Cathedral of the Holy Cross, Boston
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Cathedral of the Holy Cross is the mother church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston and the largest church in New England [1].
The cathedral was designed by Patrick Keely, an American nineteenth century ecclesiastical architect. The cathedral is built in the Gothic Revival style of variegated Roxbury puddingstone, with gray limestone trim. The planned western spire was never completed. When construction was finished the cathedral rivaled both Old South Church and Trinity Church in grandeur, signalling the emergence of Catholics in what was, at the time of construction, a largely Protestant city and state.
The Cathedral is located in the city's South End neighborhood. Although the South End was initially developed for Boston's emerging Anglo-Saxon Protestant middle class, the neighborhood transitioned to new immigrants, especially Irish, as middle class owners moved to the new Back Bay neighborhood.
Contents |
[edit] History
"In 1860, Bishop Fitzpatrick recognized that the church in Boston had outgrown the old Cathedral on Franklin St. However, the Civil War interrupted the plans for the new Cathedral. Bishop Fitzpatrick died in 1866 and Bishop Williams took over planning for the Cathedral project. Ground was broken for the new Cathedral on April 29, 1866. The rites of dedication were performed on December 8, 1875 by Archbishop John J. Williams, Boston's first archbishop."[2]
On October 1, 1979, Pope John Paul II held a 38-minute prayer service for 2,000 priests in the Cathedral. [3]
The Cathedral boasts a 1875 Hook and Hastings organ, historically important because it is the largest such organ that the company ever manufactured. The organ is still in commission, as guest artists regularly perform recitals at the Cathedral. In addition, the Cathedral Music Director Leo Abbott can be heard playing the organ every Sunday at the 11:30 A.M. mass.
[edit] Cathedral High School
Cathedral High School is a Roman Catholic high school in Boston, Massachusetts. Many of its alumni go on to attend the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts. (Cathedral High School Official Website)
