A Historical View of Shippensburg, PA
Areal imagery from Jan 1938
Shippensburg was among the second town established west of the Susquehanna River, the location of a natural spring, historical site of a fort during the French and Indian war, and location of a current University. Over the years, the town has hosted several industries and businesses, including the Beistle Company and Volvo. This town has grown greatly since my family first moved there in 2003, from the Board of Development loosening its death grip to the construction of the towns first chain grocery store. This project will be a look at Shippensburg’s history and development through maps and narrative.
A map of all locations mentioned in this story map. Points in red are locations of buildings, while points in blue are geologically significant spots.
Side by side comparison of areal imagery taken in 2003 (left) to 2019 (right)
Summary and closing
Shippensburg has a long and rich history, bolstered by an intriguing geological location. It's grown over the years, through housing developments and warehouses. The most notable way to track the change in time in the town is to keep an eye on the architecture styles. From Federal style to Greek Revival, Victorian to Georgian Revival, you can follow the changes in the town and people's tastes. Despite the growth in infrastructure, the population has actually decreased. In the 2000 census, the population of Shippensburg was 5,591 and ranked the 4,121st largest city in the US. During the 2020 census, the population was 5,498 and ranked 4,554th largest city in the US. This indicates a 1.7% decrease in size.
