St. Mary's Cathedral Basilica, Galveston
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St. Mary's Cathedral Basilica [1847] in Galveston, Texas is the primary cathedral of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston and the motherchurch of the Catholic Church in Texas. It is notable as one of the very few buildings, and the only religious structure, to survive the devastating 1900 Galveston Storm. The archdiocese is also served by the Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart in Houston.
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[edit] Establishment
In 1840, the Rev. John Odin, CM., deciding to expend his energies in the mission field of Texas, embarked from New Orleans on a schooner bound for the Texas Coast. He arrived in Galveston early in 1841, and decided to remain and establish a church.
Father John Timon, C.M., who had recently been appointed Vicar Apostolic of Texas, in collaboration with Father Odin, managed to procure enough money to begin construction of a wooden-frame church. He was assisted in this venture by Colonel Michael B. Menard and N. U. Labadie, prominent Galvestonians. Colonel Menard is to be remembered as the founder of the City of Galveston.
On February 6, 1842, one month before his consecration as Bishop, Odin dedicated the completed structure to the Blessed Virgin Mary. The small, rectangular building measured 22 by 50 feet. Odin purchased a five-room cottage as the episcopal residence. He made an addition to the church structure of a small sacristy, and bought thirty benches for the convenience of his parishioners.
On May 11, 1844 Bishop Odin welcomed two Vincentian priests, Fathers J. M. Paquin and John Brands, to Galveston. In August of the same year, Galveston suffered through a costly epidemic of yellow fever that resulted in the death of 400 citizens, one of them being Father Paquin. In 1845 the relatives of the dead Father Paquin sent, by means of ships ballast, 500,000 bricks from Belgium to Bishop Odin as a memorial to be used in the construction of the Bishop's dream, a larger, permanent church. The little frame church was moved out into the street, and work on the new St. Mary's was begun in 1847. The ceremony of laying the cornerstone took place on Sunday, March 14th. Father Timon came to Galveston for the event and preached the sermon before a large crowd. On May 4, 1847 Pope Pius IX approved the establishment of the Diocese of Galveston and Odin as its first bishop.
On November 26, 1848, the Cathedral was ready for dedication. Once more Father John Timon was chosen for the principal speaker because of his close association with, and his pioneer work in the diocese.
[edit] St. Mary's Cathedral Basilica Today
Due to the tremendous growth in the City of Houston, in 1959 the Most Reverend Wendelin J. Nold, fifth bishop of the Galveston Diocese, was permitted by Rome to build a Cathedral of convenience in Houston -- Sacred Heart Co-Cathedral. This did not change the status of the City of Galveston as an Episcopal city, however it did permit full Episcopal ceremonies to be held in Houston, as well as Galveston. Both Cathedral's are coequal in rank, however since St. Mary's is the original Cathedral for the State of Texas, it has the distinction of being the Mother Cathedral for all the Catholic Dioceses in Texas.
In 1979, in recognition of the Cathedral's importance to the community and the State of Texas, as well as the historical impact it had on Catholicism in the state of Texas, Pope John Paul II elevated St. Mary's to the status of Cathedral Basilica.
Today the Cathedral Basilica is a vital part of the community. It hosts week day masses Monday through Friday at 12:10pm as well as the customary Sunday morning mass at 10am. On Saturdays a devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary rosary, litany, and consecration to Mary mass is held and participated in by all people of Galveston Island's four parishes.
In addition to those services, several of the priests in residence serve the needs of the students of the University of Texas Medical Branch and offers Sunday liturgy at the Edgewater Retirement Community.
The Rev. John N. LaBauve, S.V.D. is the priest in charge of the Cathedral Basilica and is assisted by Father Gerald Lewis, S.V.D., Father Beni Wego, S.V.D., and Father Malcom O'Leary, S.V.D.
