In 1880, when settlers from Poland began to build up farms and homes on the prairies of what was to become northeastern South Dakota, they also wanted to grow in their faith.
St. Joseph Catholic Church in surrounded by tall pines in Grenville, S.D.
Tri-State Neighbor photo by Janelle Atyeo
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St. Joseph Catholic Church was built in 1894.Â
Tri-State Neighbor photo by Janelle Atyeo
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St. Josep's steeple rises above the trees of Grenville, S.D., across a frozen Waubay Lake. The water wasn't always so close to the church. Floods of the 1990s changed the lake level.
Tri-State Neighbor photo by Janelle Atyeo
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St. Joseph's sanctuary looks much the same today, aside from the large chandelier, which was moved to a church in Minnesota after a remodel.
Submitted photo
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A Pieta, a statue of Mary holding the body of Jesus, is lit by sunlight through a stained glass window in St. Joseph sanctuary. The statue was purchased for the church in 1907.
Tri-State Neighbor photo by Janelle Atyeo
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Icicles hang from the eves of St. Joseph Catholic Church in northeastern South Dakota.Â
Tri-State Neighbor photo by Janelle Atyeo
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St. Joseph Catholic Church sits amongst tall pines on the shore of Waubay Lake in the town of Grenville, S.D. Since the diocese reorganized in 2024, the church hosts one Mass a month, but continues to hold funerals, weddings and baptisms.
Tri-State Neighbor photo by Janelle Atyeo
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Prayers on the Prairie is a regular feature of the Tri-State Neighbor, taking the place of the Crop Watchers report during the winter season. If you have a suggestion for a rural church to feature here, contact editor Janelle Atyeo at janelle.atyeo@lee.net .
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