History
Origins: France
The Congregation of St. Joseph was founded in 1650 when six women in war-ravaged LePuy, France sought “something more” in their lives. These women worked among their neighbors—many of whom were desperately poor—caring for orphans, feeding the hungry, sheltering the abandoned, and nursing the sick. Father Jean Pierre Medaille, a Jesuit priest, encouraged the women, and helped them establish one of the first non-cloistered religious communities for women. During the French Revolution the Congregation almost disappeared as many Sisters were forced to go into hiding or were imprisoned or executed for their religious beliefs.
Mother
St. Jeanne Fontbonne
 
The Sisters regrouped in 1807 under the leadership of Mother St. Jeanne Fontbonne. The community flourished and more women bonded together to serve the needs of the “dear neighbor. ”

On to Cleveland
Members of the Congregation came to the United States in 1836 at the request of Bishop Joseph Rosati of St. Louis, MO. They were invited to come to educate the growing immigrant population of that diocese.

 

In 1872, three Sisters including Mother St. George Bradley came to the Cleveland Diocese to serve as teachers at St. Mary, Painesville, where the first Cleveland “house” was founded. Through Mother St. George Bradley's vision, the Cleveland Congregation began.

In 1898, the Cleveland Congregation headed further north in Ohio, when Mother Theresa Fitzpatrick purchased property on a dirt road in the wilderness on the far west side of the city of Cleveland. On these grounds, two buildings were constructed: a motherhouse for the growing community and a boarding school for boys and girls. In 1905 the present motherhouse, St. Joseph Convent, was built. In 1929 St. Joseph Academy was built. St. Joseph Academy is now a separately incorporated, comprehensive high school for young women—the only all-girls Catholic high school in the City of Cleveland.

Present Day
Today, St. Joseph Convent is known as St. Joseph Center. The building houses both retired and actively ministering Sisters, central administration offices, the St. Joseph Worship Space, and River's Edge, A Place for Reflection and Action. Situated on 37 acres of property bordering the Cleveland Metroparks and overlooking the Rocky River, St. Joseph Center was renovated in the late 1990s with the environment in mind. The Congregation is committed to the environment and makes every attempt to care for the buildings and property in a way that recognizes the sacredness of the earth and its gifts.