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Cathedral of Saint Paul (Birmingham, Alabama)

Coordinates: 33°31′4.05″N 86°48′16.54″W / 33.5177917°N 86.8045944°W / 33.5177917; -86.8045944
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Cathedral of Saint Paul
Map
33°31′4.05″N 86°48′16.54″W / 33.5177917°N 86.8045944°W / 33.5177917; -86.8045944
Location2120 Third Avenue North
Birmingham, Alabama
CountryUnited States
DenominationRoman Catholic Church
Websitewww.stpaulsbhm.org
Architecture
Architect(s)Adolphus Druiding
StyleNeo-Gothic
Completed1893
Construction cost$90,000[1]
Specifications
Number of spiresTwo
MaterialsBrick
Administration
DioceseDiocese of Birmingham in Alabama
Clergy
Bishop(s)Steven J. Raica
RectorVery Rev. Bryan W. Jerabek
St. Paul's Catholic Church
Area1.4 acres (0.57 ha)
NRHP reference No.82001607[2]
Added to NRHPDecember 27, 1982

The Cathedral of Saint Paul — informally known as Saint Paul's Cathedral — is the mother church of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Birmingham in Alabama in Birmingham, Alabama. Designed by Chicago architect Adolphus Druiding, the Victorian Gothic-style brick building was completed as a parish church in 1893.[3] The parish it serves was established in 1872 and the cornerstone bears both dates.[4] It was elevated to cathedral status with the creation of the Diocese of Birmingham in 1969.

History

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Cathedral interior

During its days as a parish, its most famous pastor was Father James Coyle. There is the aspiration of relocating his remains from Elmwood Cemetery to the cathedral as the cause for his beatification as a martyr advances.[5]

The contractor that had to be talked into moving to Birmingham to build the project was Lawrence Scully. Just prior to its completion, Lawrence Scully was killed when his horse-drawn carriage was spooked by a passing motor vehicle that honked its horn. The horse reared and flipped the carriage over, killing Lawrence Scully. Lawrence Scully also built one of Birmingham's first public schools, the Powell School.

Two buildings, the church and associated school, were listed on the National Register of Historic Places as St. Paul's Catholic Church in 1982.[2]

The stained-glass windows in the cathedral's aisles are the work of G. C. Riordan & Company of Cincinnati. They were in place when the church was first used.[6] The large window of St. Paul over the entrance was installed in 1972, replacing an older window that had been damaged in a storm.[7]

In 2022, the cathedral dedicated a new pipe organ in the choir gallery in front of the St. Paul window. While the previous organ complete obscured the window, the top of the window is visible over the new organ, the Anna Catharine Grace Memorial Pipe Organ, Noak Organ Co., opus 164.[8][9]

Pastors and Rectors of St. Paul's

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1. Father John J. Browne, 1880–1886

2. Father Patrick A. O‘Reilly, 1888–1904

3. Father James E. Coyle, 1904–1921

4. Father William A. Kerrigan, 1922–1935

5. Father Eugene L. Sands, 1936–1949

6. Father Francis J. Foley, 1951–1953

7. Father Francis J. McCormack, 1953–1967

8. Father George W. Keyes, 1967–1971

9. Father John M. Horgan, 1971–1979

10. Father J. Peter Sheehan, 1979–1991

11. Father Patrick P. Cullen, 1991–2001

12. Father Richard Donohoe, 2001–2009

13. Father Kevin Bazzel, 2009–2016

14. Father Bryan W. Jerabek, July 1, 2016 – present

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "History". The Cathedral of Saint Paul. Roman Catholic Diocese of Birmingham. Archived from the original on July 3, 2008. Retrieved December 2, 2007.
  2. ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  3. ^ Schnorrenberg, John M. (2000) Aspiration: Birmingham's Historic House of Worship. Birmingham: Birmingham Historical Society ISBN 0943994268
  4. ^ Bains, David R. (November 16, 2021). "Cathedral of St. Paul, Birmingham (Birmingham Churches and their Cornerstones 8)". Chasing Churches. Retrieved November 16, 2021.
  5. ^ "Father Coyle". www.fathercoyle.org. Archived from the original on June 25, 2020. Retrieved June 22, 2020.
  6. ^ Schnorrenberg, John M. (2000). Aspiration: Birmingham's historic houses of worship. Payne, Richard., Morris, Philip A., White, Marjorie Longenecker., Birmingham Historical Society. Birmingham, Ala.: Birmingham Historical Society. p. 54. ISBN 0943994268. OCLC 45381812.
  7. ^ "St. Paul's Catholic Church, National Register of Historic Places".
  8. ^ Garrison, Greg (January 9, 2022). "Afternoon concert dedicates organ". AL.com. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
  9. ^ Beall, Anne Sterling; Hansen, Emily; Mulder, Maggie; Criswell, Libby (November 29, 2021). "The Cathedral of Saint Paul". Magic City Religion. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
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