St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Barcaldine was established in 1896. Many Irish Catholics had moved westward as the rail line was built, and they were concerned by the lack of religious education in the area. They invited the Sisters of Mercy of the Rockhampton Congregation to open a school. One hundred students were welcomed on the first day and boarders were accommodated for many years. With the decline in local population the school is now smaller. In 2009 the first Pre Prepatory facility in the Rockhampton Diocese was opened at the school. St Joseph's currently has a population of 27 students in P-7, 3 students in Pre-Prep and a teaching staff of a Principal, 4 teachers and 3 assistants. The school maintains the strong family atmosphere which has characterised it over more than a century of service to the people of Barcaldine.