Sheffield

Welcome to Sheffield

Drive Times from Major Cities

• From Albany, NY: About 1 hour
• From New York, NY: About 2.75 hours
• From Boston, MA: About 2.5 hours
• From Springfield, MA: About 1 hour

Community Resources and Amenities

• Sheffield's vibrant public library maintains strong connections to the community. A Bushnell-Sage library card gives residents access to free streaming video and it's "Library of Things" that includes musical instruments and a telescope.
• Special events at Bushnell-Sage range from lectures to literary seminars to cooking workshops.

• Among the historic buildings on the Sheffield Green is Dewey Hall, built in 1887 and now a community and regional hub for live entertainment, lectures, contra dancing, and art exhibits.
• Dewey Hall is available to rent for private events, including weddings and other family milestones.

• Sheffield is the central town of the five towns that run the Southern Berkshire Regional School District.
• District schools in Sheffield are Undermountain Elementary, the largest elementary school in the district, which serves grades preK through six, and Mount Everett Regional School for grades 7 through 12.
• U.S. News and World Report named mount Everett Regional School as one of the best high schools in the country in 2013, 2015, 2016, and 2017.

Health Care Resources

• Berkshire Health Systems serves as the major health care provider in the region.
• A 307-bed hospital located in Pittsfield, Berkshire Medical Center is BHS's flagship hospital. BMC has won honors from the American Heart Association, American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer, and the American College of Radiology for its high level of patient care and services.

• The Berkshire Visiting Nurse Association provides in-home medical services to residents throughout Berkshire County.

Recreation and Culture

• This 329-acre preserve is a National Natural Landmark known for its two rocky knolls, or cobbles. It's highest point is Hurlburt’s Hill, rising 1,000 feet and boasting panoramic views of the Housatonic River Valley.
• Open to visitors all year round, Bartholomew's Cobble is home to one of the biggest cottonwood trees in Massachusetts as well as the state's largest population of bobolinks.

• Ashley House is famous for two people who lived there in the 1770s: Colonel John Ashley, who built the house in 1735, and Elizabeth Freeman, known as Mum Bett, one of the enslaved African Americans whose labor contributed to the estate's financial success.
• In 1773, Colonel Ashley headed the committee that wrote the Sheffield Resolves, one of the colonies' earliest petitions against British rule and a call for individual rights.
• Mum Bett sued Colonel Ashley for her freedom in 1781 and won the case, contributing to the end of slavery in the state in Massachusetts.