Joseph Earl Sheffield (June 19, 1793 – February 17, 1882) was an American railroad magnate and philanthropist.

He was a clerk in a drygoods store in New Bern, North Carolina, from 1807 to 1812, and moved to Mobile, Alabama, in 1813, where he became a very successful shipper of cotton.

Sheffield and Farnam constructed the Chicago and Rock Island Railroad, and the townsite was intended as a coaling station for trains.

In New Haven, he lived on Hillhouse Avenue in a house designed and first occupied by Ithiel Town with later modifications by Henry Austin.

Other donations to Yale followed, including his house and funds which were used to build North Sheffield Hall, to enlarge the library, and for other purposes.