Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Sheffield

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
–Not graded
History · Sheffield

Sheffield dates to 1793, and 23% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1939 on and the census since 1800.

1793founded
0on the National Register
23%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Ascended Dreamer · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

How Sheffield began

When was Sheffield founded?

1793

Sheffield dates its founding to 1793 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1800.

First census: 170 in 18002020 census: 682233 years
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1824.

What stands out about Sheffield’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Sheffield are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Shrank, then grewLost two-thirds of its people between 1880 and 1970, then more than doubled.Deep rootsEstablished in 1793: 233 years of Sheffield.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Sheffield’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Sheffield’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Sheffield, census by census

020040060080018001850190019502000884 in 1880Low: 307

Lost two-thirds of its people between 1880 and 1970, then more than doubled.

23 censuses, 1800–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Sheffield’s Wikipedia page.

Timeline

Sheffield, 1793 to 1939

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 18th century
  2. 1793
    FoundingSheffield is established
  3. 19th century
  4. 1824Post officeThe Sheffield post office opens
  5. 1880CensusPopulation peaks at 884
  6. 20th century
  7. 1939On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
The story so far

Sheffield, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Sheffield yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Sheffield is a town in Caledonia County, Vermont, United States. The population was 682 at the 2020 census.

Sheffield was established in 1793. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 703 to 682 (-3%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

By decade

Sheffield, decade by decade

Today7 recent
Sheffield VT 5-15-262026Sheffield VT 5-15-26Sheffield VT 9-21-252025Sheffield VT 9-21-25Sheffield VT 12-03-20252025Sheffield VT 12-03-2025SheffieldVT TownHall2016SheffieldVT TownHallVermont,USA. - panoramio (12)2013Vermont,USA. - panoramio (12)Jay Peak - Big Jay2011Jay Peak - Big JaySheffield vt highlight2004Sheffield vt highlight
On the map

Sheffield on the map, 1939 to 1986

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Sheffield. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Sheffield on the 1939 USGS mapSheffield on the 1951 USGS mapSheffield on the 1986 USGS map1939Lyndonville sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Sheffield.

Famous people

Famous people close to Sheffield

Nobody well known was born in Sheffield itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
C
Chris HedgesAmerican journalist · b. 1956
Thaddeus StevensAmerican statesman · b. 1792
Theodore RobinsonAmerican artist · b. 1852
B
Bob SmithAmerican physician and surgeon · b. 1879
Roger L. EastonAmerican scientist · b. 1921
B
Beth ChamberlinAmerican actress · b. 1963
Places that used to be

Old corners and burying grounds

Sheffield’s post office has been open since 1824.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Sheffield Square
6cemeteries and burying grounds inside Sheffield
Baptist HillDexterIngalls - MosherMosherSheffield Heights - CassUnion House - King James

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Wheelock1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townGloverIts storyBBarton3 historic placesASuttonIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Sheffield’s history

What year was Sheffield founded?

In 1793, according to Wikidata. Sheffield’s post office opened in 1824, and the census of 1800 counted 170 people here.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (7), U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.