Sheffield plate was discovered by Thomas Boulsover of Sheffield's Cutlers Company in 1743. The discovery was made by accident when Thomas Boulsover tried repairing a customers knife and overheated it. When inspecting the damage he found that the silver and copper had fused together very strongly. He experimented on this and found that the two metals behaved as one when they were reshaped. By fusing the two metals together Thomas Boulsover was able to make sheets of metal which had a thin layer of silver on top and a layer of copper underneath. This was a breakthrough in silver as it was a much cheaper option than solid silver. When using this method to make buttons the result was similar to solid silver buttons. This method was then used to produce a wide range of household articles. These caddy spoons, serving utensils, candlesticks and other lighting devices, tea and coffee services, serving dishes and trays, tankards and pitchers, and larger items such as soup tureens and hot-water urns.

Later, around 1770, the "double sandwich" form of Sheffield plate was developed. This was used for pieces such as bowls and mugs that had a visible interior, it consisted of a sheet of silver each side of a piece of copper; early manufacturers applied a film of solder over the bare edge of copper although such pieces are very rare. Later on, borders were applied with a U-shaped section of silver wire to conceal the copper which can be felt as a lip on the underside. Following the invention of German silver, around 1820, it was found that this new material also fused well with sheet silver and provided a suitable base metal for the Sheffield process. Because of its nearly silver color, German silver also revealed less wear, or "bleeding", when Sheffield-made articles were subject to daily use and polishing. Sheffield plate is fairly rare today, as after about 1840 it was generally replaced with electroplating processes. Electroplating tends to produce a "brilliant" surface with a hard color, so Sheffield plate is still used in cases where a softer color more like natural sterling silver is desired.