St. Joseph Catholic Church/Shrine

Genealogical Data

The following index from this congregation is available:

Marriages from 1843

Information about these marriages was first published in the 1984 St. Louis Genealogical Society Quarterly, volume 17, number 2, page 38.

History

Established in 1843; closed in 1979 but still open as a shrine in 2016

Mrs. Anne Biddle donated land at 11th and Biddle Streets in St. Louis to build a church for the German Catholic congregation living in St. Louis. They laid the cornerstone in 1844. As the parish continued to grow, they began to remodel this building, a project that was completed by the end of 1866. The address at that time was 1099 Biddle Street because of the location of the entrance.

By 1870, St. Joseph became the largest parish in the city with nearly 1,200 members. In 1880, another remodeling project began, resulting in the addition of the two massive towers that distinguish the front of the structure. The entrance also changed, making the new address 1220 North 11th Street.

Photo courtesy of the
Archdiocese of St. Louis Archives
(Used with permission)

The Catholic Archdiocese closed the parish in 1979 and speculation rose that workers would demolish the old church building. This led to the formation of a citizen group called Friends of St. Joseph. They were instrumental in nominating the site for the National Register of Historic Places in 1978 and provided funds for the renovation of the church and rectory. The Archdiocese rededicated the old church as the Shrine of St. Joseph in 1979. It is still in use for special events, masses, and tours.

Address: 1220 North 11th Street, St. Louis, Missouri 63106

Telephone: 314-231-9407

Website: www.shrineofstjoseph.org/

GPS (Latitude, Longitude): 38.637283, -90.192633 View Map