Shippensburg was incorporated as a borough on January 21, 1819. In the past, there were furniture factories, engine and pump works, and other industrial works located within the town. Shippensburg is also the home of The Beistle Company, the oldest and largest manufacturer of decorations and party goods, which sells its distinctive honeycomb paper decorations worldwide. It is also the location of Pague and Fegan, the oldest continuously operated hardware store in Pennsylvania.
Shippensburg is also home to Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania, one of 14 universities of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education.
Yearly the last full week of July, the Shippensburg Community Fair is held. Begun in 1958, the fair bills itself as Pennsylvania's largest bi-county fair. The fair includes agricultural exhibits, a craft show, food vendors, and carnival rides amongst other things.
Every summer on the last Saturday of August, Shippensburg holds the Corn Festival, an event that brings regional artisans and vendors to operate stands downtown. The downtown is closed to traffic for at least 5 blocks for most of the day. Average attendance at the festival is estimated at 60,000 - 70,000 each year.
As of the census of 2000, there were 5,586 people, 2,397 households, and 1,138 families residing in the borough. The population density was 2,772.0 people per square mile (1,067.7/km²). There were 2,602 housing units at an average density of 1,291.2/sq mi (497.3/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 94.16% White, 3.44% African American, 0.11% Native American, 0.98% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.47% from other races, and 0.82% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.15% of the population.
There were 2,397 households out of which 20.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 34.5% were married couples living together, 9.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 52.5% were non-families. 33.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.32 and the average family size was 2.87.
In the borough the population was spread out with 17.6% under the age of 18, 28.5% from 18 to 24, 21.8% from 25 to 44, 16.4% from 45 to 64, and 15.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 28 years. For every 100 females there were 85.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.5 males.
The median income for a household in the borough was $27,660, and the median income for a family was $39,896. Males had a median income of $29,387 versus $21,775 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $14,816. About 9.4% of families and 28.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.6% of those under age 18 and 10.9% of those age 65 or over.