Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist (Charleston, South Carolina)

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Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist
Cathedral of St. John the Baptist Charleston SC.jpg
Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist, Charleston
USA South Carolina location map.svg
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Location in South Carolina
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location in United States
32°46′35.4″N79°56′4.2″W / 32.776500°N 79.934500°W / 32.776500; -79.934500
Location120 Broad Street Charleston, South Carolina Flag of South Carolina.svg
CountryUnited States
Denomination Roman Catholic Church
Website charlestoncathedral.com
History
Founded1800
Architecture
Architect(s) Patrick C. Keely
Decimus C. Barbot
Ruben Solar (belfry & spire)
Style Gothic Revival
Groundbreaking 1890
Completed1907 (Spire-2010)
Specifications
CapacityUpper church – 720
Lower church – 200
Length200 ft (61 m)
Width80 ft (24 m)
Number of spires One
Spire height167 ft (51 m)
Materials Connecticut tool-chiseled brownstone
BellsThree
Administration
Diocese Charleston
Clergy
Bishop(s) Most Rev. Jacques E. Fabre
Rector Very Rev. Gregory B. Wilson, VG

The Cathedral of St. John the Baptist is the mother church of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Charleston, located in Charleston, South Carolina. Designed by Brooklyn architect Patrick Keely in the Gothic Revival style, it opened in 1907. The Most Reverend Jacques E. Fabre, the fourteenth Bishop of Charleston, was ordained and installed on May 13, 2022

Contents

History

Cathedral interior in 1914 CathedralofSaintJohntheBaptistCharlestonInterior1914.jpg
Cathedral interior in 1914

The first brownstone cathedral was built in 1854 and named the Cathedral of Saint John and Saint Finbar. It burned in a great fire in December 1861. The rebuilt cathedral was named for St. John the Baptist and was constructed on the foundations of the earlier structure. Architect Patrick Keely designed both the original cathedral and its replacement. [1]

The cornerstone was laid in 1890 by James Cardinal Gibbons of Baltimore, [2] and the church opened in 1907. The cathedral seats 720 people and is noted for its Franz Mayer & Co. stained glass, hand–painted Stations of the Cross, and neo-Gothic architecture. The lower church includes a crypt where Bishop England (with his sister, Joanna) and four other Charleston bishops are buried. The spire was not built at the time due to the lack of funds during the construction of the cathedral and its numerous renovations. The church was finally completed on March 25, 2010, with the addition of the steeple and bells. [3]

Significant to the history of the city of Charleston is that the present day cathedral also includes land to the right, which was St. Andrew's Hall. The front iron fence to the east, is all that remains of the 1815 St. Andrews Society Hall, which also burned in 1861.

Architecture

P.C. Keely designed the cathedral in the Gothic Revival style; it is constructed of Connecticut brownstone. [4] The pews are of carved Flemish oak. The plans for the reconstruction were along the lines of the original, but D.C. Barbot made some changes too. [5]

Chapels

Windows

Prodigal Son CHS cathedral.jpg

The cathedral is noted for its Franz Mayer & Co. stained-glass windows. It has a couple of one-of-a-kind windows.

Organ

Pipe organ in the rear gallery Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist - Charleston 03.JPG
Pipe organ in the rear gallery

Renovations

In 2007, Bishop Robert J. Baker and Cathedral Rector Rev. Msgr. Joseph Roth announced plans to renovate and complete the cathedral nearly one-hundred years after it opened. The stained-glass windows were refurbished in December 2007. The brownstone has been refurbished, the mortar has been replaced and, after 103 years of waiting, a spire with three bells now tops the cathedral. A $6.2 million contract for restoration and the steeple addition was completed on March 25, 2010. [3]

In 2019, interior renovations were begun by Conrad Schmitt Studios.

Cathedral clergy

Bishops

Rectors of the cathedral

Cathedral without a steeple as it stood for nearly one hundred years Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist (Charleston, SC).jpg
Cathedral without a steeple as it stood for nearly one hundred years

Associated Clergy

Reverend Father Bonaventure Di Camilo, OFM

Reverend Father George Landry

Reverend Father James Parker

Reverend Father Mark Smith

Reverend Father Gary D. Dilley

Reverend Mr Samuel E. Hanvey (1976 - ?)

Reverend Father Gregory H West

Reverend Father Duane T Riplog

Reverend Father Ernest Kennedy

Reverend Father Eugene L. Condon

Reverend Father John Laurence Manning

Spire and bell tower

The cathedral with its new spire is the seventh tallest building in the city.[ citation needed ] The spire is covered in copper lattice and is topped with a 16x9 foot gilded copper Celtic cross. The arches below were fabricated from a special fiberglass used in ship building, which was then clad in copper. The arches are decorated by brown cast stone pinnacles on each corner. The belfry section is also constructed of brown cast stone. It has copper louvers. The new spire was designed by Glenn Keyes Architects using a sketch of the steeple from the original 1851 building. [1]

Bells

Cathedral interior in 2015. Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist - Charleston 01.JPG
Cathedral interior in 2015.

The bells were placed in the cathedral tower on November 16, 2009. Together the three bronze bells form an E major chord. These bells were cast by Christoph Paccard Bell Foundries in France and blessed by Bishop Robert E. Guglielmone on October 15, 2009.

Music

CHSCathedralAngelwithhorn.jpg

Director of Music

Choirs

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 Ruehling, Nancy A. (June 2011). "A Storied Steeple". Traditional Building. 24 (4). Restore Media, LLC. Retrieved October 24, 2011.
  2. "Cathedral of St. John the Baptist", Historic Charleston Foundation
  3. 1 2 Bergeron, Angelle (September–October 2011). "Centennial Completion". Constructor. 93 (5). Arlington, Virginia: McGraw-Hill Construction for Associated General Contractors of America: 15–16. Archived from the original on October 6, 2011. Retrieved October 24, 2011.
  4. 1 2 "History", The Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist
  5. "New Cathedral Is Beautiful". Evening Post. Charleston, South Carolina. April 23, 1903. p. 4.
  6. "Bedient Pipe Organ Company, Opus 22, 1994". Organ Historical Society. January 5, 2015. Retrieved February 26, 2016.
  7. "Charleston, South Carolina: Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist, Roman Catholic". Aeolian-Skinner Archives. Retrieved February 26, 2016.