About St. Joseph · Shoshoni, Wyoming
St. Joseph is a small Roman Catholic mission church serving the town of Shoshoni in Fremont County, Wyoming. It is a dependent mission of St. Margaret's Parish in nearby Riverton, within the Diocese of Cheyenne, and is administered by the pastor and staff of St. Margaret's. The Diocese of Cheyenne's parish finder lists the church at 211 Wyoming Street and notes that, at present, no services are regularly held on site — the community is cared for by St. Margaret's in Riverton. A casual photo-essay blog observing the building notes it appears to have been converted from another use into a tidy small church with a Southwestern feel.
- Patron
- St. Joseph
- Rector
- Very Rev. Louis Shea (Pastor of St. Margaret's, Riverton, which attends to St. Joseph, Shoshoni)
- Diocese
- Diocese of Cheyenne
Why belong here
St. Joseph Mission is a faithful Catholic presence in the small Wyoming railroad town of Shoshoni, cared for by the priests and staff of St. Margaret's Parish in Riverton. Catholics in Shoshoni can worship at a local church dedicated to St. Joseph — patron of workers and of the Universal Church — while remaining connected to a larger parish family in the Wind River Basin that also serves Our Lady of the Woods in Dubois and St. Edward in Kinnear. Anyone seeking sacraments, faith formation, or community can contact the St. Margaret's office in Riverton for current schedules, anointing of the sick visits, or to enroll children in religious education.
Mass times at St. Joseph
Weekly Mass schedule
St. Joseph Mission in Shoshoni, Wyoming
St. Joseph is one of three small missions attended from St. Margaret's Parish in Riverton, the others being Our Lady of the Woods in Dubois and St. Edward in Kinnear. The mission sits on Wyoming Street in Shoshoni, a small railroad and ranching town in Fremont County. Because St. Joseph is a mission rather than an independent parish, it shares its priests, office staff, faith formation, and sacramental ministry with St. Margaret's in Riverton. Parishioners in Shoshoni who need to reach the priest for anointing of the sick, marriage prep, baptism scheduling, or other sacraments do so through the St. Margaret's church office.
- Jurisdiction: Diocese of Cheyenne
- Mission of St. Margaret's, Riverton
- Patron: St. Joseph (Husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary)
- Address: 211 Wyoming St., Shoshoni, WY 82649
History of the Mission
Detailed founding records for St. Joseph Mission in Shoshoni are not published online. A 2011 'Churches of the West' photo-essay observes that the small building has been converted from another use into a chapel with a nicely done exterior that gives a Southwestern impression, and that the church is served by the larger Riverton parish. GCatholic and the Diocese of Cheyenne both list St. Joseph as a dependent mission of St. Margaret's, Riverton. In 2019, a clergy-change announcement named Fr. Demetrio Penascoza as Pastor of St. Margaret Parish and its mission churches, including St. Joseph in Shoshoni.
- 2011 — 'Churches of the West' blog describes the mission as a converted building with a Southwestern character, served from Riverton.
- 2019 — Fr. Demetrio Penascoza named Pastor of St. Margaret Parish and its missions, including St. Joseph, Shoshoni.
- Currently — St. Joseph listed by the Diocese of Cheyenne parish finder as 'Attended to by St. Margaret's, Riverton.'
Clergy and Pastoral Care
Because St. Joseph is a mission of St. Margaret's, its pastoral care is provided by the priests assigned to that parish in Riverton. The Diocese of Cheyenne's 'Meet the Priests' page lists Very Rev. Louis Shea as Pastor of St. Margaret's, Riverton, with parochial vicars assisting him. The mission also benefits from the Augustinian (OSA) and other priests assigned to St. Margaret's over the years.
- Very Rev. Louis Shea — Pastor, St. Margaret's, Riverton (attends St. Joseph, Shoshoni)
- Rev. Eugene A. Inobeme, OSA — Parochial Vicar, St. Margaret's, Riverton
- Rev. Lucas Schumacher — Parochial Vicar, St. Margaret's, Riverton
- Fr. Demetrio Penascoza — previously named Pastor of St. Margaret's and its missions including St. Joseph, Shoshoni
Visiting St. Joseph Mission
The mission is located at 211 Wyoming Street in Shoshoni, Wyoming. Because St. Joseph is currently listed by the Diocese of Cheyenne as having 'no services currently held,' visitors and locals seeking Mass or sacraments should plan to attend St. Margaret's in Riverton (about 30 miles southwest) or call ahead to the parish office to confirm whether any devotions, funerals, or holy-day liturgies are scheduled at the Shoshoni chapel.
- Address: 211 Wyoming St., Shoshoni, WY 82649
- Parish office (St. Margaret's): 618 East Fremont, Riverton, WY
- Phone: 307-856-3757
- Diocese: Diocese of Cheyenne (dcwy.org)
Nearby Catholic Churches
St. Joseph is part of a network of small mission and parish churches serving the Wind River Basin and central Wyoming. GCatholic lists several nearby Catholic churches that, together with St. Joseph and St. Margaret's, form the regional Catholic presence.
- St. Margaret's, Riverton (32 km) — mother parish of the St. Joseph mission
- St. Stephen's Indian Mission, St. Stephens (37 km)
- St. Francis, Thermopolis (47 km)
- St. Edward, Kinnear — another mission of St. Margaret's
- Our Lady of the Woods, Dubois — another mission of St. Margaret's
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Fr. Demetrio Penascoza
Named Pastor of St. Margaret Parish, Riverton, and its missions including St. Joseph in Shoshoni (2019 clergy-change announcement).