Cathedral of St. John the Baptist (Paterson, New Jersey)

Cathedral of St. John the Baptist
St. John's Cathedral
Cathedral of St. John the Baptist
Location 381 Grand Street
Paterson, New Jersey
Country United States
Denomination Roman Catholic
Website www.cathedralofstjohnthebaptist.org
History
Former name(s) St. John's Church
Dedicated July 31, 1870 (1870-07-31)[1]
Consecrated June 29, 1890 (1890-06-29)[1]
Associated people William N. McNulty
Architecture
Status Cathedral
Functional status Active
Architect(s) P. C. Keely of New York
Architectural type Cathedral
Style Neo-gothic
Groundbreaking September 10, 1865 (1865-09-10)
Construction cost $200,000[1]
Specifications
Capacity 1700-1800[1]
Length 180 feet (55 m)[1]
Width 88 feet (27 m)[1]
Number of spires 1
Spire height 125 feet (38 m)[1]
Materials Brownstone, most of which was obtained from local quarries in Little Falls[1]
Administration
Diocese Paterson
Clergy
Bishop(s) Most Reverend Arthur J. Serratelli, STD, SSL, DD[2]
Vicar(s) Rev. Ruben Castillo
Rev. Manuel Guevara[3]
Rector Rev. Msgr. Mark J. Giordani[3]
Deacon(s) Jose Pomales
Guido Pedraza
Hector Castellanos
Luis Gil[3]
Laity
Youth ministry coordinator Johny Montanez[4]
Cathedral of St. John the Baptist
Location Paterson, New Jersey
Built September 10, 1865 (1865-09-10)
Architectural style Neo-gothic[1]
NRHP Reference # 77000903[1]
NJRHP # 2367[5]
Significant dates
Designated  December 16, 1977 (1977-12-16)
Designated NJRHP June 13, 1977 (1977-06-13)

The Cathedral of St. John the Baptist is an historic Roman Catholic church at Main and Grand Streets in Paterson, Passaic County, New Jersey, United States.

History

By the middle of the 1820s, there were definite indications that the local Catholic population was expanding. Coupled with the tremendous growth of Paterson industries, there was an insistent demand for skilled millhands and other types of workers.[6][7] By 1870, the U.S. Census reported that Irish immigrants constituted the dominant foreign-born population in the city.[8] The majority of the Irish, along with other immigrant classes, lived in ramshackle tenement houses within almost walking distance of the great mills. Most conspicuously, the Irish clustered about Grand Street, and this area became known as the "Dublin" section of Paterson.[9] It was there, among the Irish-Catholic immigrants, that Father William N. McNulty began his priestly duties.

Two years after arriving in Paterson to take "...charge of the fortunes and spiritual welfare ...." of the rapidly growing Catholic population, Father McNulty entered into negotiations with the powerful industrial corporation, the Society for Establishing Useful Manufactures ("S.U.M."), and in 1865 purchased from it sixteen lots on the corner of Grand and Main streets thus ensuring the future of a more larger St. John's Church (later Cathedral of St. John the Baptist). The new enterprise seemed to infuse new vigor into the members of the congregation, and the full amount of the purchase money of the real estate ($10,000) was raised in two months. Preparations were made for the construction of the new church, New York architect P. C. Keely was retained in order to develop plans "for an edifice ... unequalled in New Jersey.", and on September loth, 1865, the corner-stone was laid.[10]

The Cathedral was ready for use in the summer of 1870, and a final tabulation a number of years later revealed that approximately $200,000 had been spent in the course of construction.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form - Cathedral of St. John the Baptist" (PDF). National Park Service. United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved 13 February 2015.
  2. "Bishop Serratelli". Diocese of Paterson. Retrieved 13 February 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 "Pastoral Staff". Christ Church of Middletown. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
  4. "SJC-Youth Ministry - Ministerio Juvenil". Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
  5. "New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places" (PDF). NJ DEP - Historic Preservation Office. State of New Jersey. Retrieved 13 February 2015.
  6. Edward McM. Larrabee (February 1982). Chesler, Olga, ed. "Industry" (State publication). NEW JERSEY'S CULTURAL RESOURCES: A.D. 1800-1865 (Office of Cultural and Environmental Services, Dept. of Environmental Protection): 224. OCLC 9555939. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
  7. "New Jersey". Encyclopedia.com. HighBeam™ Research, Inc. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
  8. United States Bureau of the Census; United States. National Archives and Records Service. "Population schedules of the ninth census of the United States, 1870, New Jersey" (microform). United States National Archives (National Archives and Records Service, General Services Administration). Reel 0885 - 1870 New Jersey Federal Population Census Schedules - City of Paterson (1898926.1). Retrieved 14 February 2015.
  9. Cotz, JoAnn. "DUBLIN: PATERSON’S FIRST NEIGHBORHOOD". Ancestry. The Passaic County Historical Society Genealogy Club. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
  10. Flynn, Joseph M. (1905). "The Catholic Church in New Jersey". Morristown, N.J. OCLC 365311. LOC: BX1415.N5 F6. Retrieved 14 February 2015.

External links

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