Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist

History & Significance

Cathedral · Est. Cornerstone laid 1906; dedicated May 30, 1921

The Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist is the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Boise and the mother church of Catholicism in Idaho. Bishop Alphonse Glorieux laid the cornerstone of the present sandstone cathedral in 1906, commissioning the local firm Tourtellotte & Hummel to design it; refusing to incur debt, he had it built in stages, with Masses held in the basement by 1912 and the superstructure completed by 1916. Glorieux died in 1917, and his successor, Bishop Daniel Gorman, completed the work, with the cathedral dedicated on May 30, 1921. It was rededicated in 1979 following extensive restoration and remains the cathedral church of the Diocese of Boise.

Romanesque Revival, cruciform plan, in sandstone

• •Cornerstone laid in 1906 by Bishop Alphonse Glorieux; dedicated May 30, 1921 under Bishop Daniel Gorman
• •Seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Boise and mother church of Catholicism in Idaho
• •Designed by the Boise firm Tourtellotte & Hummel; built of sandstone quarried from Table Rock
• •Built in stages with no debt; Masses held in the basement by 1912, superstructure completed 1916
• •Rededicated in 1979 after extensive restoration