Cathedral of Saint Paul - National Shrine of the Apostle Paul

History & Significance

Cathedral · Est. Current building opened 1915 (cornerstone laid 1907); consecrated 1958

The Cathedral of Saint Paul is the cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, located in Saint Paul, Minnesota, and dedicated to the Apostle Paul. Conceived by Archbishop John Ireland and designed by French Beaux-Arts architect Emmanuel Louis Masqueray, the current building had its cornerstone laid in 1907 and opened for worship in 1915; it was consecrated by Archbishop William O. Brady in 1958. On March 25, 2009, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops designated it the National Shrine of the Apostle Paul. One of the largest churches in the United States, it crowns Saint Paul's Cathedral Hill with a dome rising 186 feet.

Beaux-Arts / Classical Renaissance, built on a Greek-cross plan with a great central dome

• •Cathedral of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis (seat of the Archbishop)
• •Designed by Beaux-Arts architect Emmanuel Louis Masqueray; envisioned by Archbishop John Ireland
• •Cornerstone laid 1907; opened for worship 1915; consecrated 1958
• •Designated the National Shrine of the Apostle Paul on March 25, 2009
• •Dome rises 186 feet (57 m) high and 76 feet (23 m) in diameter