Saint Joseph
Unincorporated community
Nickname: 
St. Joe County
Saint Joseph is located in Indiana
Saint Joseph
Saint Joseph
Saint Joseph is located in the United States
Saint Joseph
Saint Joseph
Coordinates: 38°03′58″N 87°38′49″W / 38.06611°N 87.64694°W / 38.06611; -87.64694
CountryUnited States
StateIndiana
CountyVanderburgh
TownshipGerman
Saint Joseph1867[1]
Founded byGerman immigrants, 1841
Named forSt. Joseph Catholic Church
Elevation
[2]
545 ft (166 m)
Time zoneUTC-6 (CST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP code
47720
Area code812
GNIS feature ID442618[2]

Saint Joseph, affectionately called St. Joe County by locals, is an unincorporated community in German Township, Vanderburgh County, Indiana, United States and centered on St. Joseph Catholic Church.[2] Along with that of Darmstadt, its colonization marked the beginning of German-American immigration to southern Indiana. The area was chosen as a settlement for its rich farmland.[3]

Name

St. Joseph Catholic Church, after which the town is named.
Saint Joseph, Indiana

The town is named after the church in its center, St. Joseph Catholic Church. The church is named for the Saint Joseph the Carpenter, the father of Jesus. Unlike most other local communities, St. Joseph has never had a railway station.[4]

The nickname "St. Joe County" originates from the fact that there are multiple churches by the name of St. Joseph in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Evansville and Vincennes, and different names were needed to distinguish one from the next in conversation and on paperwork. The church is referred to as "St. Joe in the County", referring to the fact that the other St. Joseph Catholic Churches are located in Evansville ("St. Joe [in the] City") and Jasper "St. Joe [in] Jasper"). The name is frequently truncated to "St. Joe County", and members of the diocese have come to know the town as "St. Joe County".

References

  1. ^ Anna M. Ennis (1990). 1841 - 1991: Saint Joseph Catholic Church, Vanderburgh County: History of our journey. St. Meinrad: Abbey Press.
  2. ^ a b c U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Saint Joseph, Vanderburgh County, Indiana
  3. ^ "Historic Property Report Section 1, I-64/I-164/SR 57 to SR 64: I-69 Evansville to Indianapolis, Tier 2" (PDF). Federal Highway Administration and Indiana Department of Transportation. November 21, 2005. p. 17. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 8, 2008. Retrieved June 5, 2009.
  4. ^ Indiana Department of Geology and Natural Resources (1910). "Annual report". 34: 167. ((cite journal)): Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
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