In approximately 1798, Jacob Dittoe, a German-Catholic pioneer, moved to the Ohio wilderness in the area near modern-day Somerset.

In a letter dated Feb. 1, 1808, Dittoe informed the bishop of the locals' needs for the Sacraments, and asked if a Catholic lawyer could validate marriages in the absence of a priest.

He sent a Dominican priest, Father Edward Fenwick from Kentucky to find Dittoe and serve the religious needs of his community.

[6] Fenwick traveled from Kentucky to Ohio along Zane's Trace, and learned of Dittoe's whereabouts when he reached New Lancaster.

Lost on the poorly marked road, Fenwick followed the sound of an ax cracking through the wilderness to reach the home of Jacob and Catherine Dittoe in September 1808.

One notable exception was in 1812 when Bishop Flaget of Bardstown and Father Stephen Badin lodged with the Dittoes en route to Baltimore.

The Catholics at New Lancaster, or near Mr. Dittoe's, are in sufficient numbers to form a very respectable congregation, and with the taste that the Germans have for music, I am very sure that divine services there would be held with a great deal of beauty and dignity.

[8] Conditions in the log church were harsh; winter temperatures dropped low enough that a brazier was used on the altar during Mass to keep the Communion wine from freezing.

[6] Fenwick left St. Joseph Church in 1821 when he was appointed as bishop of the newly formed Diocese of Cincinnati.