Sheffield is acensus-designated place inPecos County,Texas, United States. According to the2020 Census, the community had an estimated population of 174 in 2020.[1] Named for pioneer rancher Will Sheffield, it has apost office withZIP code of 79781.[2]
Sheffield is located at the intersection ofState Highway 290 (earlier a portion ofU.S. Highway 290) andState Highway 349 (the portion south toDryden formerly designated asFM 1217) on the eastern edge of Pecos County, about 18 miles south ofIraan and 40 miles west ofOzona.[3]
In the 1920s Sheffield became a small stop on the transcontinental route known as theOld Spanish Trail. One of the local motels there was the OST Courts. An old sign for this establishment, on Main Street near Avenue E, was still in place in 2023.
The first documented Europeans to visit the area were Spanish explorerGaspar Castaño de Sosa and his men, who traveled up thePecos River in 1590. Although several Spanish-led expeditions followed, no permanent settlements were established in the area. In 1849, the Army surveyed theSan Antonio-El Paso Road fromSan Antonio toEl Paso, and the route included what is now Sheffield because of thePecos Spring and thePecos Crossing or Lancaster Crossing, named for the nearbyFort Lancaster.
An early pioneer in the area was William Franklin Smith, who herded sheep from the Sherwood area ofIrion County to the Pecos River and camped at Pecos in the spring of 1886. Smith made several trips to Pecos County and eventually relocated permanently to Sheffield in 1912.[4] The first settler was John Cannon, who arrived in 1888 and purchased a tract along the Pecos River. A post office was established in 1898, with Will Sheffield as its first postmaster. Around 1900, a small settlement sprang up on land adjoining the Cannon ranch owned by Mr. Sheffield, and the town became known as Sheffield. Most other settlers were ranchers who established their own homesteads. However, a few of the early pioneers were later reputed to be outlaws seeking refuge far from the reach of the law.Black Jack Ketchum, later a notorious outlaw wanted in several states, was among these, spending time in the area in the 1890s.[4]
The town prospered in the early 1900s as a supply point and social center for surrounding ranchers. Discovery of oil in theTrans-Pecos region during the 1920s, and natural gas later, radically altered the local economy. Sheffield grew slowly, from an estimated 124 inhabitants in 1925 to 350 by 1949. Although the community was bypassed by Interstate 10, Sheffield continued to support several stores and businesses throughout the latter half of the 20th century. In 2000, Sheffield was home to an estimated 600 inhabitants and 15 businesses.[5][3]
Local resident Herbert A. Holmes (1900-1973) came to Sheffield with his family in 1906, and later served many years as a Pecos CountyJustice of the Peace.[6] He collected facts, recollections, and photographs about the small community, and with his son J. Wayne Holmes published these in 1973 asFrontier Days in Sheffield.[4]
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 174 | — | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[7] 1850–1900[8] 1910[9] 1920[10] 1930[11] 1940[12] 1950[13] 1960[14] 1970[15] 1980[16] 1990[17] 2000[18] 2010[19] 2020[20] | |||
Sheffield first appeared as acensus designated place in the2020 U.S. Census.[21][19][20]
| Race / Ethnicity(NH = Non-Hispanic) | Pop 2020[20] | % 2020 |
|---|---|---|
| White alone (NH) | 93 | 53.45% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 13 | 7.47% |
| Native American orAlaska Native alone (NH) | 0 | 0.00% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 3 | 1.72% |
| Pacific Islander alone (NH) | 0 | 0.00% |
| Other race alone (NH) | 0 | 0.00% |
| Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) | 7 | 4.02% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 58 | 33.33% |
| Total | 174 | 100.00% |
Public education in the community of Sheffield is provided by theIraan-Sheffield Independent School District.
30°41′26″N101°49′21″W / 30.69056°N 101.82250°W /30.69056; -101.82250
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