St. Patrick's Cathedral
The Roman Catholic Cathedral of Saint Patrick, in New York City. It occupies a block bounded by Fifth Avenue, Madison Avenue, 50th Street, and 51st Street, the most elevated site on 5th avenue, directly across from Rockefeller Center. is the largest Roman Catholic cathedral in the United States.
The Diocese of New York was founded by Pope Pius VII in 1808. New York City's growing Catholic population could no longer fit into St. Peter's Church. The old St. Patrick's Cathedral, on Mulberry Street, was dedicated in 1815.
The present Cathedral was designed in the neo-Gothic style by James Renwick Jr., who also designed the Grace Church, consecrated in 1846, and the Free Academy building (1848). The cornerstone was laid on August 15, 1858 and it was dedicated on May 25, 1879. The spires were added in 1888 and the temple became the tallest structure in New York City (100.4 meters / 329.6 feet) at the time.
The Cathedral of Saint Patrick, around 1990s.
On the left, St. Patrick's Cathedral circa 1903 (source: Detroit Publishing Company postcards / NYPL).
The Cathedral of Saint Patrick, ca. 1880, before the towers were added (publisher Charles Bierstadt (1819-1903) and Underwood & Underwood, distributor). Source: New York Public Library.
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Copyright © Geographic Guide - Antique photographs of NYC. |
St. Patrick's Cathedral
