 When the township was organized in 1817 – 1820, John Griggs, first Justice of the Peace, changed the name to Sheffield, meaning "sheaf of fields", when it was disconnected from Kingsville Township in 1820.Prior to that time that portion of Kingsville Township had been called East Matherstown, to distinguish it from Matherstown, a name by which Saybrook Township was at one time known.The township is governed by a three-member board of trustees, who are elected in November of odd-numbered years to a four-year term beginning on the following January 1.