Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 2,374. Home to 3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Shirley Township’s best subject grades are an A− for cost of living and history; its weakest is a C− for health. Shirley Township’s mean commuting time is 41 minutes, above both Pennsylvania’s towns (26 minutes) and U.S. towns (25 minutes). Only 111 of Pennsylvania’s 1,749 towns score lower on health. Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 80% of U.S. towns. 19% of the land in Shirley Township is conserved, above both Pennsylvania’s towns (8.2%) and U.S. towns (4.3%). Tuscarora State Forest, at 4,511 acres with 15.8 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve. Only 86 of Pennsylvania’s 1,717 towns score lower on civic life. Shirley Township has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Shirley Township beats most towns.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Pennsylvania), ordered by how far Shirley Township is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 2,526 in 2000, 2,407 in 2020. The archive holds 4 maps from 1922 on.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Explore the history →Who provides power, water and the rest in Shirley Township, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Shirley Township.
In Shirley Township, a quarter of adults have been diagnosed with depression. CDC measures, 26 in all: Shirley Township beats Pennsylvania on 1 and trails on 15.
| Shirley Township | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 17% | 14% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 14% | 14% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 41% | 34% | 35% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 25% | 19% | 19% |
| What stands out | Shirley Township | PA |
|---|---|---|
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 82.8% | 79.2% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 24% | 14.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Public schools: Mount Union Area SD. Its one school is below. Enrollment at Shirley Township’s public school: 279 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shirley Twp El SchLargest public elementary schoolGrades 3–5 | Grades 3–5 | 279 | C− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within PA on state tests and graduation
Trails total 21 miles in 4 parks and preserves. Parks and preserves in Shirley Township: 4, covering 7,131 acres. For Shirley Township, the trail density is 0.4 miles per square mile.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Tuscarora State Forest | 15.8 mi | 4,511 |
| 2. State Game Lands Number 71 | 3.6 mi | 2,234 |
| 3. Rothrock State Forest | 0.7 mi | 109 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Expected losses in Shirley Township break down as 81% from inland flooding and 10% from strong winds. Storm and flood damage is expected to run higher than in 71% of U.S. communities. Paid flood insurance claims in the town since 1978: 41.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
In July, afternoons reach 86°; in January, nights fall to 21°, and about 26 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
For working residents in Shirley Township, the share who work locally is 15%. Jobs based in Shirley Township grew to 826 in 2023, 636 more than in 2013. The middle household income in the town is $50,000. The top destinations are Mount Union (7%), Huntingdon (5%) and Ayr Township (4%).
| Shirley Township | Pennsylvania towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $50,000 | $81,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 15% | 6.3% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 12% | 7.6% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Shirley Township. Close and well known come first.
Big draw32 mi Stadium & arenaBeaver Stadium
36 mi National MonumentCarlisle Federal Indian Boarding School National Monument
11 mi LakeRaystown Lake
36 mi State parkPine Grove Furnace State Park
32 mi Stadium & arenaBryce Jordan Center
33 mi National Historic SiteAllegheny Portage Railroad National Historic Site163K visitors a yearBeaver Stadium: Sbvr6 (talk), CC BY-SA 3.0 · Carlisle Federal Indian Boarding School National Monument: Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain · Raystown Lake: Tex Jobe, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Public domain · Pine Grove Furnace State Park: Zeete, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Bryce Jordan Center: Robert J. La Verghetta, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Allegheny Portage Railroad National Historic Site: Matthew A. Lynn; Original uploader was Mosamiazaz at en.wikipedia, Public domain
1 within 15 miles of the center of Shirley Township
About 2 of every 100 Shirley Township residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Pennsylvania.
3 places in Shirley Township on the National Register of Historic Places.
Township in Pennsylvania, US
Shirley Township is a township in Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,407 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
9 towns share a border with Shirley Township.
| Town | PA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shirley Township | — | — | A− | — | C | C− |
| Cromwell Township | — | — | A− | — | C | C |
| Wayne Township | — | — | B+ | — | C | C |
| Tell Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Mount Union | — | — | A | — | C | D− |
| Allenport | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Union Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Brady Township | — | — | A | — | B− | C |
Shirley Township, Cromwell Township, Wayne Township, Mount Union and Brady Township have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Shirley Township, Cromwell Township, Wayne Township, Mount Union and Brady Township report no FBI crime data of their own. Tell Township, Allenport and Union Township aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Shirley Township with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Home to 3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Not for the area. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades A−.
