Site #25: St. Joseph Home Cemetery
This peaceful, inactive cemetery was once an integral part of the St. Joseph Home for the Aged. Established during the height of the Second World War, the home was a testament to the local Catholic community’s commitment to social welfare and the cooperative spirit of the Marcelin district.
The Sisters of Our Lady of the Cross
In 1944, a group of nuns known as the Sisters of Our Lady of the Cross arrived in the Marcelin area to establish and manage a care facility for the elderly. According to the Riverlands Heritage Preservation Region archives, the home welcomed its first resident in August 1944. The Sisters provided medical and spiritual care for the pioneers who had spent their lives building the surrounding farms.
A Working Landscape
The St. Joseph Home was a self-sufficient community. To sustain the facility, the Sisters operated a full agricultural operation on-site. While the original home is gone, a large, distinctive barn still stands nearby (now privately owned). Visible from the cemetery, this barn marks the location of the home’s farming activities, which provided essential food and resources for the residents during the post-war years.
The Cemetery Today
The home operated at this location until 1956, when the Sisters moved to Prince Albert to establish the Mont St. Joseph Home. As documented in Bridging the Years, this small cemetery served as the final resting place for several of the home’s early residents. Though it is no longer active, it remains a heritage site, standing as a tribute to the “care for one’s neighbor” that defined the families of the Marcelin district.