ShaftMD
The town was settled in 1900 and has 285 residents today.
Is Shaft a good place to live?
Shaft’s average trip to work is 16 minutes, below both Maryland’s towns (32 minutes) and U.S. towns (25 minutes). Among 262 Maryland towns, just one has a higher home-ownership rate than Shaft. Shaft’s trail network density is 2.1 miles per square mile, above both the Maryland town median (0.6) and the median of U.S. towns (0.4). Shaft has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
285 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Fallingwater and 13 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Shaft. Close and well known come first.
Big draw34 mi MuseumFallingwater
Big draw29 mi National MemorialFlight 93 National Memorial286K visitors a year
17 mi MountainMount Davis
36 mi National BattlefieldFort Necessity National Battlefield226K visitors a year
9 mi National Historical ParkChesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park4.6M visitors a year
30 mi State parkOhiopyle State ParkPhoto credits
Fallingwater: Carol M. Highsmith, Public domain · Flight 93 National Memorial: James Steakley, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Mount Davis: Wikiuser100, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Fort Necessity National Battlefield: Wilson44691, CC0 · Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park: Bonnachoven, CC0 · Ohiopyle State Park: Hubert Stoffels from Pittsburgh, USA, CC BY 2.0
Moving to Shaft: who provides what
Shaft is unincorporated, so Allegany County and regional agencies provide most services.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Mar 11, 2026.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Shaft.
Shaft has 0.1 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
For half of commuters, work is under 11 miles away. Shaft had 10 jobs in 2023, down 21 from 2013. The top destinations are Cumberland (25%), Frostburg (11%) and Lonaconing (3%).
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Shaft stands out in Maryland and nationally, with a typical July afternoon cooler than most
Shaft has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 82°, January nights drop to 20° and about 72 inches of snow falls in a winter.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
More of Shaft’s adults have been diagnosed with depression than in the typical Maryland or U.S. town
For adults in Shaft, the share who sleep under 7 hours is 39%. Against the Maryland average, Shaft comes out ahead on 6 CDC measures out of 32, and behind on 10. In Shaft, just over two in five adults have high blood pressure, and 16% smoke cigarettes.
| Shaft | Maryland towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 20% | 23% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 41% | 35% | 35% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 11% | 14% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 12% | 14% |
| What stands out | Shaft | MD |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 6.2% | 8.7% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 9.9% | 13.5% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 16.3% | 9.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Moderate risk in Shaft, with inland flooding at the top
Only 7 of the 262 Maryland towns we compare have a higher FEMA hazard score than Shaft. FEMA puts four fifths of the town’s expected hazard losses down to inland flooding, and 6% to strong winds. Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 58% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Everything we know about Shaft
Colleges nearby
3 within 15 miles of the center of Shaft
About 0 of every 100 Shaft residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across Maryland.
100% of working residents leave Shaft for work
Where Shaft’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
About Shaft
Census-designated place in Maryland, United States
Shaft is a census-designated place (CDP) in Allegany County, Maryland, United States. As of the 2010 census, the CDP had a population of 235. It is located south of Frostburg, in the Georges Creek Valley. It lies at an elevation of 1,795 feet (547 m).
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 0.8 sq mi
- Elevation
- 1,795 ft
Questions about Shaft
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Shaft, MD a good place to live?
Shaft has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.