Saint Raphael's Cathedral, Madison, Wisconsin
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Saint Raphael's Cathedral is the Cathedral parish for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Madison. The parish is located in downtown Madison, Wisconsin at 222 West Main Street. In March of 2005 the building was heavily damaged in a fire. The parish community remains active, and in June of 2007 it was announced that a new Cathedral building would be constructed to replace the structure damaged in the fire.
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[edit] History
In the early 1840's, immigrants from Ireland settled in what would later become Madison. They were soon organized into a parish named after the Archangel Raphael. On August 15, 1842 mass was offered for the first time by Father Martin Kundig. The land that the parish buildings and a later parking lot would be built upon was donated by Governor James Duane Doty. Doty was a close friend of Samuel Mazzuchelli.
From 1842 until 1853, the parish did not have a church of its own. Mass was often celebrated in homes and in the state capitol building. In 1853 Father Francis Etchmann began the process of building the current church building. The corner stone was laid in 1854. Archbishop John Henni of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee dedicated the new building as the parish was under his jurisdiction at the time. In 1885 the present bells and spire were built.
On January 9, 1946 Pope Pius XII created the Diocese of Madison for an 11 county area in the southern and southwestern areas of the state. Territory was taken from the Archdiocese of Milwaukee and the Roman Catholic Diocese of La Crosse to form the new diocese. St. Raphael's was then chosen as the Cathedral Parish for the Madison diocese. At the time of the parish's elevation to a Cathedral, Msgr. William Mahoney was the proud pastor.
[edit] Cathedral Fire
On March 14, 2005 St. Raphael's Cathedral was heavily damaged in a fire. The fire, which caused extensive damage to the church not only affected those families who attend the church, but as it is the mother church for the Diocese the loss of the Cathedral has affected the entire diocesan community.
The fire caused the roof to collapse into the building, however the walls and the steeple remained standing. There was further damage from the water as well, and there were fears that the refurbished steeple would collapse. The steeple was found to be stable in the days following the fire. The mosaics sustained smoke and water damage, and the stained glass windows were damaged but still in place.
In the days following the fire, the cause of the fire was determined to be arson. Forty one year old William J. "Billy" Connell was arrested for setting the fire and charged with burglary, arson, and bail jumping. Mr. Connell said that he had broken into the Cathedral using a crowbar, stole a bottle of wine, and then "messed around with some stuff." Mr. Connell chose to remain silent when a detective came to interview him. The fire had started in an office/storeroom under the spire, and the crowbar was found in that room. Mr. Connell has a history of mental problems, and had previously been in trouble with the law.
On June 10, 2007, Bishop Morlino announced his intention to have the structure torn down, and replaced with a new and larger structure capable of seating approximately 1,000 people. The plans call for the steeple and other items from the old building to be reused in the new building.
One day after the announcement regarding the rebuilding of the Cathedral, Mr. Connell was sentenced to fifteen years in prison to be followed upon his release by fifteen years of close supervision.
A March 13, 2008 press release from the Diocese of Madison announced that St. Raphael's would be demolished during the summer of 2008. It was also announced that certain items from the "old" Cathedral would be saved including: the spire, the three bells from the steeple, three mosaics from the sanctuary, the marble sanctuary appointments, one larger undamaged stain glass window, three smaller undamaged semicircular stain glass windows, some ornamental stonework from around the doorways, and some other stone from the building.
As of this latest press release, no design for the Cathedral has been developed by the Diocese and there is still no timeline for the construction of a new Cathedral.
