Sheffield Farms plant, 1938. Sheffield Farms was a milk company that in the first half of the 20th century became one of the largest dairy companies in the world. They also sold 20% of all of the milk purchased within New York City. Sheffield was established over a few years in the 1880s, as L. B. Halsey got involved in his wife's family butter business and then expanded it a larger scale dairy trade. In 1939 the company erected a plant on the West Side, consisting of a large three story (plus massive basement and sub-basement) plant and a six-story office building. By 1952 the operations at the plant were diminishing as the company moved their processing elsewhere. After a double sale, the complex was purchased by the television network CBS for its broadcast center, which remains in the space today.