History & Significance
Cathedral · Est. Parish founded 1938; church dedicated December 9, 1961; elevated to cathedral 1974
The Cathedral of Saint Thomas More in Arlington, Virginia, traces to a parish founded in 1938; the present church was dedicated on December 9, 1961, by Bishop John J. Russell of the Diocese of Richmond. When Pope Paul VI erected the Diocese of Arlington in 1974, the church was designated its cathedral and mother church, with Bishop Thomas J. Welsh installed as the diocese's first bishop. A major 2023-2024 renovation reworked the interior in Tudor Revival style, reopening in September 2024 to mark the diocese's 50th anniversary.
Originally mid-century modern (1961); reworked in Tudor Revival style during the 2023-2024 renovation
- •Seat (mother church) of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Arlington, Virginia
- •Parish founded in 1938; present church dedicated December 9, 1961 by Bishop John J. Russell of Richmond
- •Designated cathedral in 1974 when Pope Paul VI erected the Diocese of Arlington from the Diocese of Richmond
- •Bishop Thomas J. Welsh was installed as the Diocese of Arlington's first bishop in 1974
- •Reopened September 2024 after a major renovation marking the diocese's 50th anniversary
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