About Basilica of St. Patrick's Old Cathedral (Parish of St. Patrick's Old Cathedral & Most Precious Blood) · New York, New York
The Basilica of St. Patrick's Old Cathedral (often shortened to Old St. Pat's) is a Roman Catholic minor basilica and former cathedral of the Archdiocese of New York, located at 260–264 Mulberry Street between Prince and Houston Streets in the Nolita neighborhood of Lower Manhattan. Designed by Joseph-François Mangin and built between 1809 and 1815, it was the first cathedral of the Diocese of New York and the largest Catholic church in the United States at its completion, hosting a largely Irish immigrant congregation and later successive waves of Italian, Hispanic, Chinese, and Vietnamese Catholics. Pope Benedict XVI elevated it to the rank of basilica on March 17, 2010, and the parish is now twinned with the Shrine Church of the Most Precious Blood on Baxter Street, the National Shrine Church of San Gennaro. In August 2025 Cardinal Timothy Dolan entrusted its pastoral care to the Legionaries of Christ, with Fr. Daniel Ray, LC, appointed pastor.
- Established
- 1809
- Patron
- St. Patrick (patron of Ireland)
- Rector
- Rev. Daniel Ray, LC (appointed by Cardinal Dolan on August 15, 2025; pastoral care entrusted to the Legionaries of Christ; official website still lists Very Rev. Enrique Salvo as Rector)
- Diocese
- Archdiocese of New York (Deanery: South Manhattan)
Why belong here
Old St. Patrick's is a parish with a thick Catholic memory. Mass is still offered here in English, Spanish, Italian, and Vietnamese — a four-language parish that has absorbed successive immigrant waves for 210 years — and the shrine church of Most Precious Blood next door keeps the Italian-American soul of the San Gennaro Festival alive each September. Daily Mass and the warm tradition of weekday confession make it a working downtown parish rather than a museum, while pilgrimage to the catacombs, the candlelight underground tour, the restored Henry Erben organ and the Gothic acoustics make it a destination for Catholics across New York and visitors from around the world. Under the Legionaries of Christ's new tenure the parish is adding Regnum Christi-style evangelization, young adult missionaries, and Adoration nights that combine heritage and renewal.
Mass times at Basilica of St. Patrick's Old Cathedral (Parish of St. Patrick's Old Cathedral & Most Precious Blood)
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Saturday 4:15–4:45 PM (before the 5 PM Vigil Mass)
- Sunday 6:00–6:45 PM (before the 7 PM Mass)
- By appointment
Adoration times
- Adoration / Holy Hours organized through the parish with Regnum Christi (Hakuna Music Group holds Holy Hours at 7:30 PM on the 1st and 3rd weeks of the month, per rcnytristate.org); check the parish bulletin for the current schedule
History of the Parish and Basilica
Old St. Patrick's has been the beating Catholic heart of Lower Manhattan since its cornerstone was laid by Bishop-elect Luke Concanen on June 8, 1809, and it was dedicated on May 14, 1815 as the first cathedral of the newly created Diocese of New York. Built on cemetery land purchased in 1801 and designed by the French-American architect Joseph-François Mangin, it was the largest Catholic church in the United States at completion and served successive waves of Irish, Italian, Hispanic, Chinese, and Vietnamese Catholics. After decades of use as the seat of the archdiocese, it reverted to parish status in 1879 when the new St. Patrick's Cathedral on Fifth Avenue opened, was gutted by fire in 1866 and rebuilt under Henry Engelbert, and was elevated to the rank of basilica by Pope Benedict XVI on March 17, 2010.
- Founded 1809; dedicated May 14, 1815
- Architect Joseph-François Mangin (also designer of New York City Hall)
- Reconstructed 1866–1868 under Henry Engelbert after a devastating fire
- Designated a minor basilica on March 17, 2010 by Pope Benedict XVI
- Parish merged with Most Precious Blood in 2015; entrusted to Legionaries of Christ in 2025
The Old Cemetery and Catacombs
Manhattan's only Catholic catacombs and cemetery lie on the grounds of the basilica, surrounding the church on the north and south and stretching in three 120-foot corridors of family and clerical vaults beneath the nave. After more than a century without new interments the parish resumed burials in September 2012 by installing columbaria — first in the cemetery, then in the catacombs themselves — and continues to expand the niche inventory today. The brick boundary wall ringing the property is a designated New York City landmark from 1968.
- Resumed interments in September 2012
- Niches in underground catacombs roughly $10,000–$15,000
- 35 family crypts and 5 clerical vaults
- Catacombs predate the upper church and may have helped fund its construction
- Restored niches unveiled as part of the 2015 renovation
The 2013–2015 Interior Restoration
Pastored by Monsignor Donald Sakano at the bicentennial, Old St. Patrick's underwent a comprehensive restoration under liturgical designer Rolf Rohn of Rohn & Associates, completed in time for the 200th anniversary in 2015. Working under New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission guidelines, the firm conducted high-definition architectural surveys and delivered a new Neo-Gothic altar and tabernacle throne, restored early-1800s carved reredos, restored the late-1800s baptismal font, renewed the Stations of the Cross, added a new Our Lady of China statue for the Chinese community, installed a chapel dedicated to Our Lady of Altagracia, painted Byzantine-style gold-leaf murals of Archangel Michael and Angel Gabriel, renewed the stained glass with protective glazing, and added new lighting, heating, and an elevator for accessibility. The 1868 Henry Erben organ — designated 'exceptional historical merit' by the Organ Historical Society — was removed in 2023 and returned to the gallery in early 2026 after a two-year restoration by Brunner & Associates.
- New Neo-Gothic altar and tabernacle throne
- Restored carved reredos and Stations of the Cross
- Byzantine-style gold-leaf murals
- Chapel of Our Lady of Altagracia
- Our Lady of China statue
- New below-ground columbaria
- 1868 Henry Erben organ restored 2023–2026 by Brunner & Associates
Shrine Church of the Most Precious Blood
Twinned with Old St. Patrick's since 2015, the Shrine Church of the Most Precious Blood is the National Shrine Church of San Gennaro and the spiritual home of the annual Feast of San Gennaro procession in Little Italy. The parish was established in 1888 as a national parish for Italian immigrants; the Scalabrini Fathers broke ground around 1891 but ran out of funds, and the Franciscans took over and completed the church in 1904. The Franciscans withdrew from Most Precious Blood in March 2014 and the parish came under diocesan administration; in 2015 it became part of the Old St. Patrick's parish. In addition to the strong Italian tradition the church hosts a growing Vietnamese congregation and is home to the Vietnamese Arts and Learning Cultural Center.
- National Shrine Church of San Gennaro
- 113 Baxter Street between Canal and Hester
- Built 1891–1904 by Scalabrini Fathers and completed by Franciscans
- Houses the Figli di San Gennaro, San Angelo Society, Craco Society, Community of Sant'Egidio
- Vietnamese Arts and Learning Cultural Center
Music and Organs
The basilica is home to a celebrated forty-stop pipe organ built by Henry Erben in 1868, designated an instrument of 'exceptional historical merit' by the Organ Historical Society in 2004. The instrument was carefully dismantled by the Organ Clearing House in the winter of 2023, shipped to the Lancaster, Pennsylvania workshop of Brunner & Associates for restoration, and returned to its balcony loft in early 2026 after a multi-year project during which original artwork beneath layers of gold paint was rediscovered. A concert on June 11, 2026 led by Organist and Director of Music Jared Lamenzo revealed the painted decoration for the first time in more than a century and raised funds for the sacred music program.
- Henry Erben 1868 organ (40 stops)
- Designated 'exceptional historical merit' in 2004
- Restored 2023–2026 by Brunner & Associates (Lancaster, PA)
- Director of Music: Jared Lamenzo
Mission, Outreach, and Regnum Christi
In August 2025 Cardinal Dolan entrusted the pastoral care of the Basilica of St. Patrick's Old Cathedral to the Legionaries of Christ through Regnum Christi, naming Fr. Daniel Ray, LC pastor (installed October 19, 2025). The Legionaries previously supplied parochial vicars here — notably Fr. Jason Smith, LC — and Regnum Christi has long run evangelization initiatives out of the basilica. Young-adult missionaries on the model of Steve Auth's Missionary of Wall Street conduct sidewalk outreach in SoHo and Nolita and report bringing dozens to confession and Mass each day; Hakuna Music Group — at one point #1 on Spotify in Spain — holds a Holy Hour with its choir at the basilica at 7:30 PM on the 1st and 3rd weeks of the month and has staged evangelization concerts in the sanctuary.
- Pastor: Fr. Daniel Ray, LC (installed October 19, 2025)
- Regnum Christi missionaries and young-adult missions
- Hakuna Music Group — Holy Hours 1st and 3rd weeks
- Missionary of Wall Street street outreach
Saints in the Stones: Notable Burials and Pilgrimages
The catacombs hold the mortal remains of some of the most consequential Catholics in nineteenth-century New York, and stories about them are a major draw for pilgrims. Cardinal John McCloskey, America's first cardinal, received his red hat inside the rebuilt Old St. Patrick's. Bishop John Connolly, New York's first resident bishop, is interred beneath the nave, as are Confederate-supporting Union intelligence chief General Thomas Eckert, members of the Delmonico restaurant family, Countess Annie Leary, wine merchant Dominick Lynch, Congressman John Kelly, and founding mother superior Mary Agnes O'Connor of the first Sisters of Mercy convent in New York. Two New Yorkers currently on the road to sainthood — Venerable Pierre Toussaint and Servant of God Isaac Hecker — were originally interred here before their remains were moved to the new St. Patrick's Cathedral and St. Paul the Apostle Church respectively.
- Venerable Pierre Toussaint (originally buried here, moved 1990)
- Servant of God Isaac Hecker (originally buried here, moved to St. Paul the Apostle)
- General Thomas Eckert (Edison-era fixtures visible on tour)
- Members of the 69th New York Infantry 'Irish Brigade'
- Cardinal John McCloskey's ceremony inside the rebuilt church
Visiting the Catacombs and the Basilica
The Old St. Patrick's catacombs tour is one of New York's most singular cultural experiences: a 90-minute candlelight walk through three 120-foot corridors of marble-faced family and clerical vaults, with the finale in the crypt of General Thomas Eckert with its imported ceiling tiles and original Edison-era light fixtures. Beyond the tour, visitors should see the carved early-1800s reredos, the restored Neo-Gothic altar and tabernacle throne with its tester, the new Our Lady of China statue and Our Lady of Altagracia chapel, the Byzantine-style murals, the renewed Gothic stained glass, and the restored 1868 Erben organ returned to the balcony in 2026. Mass is offered daily and Sunday in English, Spanish, Italian, and Vietnamese — see the parish website for the latest schedule.
- 90-minute candlelight catacombs tour (public, ticketed)
- Open for daily Mass Monday–Friday 12:10 PM, Saturday Vigil 5:00 PM, and seven Sunday Masses
- Most Precious Blood Church open Sundays 11 AM – 3 PM
- Self-guided tours of the restored sanctuary, cemetery and columbarium
- Accessibility: elevator to all levels added in the 2013–2015 renovation
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Anthony Kohlmann, SJearly 1800s
Jesuit rector of St. Peter's on Barclay Street, principal mover behind buying the Mott and Prince Streets site and commissioning Mangin
- John Connolly, OP1815-1825
Irish Dominican; New York's first resident bishop; entombed in the catacombs
- John Hughes1842-1864
Archbishop of New York (then Bishop); oversaw the diocese through the anti-Catholic riots and the decision to build the new cathedral
- John McCloskey1864-1880
First American cardinal; received his red hat inside the rebuilt Old St. Patrick's after the 1866 fire
- Monsignor Donald Sakanoearly 2000s-2015/16
Led the 200th anniversary bicentennial, the petition to Rome for basilica status, the 2013–2015 interior restoration, and the revival of cemetery interments through columbaria
- Very Rev. Enrique Salvomid-2010s to mid-2025
Rector at the time of the basilica's visible revival; concurrently rector of the new St. Patrick's on Fifth Avenue per the archdiocese contact page
- Rev. Daniel Ray, LC2025-present
Appointed pastor August 15, 2025 when Cardinal Dolan entrusted the basilica to the Legionaries of Christ; ordained December 2006; installed October 19, 2025
