Dr. Joe Knetsch received his BS degree from Western Michigan University, his MA from Florida Atlantic University, and his PhD from Florida State University.  He has taught at the secondary and collegiate levels, and worked as a historian for the Department of Environmental Protection and Department of Natural Resources.As the Florida Department of Environmental Protection's Senior Management Analyst, Knetsch was responsible for researching Florida history for early methods of transportation on and the usage of Florida's water-bodies.

The University of South Florida has a collection of his papers. Knetsch has written papers on the history of surveying and various aspects of Florida's history and landscape. He has written about Hamilton Disston. He has also written about Pembroke Pines and the Armed Occupation Act of 1842. He translated an 1856 letter from Smith Mowry to Jefferson Davis about Indian Key, Florida.

Knetsch lives in Tallassee with his wife Linda.