SAINT JOSEPH

city, seat (1894) of Berrien County, southwestern Michigan, U.S.; it is a port on Lake Michigan, at the mouth of the St. Joseph River, opposite Benton Harbor. La Salle established Ft. Miami there in 1679, using it as an exploration base (commemorated by a historic site). Later known as Saranac and Newburyport, it was renamed (1833) for the river. It developed after 1836 with improved harbour facilities and the opening of the Territorial Road from Detroit. Its northeastern portion was separately incorporated as Benton Harbor (1869). Industries (including the manufacture of auto parts, rubber goods, and home equipment), fruit processing, and tourism (beaches and mineral springs) support the economy. Inc. village, 1834; city, 1891. Pop. (1990) 9,214. byname Saint Joe, city, seat (1846) of Buchanan County, northwestern Missouri, U.S., on the Missouri River (there bridged to Elwood, Kan.), 28 mi (45 km) north of Kansas City. A trading post was established (1826) on the site by Joseph Robidoux, a French-Canadian trapper from St. Louis. The Platte Purchase (1836), adding about 2,000,000 ac (800,000 ha) of Indian land to the state territory, resulted in an influx of settlers. Robidoux laid out the town in 1843 and named it for his patron saint. During the California gold rush (1849), St. Joseph boomed as a steamboat base and supply depot for wagon trains westward. The western terminus of the Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad (completed 1859), it became the eastern terminus of the Pony Express, launched from St. Joseph on April 3, 1860. During the Civil War the city became a point for guerrilla operations and was frequented by border outlaws such as W.C. Quantrill and Jesse James; the latter was killed (1882) in his home there (which has been preserved). In the 1890s St. Joseph became an important meat-packing centre but was eclipsed by Omaha, Neb., and Kansas City when transcontinental railroads bypassed it. It has survived as one of the great livestockgrain markets of the central west and is the trade centre of an extensive agricultural region. Manufactures are diversified and include structural steel, chemicals, machinery, and clothing. Lover's Lane, Saint Jo, by Eugene Field, expresses the poet's nostalgic remembrance of the St. Joseph street where he courted his wife. Patee House comprises the reconstructed headquarters of the Railroad and Pony Express offices. The site of the Pony Express Stables Museum was the starting point for the rides west to Sacramento, Calif., and the St. Joseph Museum houses a notable American Indian collection. Pigeon Hill Wildlife Area and the Lewis and Clark State Park are nearby. The city is the seat of Missouri Western State College (1915). Inc. 1851. Pop. (1990) city, 71,852; St. Joseph MSA, 83,083.