Westminster
Ghost town · Shelby County, Illinois

Westminster is a ghost town in Shelby County, Illinois. It is one of 2 former communities in Shelby County on the federal names register. That ranks the county 50th among the 78 Illinois counties with a vanished settlement on record.
The U.S. Geological Survey lists Westminster as a historical populated place on the Lakewood topographic quadrangle: the name is no longer in official use for a community, whether the settlement was abandoned, absorbed into a neighbouring town or renamed. The recorded location is 39.3598° N, 88.9892° W.
Key facts
| USGS quadrangle | Lakewood |
|---|---|
| Elevation | 661 ft |
| Nearest living town | Tower Hill, IL |
| Distance to it | 2.5 miles |
| GNIS feature ID | 2014008 |
| Coordinates | 39.35976, -88.98924 |
What's there now
Westminster is no longer a community in its own right. The nearest living town is Tower Hill, IL (population 387), about 2.5 miles away in a straight line, and the site sits at roughly 661 feet above sea level. Much of the land around former townsites is private; check access before you visit.
Nearby places
- Williamsburgghost town · Shelby County · 5.2 mi
- Thompson Mill Covered Bridgecovered bridge · Shelby County · 11.5 mi
- Greenlandghost town · Fayette County · 15.4 mi
- Howards Pointghost town · Fayette County · 24.5 mi
- Freenantonghost town · Effingham County · 25.7 mi
- Pinhookghost town · Fayette County · 31.2 mi
- Campbellsburgghost town · Christian County · 32.1 mi
- Bristolghost town · Effingham County · 34.8 mi
- Elm Pointghost town · Bond County · 35.7 mi
- Faries Parkghost town · Macon County · 35.9 mi
- Flemingsburgghost town · Effingham County · 38 mi
- Fillmoreghost town · Douglas County · 40.6 mi
Questions
Where is Westminster?
Westminster is in Shelby County, Illinois, at 39.3598, -88.9892.
How many ghost towns are in Shelby County?
Shelby County, Illinois has 2 ghost towns on record at Wayfarrow.
- USGS Geographic Names Information System (Domestic Names) — GNIS Domestic Names, feature record (public-domain)
- U.S. Census Bureau TIGER/Line and ACS — Census Gazetteer + ACS 5-year population (public-domain)
Facts marked "approximately" carry an uncertain date in the source. Text on this page is generated from the sources above; no encyclopedia prose is copied. Last updated 2026-11-05.