St. Joseph was begun in 1870 by German immigrants who treasured their heritage
and their language. The original church in downtown Minneapolis even had four
bells cast in Germany to unite the people with their home country. In 1972 a
tornado swept through that part of town and toppled both bell towers. About
the same time, the building of Interstate 394 meant the entire block, with
church, school, convent, rectory and playground, was sold to the state.

The parish moved from downtown to the suburb of Maple Grove. The
parish received a new name—St. Joseph the Worker—to distinguish it
from nearby parishes named in honor of the foster father of the Lord. In
1977 the cornerstone of the first church in this new location was laid. As
Maple Grove boomed, a new church building was needed. Construction on
the present building was begun in 2002 and was completed in March 2003.
In 2009, St. Joseph the Worker began a sister parish relationship with St.
Catherine in Bouzy, Haiti.