Shanksville is a

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle Ag ...

in Somerset County,

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

. It has a population of 197 as of the

2020 U.S. census The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to off ...

. It is part of the Somerset, Pennsylvania Micropolitan Statistical Area and is located southeast of

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

and west of

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...

. Shanksville garnered global attention during the

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commer ...

when

United Airlines Flight 93 United Airlines Flight 93 was a domestic scheduled passenger flight that was hijacked by four al-Qaeda attackers aboard the plane on the morning of September 11, 2001, as part of the September 11 attacks. The plane eventually crashed in S ...

, bound from

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, most populous City (New Jersey), city in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat, seat of Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County and the second largest city within the New Yo ...

for

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17t ...

, crashed in adjacent Stonycreek Township after its passengers rebelled against the flight's Al-Qaeda terrorist hijackers. It was the only one of the four hijacked planes that failed to reach the terrorists' intended target.

Geography

Shanksville is located at (40.017182, -78.905891), with the

covering 0.2 square mile (0.5 km²), all land; it also has the seventh-highest elevation of boroughs in

at .

Demographics

As of the 2000 census, there were 245 people comprising 96 households and 69 families residing in the borough. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopu ...

was 1,391.9 people per square mile (525.5/km²). There were 100 housing units at an average density of 568.1 per square mile (214.5/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 100.00%

white White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White ...

. There were 96 households, out of which 32.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.2% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between ...

living together, 12.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.1% were non-families. 22.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.06. In the borough, the population was spread out, with 26.5% under the age of 18, 10.2% from 18 to 24, 28.2% from 25 to 44, 19.6% from 45 to 64, and 15.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 94.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.5 males. The median income for a household in the borough was $29,980, and the median income for a family was $40,833. Males had a median income of $25,250 versus $22,917 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the borough was $14,500. About 4.8% of families and 9.1% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 4.7% of those under the age of 18 and 12.5% of those 65 or over.

History

Christian Shank, a German immigrant, built a cabin on Stony Creek in 1798, later building a

grist mill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and middlings. The term can refer to either the grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist is grain that has been separat ...

and two

saw mill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes (dimensi ...

s in the vicinity. Emmanuel Shaffer opened a store at the site in 1828, and the following year Shank laid out the town of Shanksville. The Shanksville post office was opened in 1874. Shanksville was incorporated as a borough on January 25, 1913.

September 11 attacks

On September 11, 2001, during the terrorist attacks on the United States, Shanksville received worldwide attention after

crashed into a field in Stonycreek Township, north of the town of Shanksville, killing all 40

civilian Civilians under international humanitarian law are "persons who are not members of the armed forces" and they are not " combatants if they carry arms openly and respect the laws and customs of war". It is slightly different from a non-combatant ...

s and four al-Qaeda

hijackers Hijacking may refer to: Common usage Computing and technology * Bluejacking, the unsolicited transmission of data via Bluetooth * Brandjacking, the unauthorized use of a company's brand * Browser hijacking * Clickjacking (including ''like ...

on board. The hijackers had intended to fly the plane to Washington, D.C. and crash it into either the

Capitol A capitol, named after the Capitoline Hill in Rome, is usually a legislative building where a legislature meets and makes laws for its respective political entity. Specific capitols include: * United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. * Numerous ...

or the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in ...

. However, after learning from family members via airphone of the earlier attacks on the World Trade Center and

The Pentagon The Pentagon is the headquarters building of the United States Department of Defense. It was constructed on an accelerated schedule during World War II. As a symbol of the U.S. military, the phrase ''The Pentagon'' is often used as a metony ...

, the passengers on board revolted against the hijackers and fought for control of the plane, causing it to crash. It was the only one of the four aircraft hijacked that day that never reached its intended target. There are two memorials to the event. The original, temporary Flight 93 National Memorial to the passengers and crew of Flight 93 was located on a hill, about from the crash site. On July 8, 2010, a new temporary entrance and memorial were opened at an area called "the Western Overlook". It is where the FBI set up their command center and where family members first saw the aftermath of the crash, bringing their own memorials, and where visitors can leave them today. The initial phase of permanent construction of the Flight 93 National Memorial, including the visitors' center, was completed by the 10th anniversary in 2011. The memorial is built around the crash site, following the plane's flight path, and protecting the area of impact, known as the "Sacred Ground", which remains protected and accessible only to family members of the passengers and crew. Shanksville's

volunteer firefighters A volunteer fire department (VFD) is a fire department of volunteers who perform fire suppression and other related emergency services for a local jurisdiction. Volunteer and retained (on-call) firefighters are expected to be on call to respond t ...

and emergency personnel from the nearby towns of Central City,

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lor ...

, and others rushed to the crash scene to search for survivors. Members of the

New York City Fire Department The New York City Fire Department, officially the Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY), is an American department of the government of New York City that provides fire protection services, technical rescue/special operations services, ...

donated to the

Shanksville Volunteer Fire Department The Shanksville Volunteer Fire Department is a volunteer fire department in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, Shanksville, Pennsylvania. The department provides fire protection and emergency medical services to the borough (Pennsylvania), boroughs of Sh ...

a cross-shaped piece of steel salvaged from the World Trade Center. Mounted atop a

Pentagon In geometry, a pentagon (from the Greek πέντε ''pente'' meaning ''five'' and γωνία ''gonia'' meaning ''angle'') is any five-sided polygon or 5-gon. The sum of the internal angles in a simple pentagon is 540°. A pentagon may be sim ...

-shaped base, it was installed outside the firehouse and dedicated on August 24, 2008.

Government

The mayor of Shanksville is Matt McDermott.

Education

The Shanksville-Stonycreek School District operates public schools.

References

External links

Flight 93 National Memorial
(U.S. National Park Service) {{authority control Boroughs in Somerset County, Pennsylvania Populated places established in 1798 1913 establishments in Pennsylvania