Draft:Historic Cathedrals of Saint Paul, Minnesota
Prior to the current Cathedral of Saint Paul in Saint Paul, Minnesota, three other buildings have served as the cathedral for the territory of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis.
First Cathedral
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The first church building in what became the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis was a small log chapel built at the urging of Father Lucien Galtier. He came to the area when the settlement was still known as "Pig's Eye" (after Pierre "Pig's Eye" Parrant). The chapel, measuring 20 feet (6.1 m) by 18 feet (5.5 m), was dedicated on November 1, 1841. In 847, Father Augustin Ravoux later enlarged the structure, adding another eighteen feet. It was the first house of worship to be erected within the currently city limits of Saint Paul. When Joseph Crétin was appointed as the bishop of the newly established Diocese of St. Paul in July 1851, the log chapel became the first cathedral.[1]: 43–44 The chapel was dismantled in 1856. It is thought that some of the logs were used in the construction of buildings at Saint Joseph's Academy.[1]: 48
Second Cathedral
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Crétin immediately started to build a larger church to serve the fast-growing population of St. Paul. The second church building had three stories, with a library, kitchen, and school facilities on the first floor; the church itself on the second floor; and offices and living quarters for Crétin and his staff. The second building still proved to be too small for the needs of the diocese, so he started plans for a third cathedral in 1853.
Third Cathedral
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Construction of the third building, at the corner of St. Peter and Sixth Streets in Downtown St. Paul, started in 1854 and was completed in 1858, having been delayed by the Panic of 1857 and Crétin's death. The third cathedral was built of stone, measured 175 feet (53 m) long and 100 feet (30 m) wide, but had practically no ornamentation in an effort to cut costs. Thomas Grace was the bishop at the time the cathedral was completed.[2]
References
[edit]- ^ a b Reardon, James Michael (1952). The Catholic Church in the Diocese of St. Paul : from earliest origin to centennial achievement : a factual narrative. Saint Paul, Minnesota: North Central Publishing Company.
- ^ Alan K. Lathrop (2003). Churches Of Minnesota: An Illustrated Guide. University of Minnesota Press. pp. 165–166. ISBN 0816629099.
- ^ "History". Cathedral of Saint Paul. Archived from the original on Feb 11, 2024. Retrieved 9 November 2024.