Schuylkill County has been awarded an $18,000 state grant to study a proposed trail that would meander from Pottsville to Jim Thorpe and commemorate the thousands of people killed in the worst terrorist attack in the nation’s history.

The grant required a $2,000 match, bringing the cost to $20,000.

County commissioners on Wednesday hired a Philadelphia firm, WSP USA, to provide professional services related to the Anthracite Connector Trail Peer Study.

The path would be part of the 9/11 Memorial Trail. The study would identify a practical, sustainable governance, ownership and maintenance structure.

The grant came through the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.

The contract for the work runs for two years, from Jan. 31 through Dec. 31, 2028, said DCNR Press Secretary Wesley Robinson.

“The scope of work is to hire a peer consultant to develop an operations and maintenance plan for the proposed Anthracite Connector Trail in Schuylkill and Carbon counties,” he said. “Work will include an electronic written report at the end.

“The 9/11Memorial Trail Alliance recently completed the Anthracite Connector Feasibility Study, which confirmed a viable trail connection between the Schuylkill River Trail in Pottsville and the D&L Trail in Jim Thorpe.

“Implementation is constrained by the absence of a coordinated operations and maintenance (O&M) structure. This Peer engagement will focus on developing a sustainable O&M framework for both Schuylkill and Carbon counties, clarifying ownership and maintenance roles, evaluating the need for a joint county organization, building partner consensus, and identifying near-term actions to advance funding and trail development.”

The 911 National Memorial Trail is a 1,500-plus-mile multi-use trail connecting the three national memorials of the September 11, 2001 attacks. The trail links the national September 11 Memorial Museum in New York City, the Pentagon Memorial, and the Flight 93 Memorial in Somerset County.

According the 9/11 National Memorial Trail website, the “miles of trail stretch through the varying landscape of the mid-Atlantic from big cities to rural towns, a true journey through our great country. For some, the 911 Trail is a place to grieve. For others, a place to remember. For younger generations, a place to learn. And for all of us, it is a place to honor the heroes of that faithful day.”

The concept of the trail was born in 2001, the year of the attack. It was federally designated in 2021 and includes 31 partner trails.

An inaugural tour was held in June 2022. It was a 27-day, 1,250-mile ride with more than 20 cyclists.

In April, Gov. Josh Shapiro announced nearly $40 million in statewide investments to support major events and destinations, including $639,300 for the 9/11 Trail expansion in Somerset County.

The funding supported the completion of the 20-mile extension of the National Memorial Trail, connecting the Great Allegheny Passage to the Flight 93 National Memorial. Ground was broken for the extension on April 30, and the trail continues to grow and evolve.