ST. JOSEPH, MICHIGAN

'St. Joseph' is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 8,789. It lies on the shore of Lake Michigan, at the mouth of the St. Joseph River, about 60 miles due east of Chicago. It is the county seat of Berrien County⁶. St. Joseph is the site of the Venetian Festival, an event that draws thousands annually to its shores. It is also home of the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers.
St. Joseph and Benton Harbor are locally collectively known as the "Twin Cities."

Contents

Geography

Demographics

History

Transportation

County seat

Business and industry

Education

Transportation

St. Joseph in Pop Culture

External links

References

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 15.5 km² (6.0 mi²). 8.9 km² (3.4 mi²) of it is land and 6.6 km² (2.5 mi²) of it (42.64%) is water.

Demographics

As of the census² of 2000, there were 8,789 people, 4,117 households, and 2,058 families residing in the city. The population density was 989.3/km² (2,561.3/mi²). There were 4,594 housing units at an average density of 517.1/km² (1,338.8/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 90.31% White, 5.11% African American, 0.41% Native American, 2.39% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.46% from other races, and 1.31% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.29% of the population.
There were 4,117 households out of which 22.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 37.6% were married couples living together, 9.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 50.0% were non-families. 44.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.99 and the average family size was 2.77.
In the city the population was spread out with 19.0% under the age of 18, 9.5% from 18 to 24, 30.6% from 25 to 44, 22.7% from 45 to 64, and 18.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 96.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.9 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $37,032, and the median income for a family was $51,328. Males had a median income of $36,250 versus $26,395 for females. The per capita income for the city was $24,949. About 4.3% of families and 6.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.1% of those under age 18 and 6.3% of those age 65 or over.
The demographics of St. Joseph contrast sharply with those across the river in Benton Harbor.

	White	Black	Household Income
St. Joseph	90.31%	5.11%	$37,032
Benton Harbor	5.49%	92.40%	$17,471

History

The mouth of the Saint Joseph river at present day Saint Joseph, Michigan, was an important point of Amerindian travel and commerce, as it lay along a key water route between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River. Both the Miami and Potawatami used this route and would use the area as a camp.^[1]. The St. Joseph river also allowed for connection with the Sauk Trail the major land trail through Michigan. In 1669, the mouth of the river was discovered by European explorers. French explorer René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle built Fort Miami (Michigan) on the bluff over looking Lake Michigan.^[2]. There in 1679, he waited for the ship Le Griffon which never returned. Once the ship was deemed lost, LaSalle with his men made the first land crossing of the lower peninsula by Europeans.
The next permanent white settler in St. Joseph was William Burnett who around 1780 started a trading post. The post traded food, furs and goods with places including Detroit, Mackinac and Chicago.^[3]. St. Joseph was originally platted in 1829 as the village of Newburyport. The St. Joseph river which has its mouth in St. Joseph was straightened through a channel and piers were added later. The first light house in St. Joseph battles Chicago's original lighthouse as the first light house built on Lake Michigan. Newburyport changed its name to St. Joseph when it was incorporated in 1834.^[4]
The first route across Lake Michigan from St. Joseph to Chicago began as a mail route in 1825. Sporadic service to and from St. Joseph continued until 1842 when Samuel and Eber Ward began a permanent service. That lasted eleven years. Before the rise of large ship companies on Lake Michigan, service was done primarily by owner operated boats. With the rise in shipping in Benton Harbor and the rise in tourism in St. Joseph, permanent and larger operations began operating out of the ports.^[5]

Transportation

Two major businesses operated lines to and from Chicago, the Goodrich Transportation company and the local firm of Graham and Morton. They dominated the traffic at St. Joseph for more than 100 years but other smaller firms continued to operate. Goodrich had a steamer named St. Joseph which was built in 1867. There were several ships built later named after the city, including two named City of St. Joseph. A major local captain was Nelson Napier.^[5]
Starting in 1874, Henry Graham and J. Stanley Morton began operating a steam line out of St. Joseph. Their colaboration would become the Graham and Morton Transportation Company. Through vigorous competition, they won the war to become the major carrier out of St. Joseph. Goodrich stopped service to the Twin Cities in 1880. The company grew fast and over the fifty plus years of its existence became the second largest line on Lake Michigan behind only Goodrich.^[5]
In 1924 G & M merged with Goodrich. Like most other ports along Lake Michigan, St. Joseph saw a huge drop in traffic during the early years of the twentieth century and the depression caused even more fiancial problems for Goodrich and the independent operators. The route between Chicago and St. Joseph was a stalwart and survived longer than most other routes lasting until the 50s.^[5]
On Jan. 29th, 1870 the Chicago & Michigan Lake Shore Railroad extended a badly needed rail line from New Buffalo to St. Joe. Through this railroad, St. Joe was connected to Grand Rapids, Muskegon, Detroit and Chicago. Before this railroad, the only connection St. Joseph had was by water. The line was reorganized as the Chicago & West Michigan RR and then was incorporated into the Pere Marquette Railroad.

County seat

After a bitterly fought political contest, St. Joseph was named the seat of Berrien County in 1894. The three largest towns in the county all wanted to be the county seat, Benton Harbor, St. Joseph and Niles. None of the towns had the votes to win by themselves. Once St. Joseph and Benton Harbor voters combined their votes, St. Joseph won over Niles.

Business and industry

In 1911, Louis, Emory, and Frederick Upton began a business that produced household washing machines. The business soon became a boom and has continued to grow to this day. In 1929, Upton Machine Company merged with Nineteen Hundred Corp taking the later name. The company began marketing a line of appliances known as the Whirlpool brand in 1948. Within the next decade, Nineteen Hundred changed its name to Whirlpool. Today, Whirlpool is the largest manufacturer of major home appliances and maintains a large presence in St. Joseph and nearby Benton Harbor. Whirlpool has its world headquarters outside Benton Harbor. ^[9].
In 1891 the Silver Beach Amusement Park was opened on land between the lake and mouth of the river in St. Joseph. Logan Drake and Louis Wallace bought the land from the Pere Marquette Railroad and added cottages to lure tourists to the lake front. As the park aged and grew in popularity, the pair added many attractions, including concessions, games, pool, a boardwalk and different rides. The first roller coaster was built in 1904 and was called the Chase Through the Clouds which was replaced by the Velvet roller coaster (renamed the Comet). One of the most popular attractions was the carousel and the Shadowland Ballroom, built in 1927. During the 1960s and 1970s, the buildings decayed and the crowds decreased. Finally, crime in the park caused it to be shut down by police in 1970.^[10].

Education

★ Saint Joseph High School (Bears)

★ Lake Michigan Catholic (Lakers)

★ Lake Michigan College

★ Trinity Lutheran School (Kingsmen)

★ Michigan Lutheran High School (Titans)

★ Grace Lutheran School (Hornets)

Transportation

★ St. Joseph (Amtrak station)

★ The St. Joseph Harbor is a commercial port that receives bulk goods from lake freighter. St. Joseph has two docks within city limits and another dock is located in Benton Harbor. Due to limitations on the depth of the port and lack of dredging funding, the harbor is experiencing a down trend in the amount of tonnage. The 2006 numbers for the port are:^[11]

2005 Shipping Report

Shipper	Good	Number of Vessels	Tonnage
Consumers	Limestone, sand and slag	22	194,629
Dock 63	Limestone, stone and sand	6	112,178
Lafarge	Bulk Cement	33	225,385
Total		63	532,192

Previous year tonnage includes:

Past Tonnage

Year	Vessels	Tonnage
2000	69	770,189
2001	87	1,118,964
2002	82	665,917
2003	90	794,572
2004	85	767,975

St. Joseph in Pop Culture

The book ''The Other Side of the River'' by Alex Kotlowitz documents the death of an African American teenage boy through the eyes of locals in Benton Harbor and St. Joseph. The book delves into race relations between the two cities.
The controversial book A Million Little Pieces takes place in part in and around the city of St. Joseph. Many of the disputed parts took place in the area. James Frey went to St. Joseph High School. Some members of the area including local police helped to show that the book was not a complete factual recount but partly a fictional retelling of events.

External links

★ City of Saint Joseph

★ St. Joseph Public Schools

★ Lake Michigan Catholic Schools

★ Trinity Lutheran School

★ St. Joe Forum

★ Peace Lutheran Church ELCA

★ Saron Lutheran Church ELCA

★

References

1. French and Indian Footprints, [1]
2. Tour of St. Joseph, [2]
3. History of Saint Joseph, Michigan History Magazine, http://www.michiganhistorymagazine.com/extra/swmich/stjoehistory.pdf
4. History of Saint Joseph, Michigan History Magazine, http://www.michiganhistorymagazine.com/extra/swmich/stjoehistory.pdf
5. Lake Michigan Passenger Steamers, Hilton, George
6. Lake Michigan Passenger Steamers, Hilton, George
7. Lake Michigan Passenger Steamers, Hilton, George
8. Lake Michigan Passenger Steamers, Hilton, George
9. Whirlpool History, [3]
10. Silver Beach Amusement Park Overview, [4]
11. Harbor Report, City of St. Joseph. [5]