About 15 miles north of Fort Wayne, the town of Garrett was plotted in 1875, with the extension of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. From its earliest days, a priest served the burgeoning Catholic community, where Mass was first celebrated in a tent. Father August Young became the first pastor of SS. Peter and Paul Parish, dedicated by Bishop Joseph Rademacher in 1893. It wasn’t until 1929 when Bishop John F. Noll dedicated the new church building on the corner of Houston and Ijams Streets that the parish name changed from SS. Peter and Paul to St. Joseph.

Father Young worked actively to attend to the needs of his new flock. In 1879, he purchased land several blocks west of the church to establish Calvary Cemetery, open to burial for both Catholics and Protestants. He also opened the first hospital in Garrett, Sacred Heart Hospital, in 1905. The building remains across from the church and serves as apartments today. After his retirement, Father Young resided at the hospital until his death and was buried in the cemetery he founded. To date, a beautiful Marian grotto sits next to the old hospital building.