More Early Saint Joseph History.

(Photo courtesy of Brother Michael Flaherty, F.S.C.)

Ground was broken, concrete poured and the fist bricks of Saint Joseph High School were laid in 1959.  During that year Dwight D. Eisenhower was president.  Hawaii became a state.  In Rome, His Holiness Pope John XXIII issue a call for the Second Vatican Council.
Much has transpired since that year.  The country has had four more presidents.  In a sense our nation's borders now extend beyond Hawaii to the moon.  The challenges and changes of John XXIII are still being felt.
Actually the story of Saint Joseph High School begins in 1946 with the purchase of a plot of land in suburban Westchester for the eventual construction of the two Catholic High Schools to serve the growing needs of the Western suburbs.  Construction of Saint Joseph was to be financed by the Archdiocesan school fund, and it was to be staffed and operated by the Christian Brothers.
On July, 1959, the construction of Saint Joseph High School was begun.  Through both the Brother's house and the school were to be completed by July, 1960, the school was far from ready for occupancy.  A steel strike during the winter and a roofers strike during June and July had caused long delays.  However, the roofers returned to the job on the 18th of July and the tradesmen were able to prepare enough classrooms for the opening of school on September 8, 1960.
Though the classes were in session, the work of construction continued.  The bleachers and gym floor were completed the week before Thanksgiving.  This permitted the first use of the gymnasium on November 21, 22 and 23 when a retreat was held for the student body.  At the close of 1960 the electricians and painters were still at work.