On September 29, 1888, ten years after the founding of Jeanerette, Louisiana

Jeanerette, Louisiana

Jeanerette is a city in Iberia Parish, Louisiana, United States. Known as "Sugar City", it had a population of 5,997 at the 2000 census. It is part of the New Iberia Micropolitan Statistical Area.-Early years:...

, the Catholic Sisters of Mercy

Sisters of Mercy

The Religious Order of the Sisters of Mercy is an order of Catholic women founded by Catherine McAuley in Dublin, Ireland, in 1831. , the order has about 10,000 members worldwide, organized into a number of independent congregations....

 arrived in Jeanerette at the invitation of the Pastor, Father Michael Bardy. On October 1, 1888 St. Joseph School was opened with two buildings on Provost Street. One building was for the girls and one for the boys.

In the mid 1950's the school was moved across the Bayou Teche

Bayou Teche

The Bayou Teche is a waterway of great cultural significance in south central Louisiana in the United States. Bayou Teche was the Mississippi River's main course when it developed a delta about 2,800 to 4,500 years ago...

to its current location. The Carlyle Bourgeois family donated a 16 acres (64,749.8 m²) plot for the new school and the St. Paul Bourgeois family gifted an area for athletics.

After a two-year financial struggle and low enrollment, St. Joseph Catholic School announced it will close its doors at the end of this school year.,

Sources

St. Joseph School

St. Joseph School to close