adjacent to the church. An iron gateway arch with the words "St. Joseph's Cemetery" marks the entrance. A pedestrian walk down the middle terminates at an altar towards the center and divides the cemetery into three sections. The altar was built of flagstone on two poured concrete steps. It features a sculpture of the Crucifixion that is about in height with a cross made out of wood. It is flanked by life-size statues of the Virgin Mary and St. John the Evangelist. The statues are painted metal and are believed to date sometime prior to World War I. The first five rows in the north section of the cemetery are restricted to the burial of children. There are no restrictions in the rest of the cemetery. The earliest grave markers are from 1851, which was two years before the parish was established. The markers are made from various kinds of stone, notably limestone and granite, and were executed in a variety of styles. One of the more prominent styles include 40 cross-on-stone markers that can be divided into three basic forms. The oldest form is used in seven grave markers. It is a cross-on-tablet marker that consists of a small, tablet-like marker that is surmounted by a stone cross. While they vary in height they are typically high. With 21 examples the cross-on-shaft grave marker is the most popular. They date from the last quarter of the 19th century. This style features a stepped base, a narrow rectangular column, and a carved stone cross at the top. They also vary in height, but several of them measure in height. The third form is the largest of the three. Called a cross-on-block it consists of a large, rectangular block, that is capped with a cross. They also vary in height, but there are several examples that are in height. The 12 examples of this style date from the first two decades of the 20th century. There are also variations of this style which include the cross being inscribed on the block itself. A heart is another prominent symbol used on grave markers in the cemetery. It is found prominently in the children's section and on the marker for Sister Columba, the only professed religious buried in the cemetery. There are only a few grave markers that feature urns, which were popular in Victorian cemeteries in Iowa. Noticeably absent are iron cross