family, whose ancestors had owned a 4,000-acre (16 km2) cotton plantation, sold some of their land in the 1950s for development of a subdivision in the Southern part of Shelby County.
The subdivision became Westwood and later the area in and near the subdivision was annexed into Memphis. And as the neighborhood grew in the 1960s, businesses were built and establish to serve the residents. Along with the growth of Westwood, was The Hill Top which include the Doubletree Community. The growth continued in the 1970s when a large number of blacks began moving in the neighborhood. In 1973, Rev. James Netters moved his congregation Mt Vernon Baptist Church from Mississippi Boulevard to the former all-white Westwood Baptist Church on Parkrose. In 1991, the renovation of Mt Vernon Baptist Church Westwood was completed and now one of the largest congregations in Memphis.
The Tales Of Old Whitehaven by Anna Leigh McCorkle