St. Francis Xavier Cathedral (Alexandria, Louisiana)

Last updated
St. Francis Xavier Cathedral
St. Francis Xavier Cathedral - Alexandria, Louisiana 01.JPG
St. Francis Xavier Cathedral in 2014
USA Louisiana location map.svg
Red pog.svg
31°18′44.3″N92°26′52.1″W / 31.312306°N 92.447806°W / 31.312306; -92.447806 Coordinates: 31°18′44.3″N92°26′52.1″W / 31.312306°N 92.447806°W / 31.312306; -92.447806
Location626 Fourth St.
Alexandria, Louisiana
Country United States
Denomination Roman Catholic Church
Website www.sfxcathedral.org
History
Founded1834
Consecrated 30 November 1899
Architecture
Architect(s) Nicholas J. Clayton
Style Late Gothic revival
Beaux Arts
Bungalow
Groundbreaking 1895 (1895)
Completed1899
Specifications
Materials Brick, pine [1]
Administration
Diocese Alexandria in Louisiana
Clergy
Bishop(s) Most Rev. Robert W. Marshall
Rector Rev. James A. Ferguson
Vicar(s) Rev. Bob Garrione
Deacon(s) Richard Mitchell
St. Francis Xavier Cathedral Complex
Area2 acres (0.81 ha)
NRHP reference No. 84001353
Added to NRHP29 March 1984 [2]

St. Francis Xavier Cathedral is the cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Alexandria, located in Alexandria, Louisiana.

Contents

The cathedral and related buildings was added to the National Register of Historic Places on 29 March 1984 as St. Francis Xavier Cathedral Complex. The complex includes the cathedral building, St. Francis Academy (erected in 1897), and the rectory (erected in 1896 and renovated in 1930). [1]

History

The old parish church of Saint Francis was constructed in 1817. [3] It was the only building in Alexandria spared during the American Civil War. As the Union army pulled out of the town during the disastrous Red River Campaign, Father J. P. Bellier disguised his voice to impersonate that of General Nathaniel Banks, the Union commanding officer, and ordered the troops to spare the church. [3] His plan succeeded and the building was saved.

The old building burned down in 1895. Efforts to rebuild a church started immediately. The foundation stone was laid down on 3 December 1895. Designed in Gothic revival style by Nicholas J. Clayton [ citation needed ], the new church was dedicated on 30 November 1899, the first brick church in the city. In 1907, a belfry was added, and the clock was installed in 1908. [1]

Because of the newly constructed church and Alexandria's central location, Bishop Cornelius Van de Ven petitioned the Roman Curia to transfer the seat of the diocese from Natchitoches to Alexandria. Pope Pius X granted this wish, changing the title to Diocese of Alexandria on 6 August 1910 and designating St. Francis Xavier Church as the cathedral of the newly created diocese. [1] [3]

The current bishop of Alexandria is the Most Reverend Robert W. Marshall, Jr., and the rector of the cathedral is Father James A. Ferguson.

Interior

The cathedral's rose windows are the largest in the state.[ citation needed ] The cathedral boasts a 3-manual, 48-rank Reuter pipe organ inaugurated in 2004. [1]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Diocese of Alexandria in Louisiana</span> Catholic ecclesiastical territory

Former names: Diocese of Natchitoches (1853-1910), Diocese of Alexandria (1910-1977), Diocese of Alexandria-Shreveport (1977-1986).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sacred Heart Cathedral (Davenport, Iowa)</span> Church in Iowa, United States

Sacred Heart Cathedral, located in Davenport, Iowa, United States, is a Catholic cathedral and a parish church in the Diocese of Davenport. The cathedral is located on a bluff overlooking the Mississippi River to the east of Downtown Davenport. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as part of the Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Cathedral Complex. This designation includes the church building, rectory, and the former convent, which was torn down in 2012. The cathedral is adjacent to the Cork Hill Historic District, also on the National Register. Its location on Cork Hill, a section of the city settled by Irish immigrants, gives the cathedral its nickname Cork Hill Cathedral.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cathedral of Saint Patrick (Norwich, Connecticut)</span> Historic church in Connecticut, United States

The Cathedral of Saint Patrick in Norwich is a cathedral of the Roman Catholic Church located in Norwich, Connecticut. It is the mother church of the Diocese of Norwich and is the seat of its prelate bishop.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Patrick Cathedral (Fort Worth, Texas)</span> Historic church in Texas, United States

St. Patrick Cathedral is the cathedral of the Catholic Church located in Fort Worth, Texas, United States. It is a parish of the Diocese of Fort Worth and the seat of its bishop. Construction of St. Patrick's church began in 1888, and it was dedicated in 1892. It is listed along with nearby parish facilities on the National Register of Historic Places as the St. Patrick Cathedral Complex with the church building, the rectory, and St. Ignatius Academy regarded as contributing properties. The church and academy buildings are each recognized as Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Indianapolis</span> Latin Catholic ecclesiastical jurisdiction in Indiana, United States

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Indianapolis is a division of the Roman Catholic Church in the United States. When it was originally erected as the Diocese of Vincennes on May 6, 1834, it encompassed all of Indiana as well as the eastern third of Illinois. It was renamed the Diocese of Indianapolis on March 28, 1898. Bishop Francis Silas Chatard, who had been living in Indianapolis since 1878 when he was appointed Bishop of Vincennes, became the first Bishop of Indianapolis. It was elevated from a diocese to a metropolitan archdiocese on October 21, 1944.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Mary Cathedral (Lansing, Michigan)</span> Catholic cathedral in Lansing, Michigan, US

St. Mary Cathedral is a cathedral of the Roman Catholic Church in Lansing, Michigan one block north of the Michigan State Capitol. It is the seat of the bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Lansing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Michael's Cathedral (Springfield, Massachusetts)</span> Historic church in Massachusetts, United States

St. Michael's Cathedral is the mother church of the Diocese of Springfield in Massachusetts, United States, established in 1847. In 1974 the church and rectory were included as contributing properties in the Quadrangle–Mattoon Street Historic District, listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul (Providence, Rhode Island)</span> Historic church in Rhode Island, United States

The Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul is a Roman Catholic cathedral in the Cathedral Square neighborhood of Providence, Rhode Island, United States. It is the mother church of the Diocese of Providence. The Neo-Romanesque church was designed in 1873 by Patrick Keely and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1975.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. John's Catholic Church (Worcester, Massachusetts)</span> Historic church in Massachusetts, United States

St. John's Catholic Church, established in 1834, is an historic Roman Catholic parish church in Worcester, Massachusetts. It is the oldest established Catholic religious institution in the city, and the oldest Catholic parish in New England outside of Boston. On March 5, 1980, its 1845 church building was added to the National Register of Historic Places.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saint Francis de Sales Cathedral (Baker City, Oregon)</span> Historic church in Oregon, United States

Saint Francis de Sales Cathedral is a Catholic cathedral and parish church located in Baker City, Oregon, United States. Completed in 1908, it is the seat of the Diocese of Baker. The cathedral church and the parish rectory were included as contributing properties in the Baker Historic District, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, in 1978.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cathedral of St. Mary of the Assumption (Fall River, Massachusetts)</span> Historic church in Massachusetts, United States

The Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Assumption, colloquially known as Saint Mary's Cathedral, is a historic church located in Fall River, Massachusetts. It is the cathedral and a parish church in the Diocese of Fall River. Built from 1852 to 1856, the cathedral and adjacent rectory were added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983, as St. Mary's Cathedral and Rectory. It is the oldest extant church building in the city of Fall River, and was one of the city's first Catholic parishes. The cathedral is dedicated to Mary, mother of Jesus under the title of Our Lady of the Assumption.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Shrine of St. Alphonsus Liguori</span> Historic church in Maryland, United States

St. Alphonsus Church, Rectory, Convent and Halle, also known as St. John Neumann Shrine and "Baltimore's Powerhouse of Prayer," is a historic Roman Catholic church complex located within the Archdiocese of Baltimore in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Since 1992, the parish has held regular Tridentine Masses. It is currently administered by the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Peter's Catholic Church (Council Bluffs, Iowa)</span> United States historic place

St. Peter's Catholic Church is a parish of the Diocese of Des Moines. The church is located in Council Bluffs, Iowa, United States. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1992 as St. Peter's Church and Rectory.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Francis Xavier Cathedral and Library</span> Historic church in Indiana, United States

The St. Francis Xavier Cathedral is a parish of the Roman Catholic Church in Vincennes, Indiana, under the Diocese of Evansville. Named for Francis Xavier, a 16th-century Jesuit apostle, it is located opposite George Rogers Clark National Historical Park at 205 Church Street, within the Vincennes Historic District.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Basilica of the Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart</span> Historic church in West Virginia, United States

The Basilica of the Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart is a cathedral church and a minor basilica located in Charleston, West Virginia, United States. Along with the Cathedral of St. Joseph in Wheeling it is the seat of the Catholic Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston. The parish complex is a contributing property in the Downtown Charleston Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cathedral of St. Andrew (Little Rock, Arkansas)</span> Historic church in Arkansas, United States

The Cathedral of Saint Andrew in Little Rock, Arkansas, United States, is a historic church and the oldest place of continuing worship in the city. It is the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Little Rock. The property is located at the corner of South Louisiana Street and West 7th Street in downtown Little Rock.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church (Indianapolis, Indiana)</span> Historic church in Indiana, United States

Saint John the Evangelist Catholic Church is a Roman Catholic parish of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. The parish's origins date to 1837, when it was first named Holy Cross parish. In 1850 it was renamed Saint John the Evangelist parish, and is the oldest Catholic parish in the city and in Marion County, Indiana. Considered the mother of the Catholic parishes in Indianapolis, it played an important role in development of the Catholic Church in the city. Saint John's Church served as the pro-cathedral of the diocese from 1878 until 1906; its rectory served as the bishop's residence and chancery from 1878 until 1892. In 1900 the church served as the site of first episcopal consecration held in Indianapolis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Joseph Co-Cathedral (Thibodaux, Louisiana)</span> Historic church in Louisiana, United States

St. Joseph Co-Cathedral is a Catholic cathedral located in Thibodaux, Louisiana, United States. Along with the Cathedral of St. Francis de Sales in Houma it is the seat of the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux. It is also the oldest parish in the diocese.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Holy Name of Mary Pro-Cathedral (Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan)</span> Historic church in Michigan, United States

Holy Name of Mary Proto-Cathedral, also known as St. Mary Proto-Cathedral, is a historic Roman Catholic parish church in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, United States that was formerly a cathedral church and the first Cathedral, hence "Proto-Cathedral", of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Marquette. It is the oldest parish and oldest cathedral parish in Michigan, and the third oldest parish in the United States. While the present church edifice, the fifth for the Parish, dates from 1881, the Parish began in 1668 as a Jesuit mission. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984 and designated a State of Michigan historic site in 1989. The Proto-Cathedral was the (first) Cathedral of the Diocese of Marquette when it was denominated the "Diocese of Sault Sainte Marie", which diocesan title is presently that of a titular episcopal see.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Joseph's Cathedral, Rockhampton</span> Church in Rockhampton, Australia

St Josephs Cathedral is a heritage-listed Roman Catholic cathedral at 170 William Street, Allenstown, Rockhampton, Rockhampton Region, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by Francis Drummond Greville Stanley and built from 1893 to 1982. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "About the Cathedral". St. Francis Xavier Cathedral. Retrieved June 2, 2010.
  2. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  3. 1 2 3 "Welcome to St. Francis Xavier Cathedral". Diocese of Alexandria. Retrieved June 2, 2010.