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

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Cathedral of St. John the Baptist
St. John's Cathedral
40°54′46″N 74°10′21″W / 40.91278°N 74.17250°W
Location 381 Grand Street
Paterson, New Jersey
Country United States
Denomination Roman Catholic
Website rcdopcathedral.org
History
Former name St. John's Church
Status Cathedral
Dedicated July 31, 1870[1]
Consecrated June 29, 1890[1]
Architecture
Functional status Active
Architect P. C. Keely of New York
Architectural type Cathedral
Style Neo-gothic
Groundbreaking September 10, 1865
Construction cost $200,000[1]
Specifications
Capacity 1,700-1,800[1]
Length 180 feet (55 m)[1]
Width 88 feet (27 m)[1]
Materials Brownstone, most of which was obtained from local quarries in Little Falls[1]
Administration
Diocese Paterson
Clergy
Bishop Most Reverend Kevin J. Sweeney
Rector Rev. Msgr. Eugene (Geno) R. Sylva, S.T.D.[2]
Vicar(s) Rev. Jorge Castaño
Rev. Cesar D. Jaramillo, JCL[2]
Cathedral of St. John the Baptist
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
New Jersey Register of Historic Places
NRHP reference No. 77000903[1]
NJRHP No. 2367[3]
Significant dates
Designated December 16, 1977
Designated NJRHP June 13, 1977

The Cathedral of St. John the Baptist is a historic Catholic cathedral and parish church located in Paterson, Passaic County, New Jersey, United States. It is the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Paterson. The cathedral was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1977.[1]

History

By the middle of the 1820s, there were definite indications that the local Catholic population was increasing. Coupled with the tremendous growth of Paterson industries, there was an insistent demand for skilled millhands and other types of workers.[4][5] By 1870, the U.S. Census reported that Irish immigrants constituted the dominant foreign-born population in the city.[6] 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.[7] 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... unequaled in New Jersey", and on September 10, 1865, the cornerstone was laid.[8]

The church 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. It was raised to cathedral status when the Diocese of Paterson was established in 1937.[9]

See also

References

  1. Back to citation occurrence 1.0 Back to citation occurrence 1.1 Back to citation occurrence 1.2 Back to citation occurrence 1.3 Back to citation occurrence 1.4 Back to citation occurrence 1.5 Back to citation occurrence 1.6 Back to citation occurrence 1.7 Back to citation occurrence 1.8 "National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form - Cathedral of St. John the Baptist". National Park Service. United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved 13 February 2015.
  2. Back to citation occurrence 2.0 Back to citation occurrence 2.1 "Pastoral Staff". Christ Church of Middletown. Archived from the original on 14 February 2015. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
  3. Back to citation "New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places" (PDF). NJ DEP - Historic Preservation Office. State of New Jersey. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 June 2012. Retrieved 13 February 2015.
  4. Back to citation 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.
  5. Back to citation "New Jersey". Encyclopedia.com. HighBeam™ Research, Inc. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
  6. Back to citation United States Bureau of the Census; United States. National Archives and Records Service (1965). "Population schedules of the ninth census of the United States, 1870, New Jersey" (microform). United States National Archives. Reel 0885 - 1870 New Jersey Federal Population Census Schedules - City of Paterson (1898926.1). National Archives and Records Service, General Services Administration. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
  7. Back to citation Cotz, JoAnn. "DUBLIN: PATERSON'S FIRST NEIGHBORHOOD". Ancestry. The Passaic County Historical Society Genealogy Club. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
  8. Back to citation Flynn, Joseph M. (1905). "The Catholic Church in New Jersey". Morristown, N.J. OCLC 365311. LOC: BX1415.N5 F6. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
  9. Back to citation "History". Diocese of Camden. Retrieved 2018-09-07.
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