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is a city in Wallowa County, Oregon, United States. Originally named
, in 1880 the city formally named itself for Nez Perce Chief Joseph. The population was 1,054 at the 2000 census.
Joseph was deeply affected by the collapse of the timber industry in the 1980s, which resulted in the local unemployment rate approaching 17%. However, in 1982 a new industry was born with the opening of Valley Bronze, a fine art bronze foundry. In the years since, two more bronze foundries have opened in the local area as well as studios and art galleries specializing in bronze sculpture. Sales are nation-wide, including a $2.4 million order for bronze wreaths, armatures, and flagpoles for the National World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C. This new industry has been instrumental in stabilizing the local economy.
The city sponsors the annual Chief Joseph Days Rodeo each July (one of the top outdoor small rodeos in the nation, running for over 60 years), the Bronze, Blues and Brews festival each August since 2001, and the Alpenfest (Swiss-Bavarian festival staged in the traditional Oktoberfest style) the last weekend of September at nearby Wallowa Lake since 1974.