The American Foundation
 - 1847 -

Mother St. John sent several sisters to the United States in 1836 to meet the needs of people in this country as they moved westward. The foundation was made at Carondelet near St. Louis, Missouri, and in 1847 it became an independent congregation. Establishing independent congregations as they moved to new areas became a pattern for the Sisters of St. Joseph, and eventually 25 independent groups were established in the United States and Canada from the original Carondelet foundation. Maintaining a common heritage, each one added a spirit unique to its own foundation.

 

The first ministries of the Sisters in the United States involved establishing a school for the deaf, working with Native Americans, establishing hospitals and orphanages during the Civil War, and teaching immigrants and African-Americans.