Our History

In 1650, the first six Sisters of St. Joseph gathered in LePuy, France. With the assistance of Jean Pierre Medaille, a Jesuit priest, these women, without cloister or habit, formed what they called a "little design" which would enable them to live together in community, pray together, and offer their lives to address the needs of the day. They shared a profound desire for union with God and the "dear neighbor."

In 1836, six Sisters of St. Joseph responded to a request from the Bishop of St. Louis to come to the United States to teach deaf children. The Bishop had been advised to "get the Sisters of St. Joseph because they will do anything." The sisters settled in a log cabin in Carondelet near St. Louis, Missouri, and founded a school for deaf students. From there they spread rapidly throughout the United States and Canada. The sisters came to New York state in 1858, establishing a school in Oswego, New York.

Today more than 2,000 Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet serve in 40 states and in Peru, Japan, and Chile. They serve (with the same spirit which motivated the first sisters in countless locations): parishes, schools, health care centers, retreat houses, colleges and universities and neighborhood outreach centers.

The sisters, nourished by prayer, supported by community and energized by ministry, continue to live in community, support one another, and reach out to address the needs of the new millennium. With generosity and joy, they will continue to go where they are called by God's people.

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