St. James Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral

Cathedral

A cathedral is a Christian church that contains the seat of a bishop...

 church located at 804 Ninth Avenue in the First Hill neighborhood of Seattle, Washington, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. It is the mother church

Mother Church

In Christianity, the term mother church or Mother Church may have one of the following meanings:# The first mission church in an area, or a pioneer cathedral# A basilica or cathedral# The main chapel of a province of a religious order...

 of the Archdiocese of Seattle

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Seattle

The Archdiocese of Seattle is an archdiocese of the Roman Catholic Church in the U.S. state of Washington. Headquartered in Seattle, the archdiocese encompasses all counties in the state west of the Cascade Range. Its cathedral is St. James Cathedral, and its present archbishop is J...

 and the seat of its archbishop

Archbishop

An archbishop is a bishop of higher rank, but not of higher sacramental order above that of the three orders of deacon, priest , and bishop...

, currently J. Peter Sartain. The cathedral is named for St. James the Greater, patron saint

Patron saint

A patron saint is a saint who is regarded as the intercessor and advocate in heaven of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or person...

 of the archdiocese, and is the third church in the territory presently known as the Archdiocese of Seattle to bear the name.

The need for a cathedral in Seattle arose in 1903, when Edward O'Dea

Edward John O'Dea

Edward John O'Dea was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of Seattle from 1896 until his death in 1932....

, bishop

Bishop (Catholic Church)

In the Catholic Church, a bishop is an ordained minister who holds the fullness of the sacrament of Holy Orders and is responsible for teaching the Catholic faith and ruling the Church....

 of what was then known as the Diocese of Nesqually, elected to move the Episcopal see

Episcopal See

An episcopal see is, in the original sense, the official seat of a bishop. This seat, which is also referred to as the bishop's cathedra, is placed in the bishop's principal church, which is therefore called the bishop's cathedral...

 from Vancouver, Washington

Vancouver, Washington

Vancouver is a city on the north bank of the Columbia River in the U.S. state of Washington. Incorporated in 1857, it is the fourth largest city in the state with a 2010 census population of 161,791 as of April 1, 2010...

 to Seattle. Construction began in 1905 and was completed in 1907; the cathedral was dedicated in December 1907. In 1916 the cathedral underwent major renovations as a result of the collapse of its original dome; other major renovations were completed in 1950 and 1994. The cathedral, rectory

Rectory

A rectory is the residence, or former residence, of a rector, most often a Christian cleric, but in some cases an academic rector or other person with that title...

, and site were designated city landmarks in 1984.

History

The Diocese of Nesqually (later spelled "Nisqually") was established in Vancouver, Washington

Vancouver, Washington

Vancouver is a city on the north bank of the Columbia River in the U.S. state of Washington. Incorporated in 1857, it is the fourth largest city in the state with a 2010 census population of 161,791 as of April 1, 2010...

, on May 31, 1850 by Pope Pius IX

Pope Pius IX

Blessed Pope Pius IX , born Giovanni Maria Mastai-Ferretti, was the longest-reigning elected Pope in the history of the Catholic Church, serving from 16 June 1846 until his death, a period of nearly 32 years. During his pontificate, he convened the First Vatican Council in 1869, which decreed papal...

. The new diocese's territory was carved out of the former Diocese of Walla Walla

Walla Walla, Washington

Walla Walla is the largest city in and the county seat of Walla Walla County, Washington, United States. The population was 31,731 at the 2010 census...

, which had been abandoned and its territory administered from Oregon City

Oregon City, Oregon

Oregon City was the first city in the United States west of the Rocky Mountains to be incorporated. It is the county seat of Clackamas County, Oregon...

 in the wake of the Whitman massacre

Whitman massacre

The Whitman massacre was the murder in the Oregon Country on November 29, 1847 of U.S. missionaries Dr. Marcus Whitman and his wife Narcissa Whitman, along with eleven others. They were killed by Cayuse and Umatilla Indians. The incident began the Cayuse War...

. Augustin-Magloire Blanchet

Augustin-Magloire Blanchet

Augustin Magloire Alexandre Blanchet was a French Canadian prelate of the Roman Catholic Church in the Pacific Northwest who served as the first bishop of the now-defunct Diocese of Walla Walla and of the Diocese of Nesqually...

, the new diocese's first bishop

Bishop (Catholic Church)

In the Catholic Church, a bishop is an ordained minister who holds the fullness of the sacrament of Holy Orders and is responsible for teaching the Catholic faith and ruling the Church....

, dedicated St. James Church located within Fort Vancouver

Fort Vancouver

Fort Vancouver was a 19th century fur trading outpost along the Columbia River that served as the headquarters of the Hudson's Bay Company in the company's Columbia District...

 as the diocesan cathedral

Cathedral

A cathedral is a Christian church that contains the seat of a bishop...

 on January 23, 1851.

Blanchet's successor, Egidius Junger

Egidius Junger

Egidius Junger, also spelled Aegidius Junger , was a German-born clergyman of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of Nesqually from 1879 until his death in 1895.-Biography:...

, set out to build a new St. James Cathedral in Vancouver

St. James Catholic Church (Vancouver, Washington)

St. James Catholic Church is a church building and parish of the Roman Catholic Church located in Vancouver, Washington, United States. The parish is part of the Archdiocese of Seattle and traces its roots to the initial arrival of missionary priests in the Oregon Country in the 1830s; its first...

. The building, which was completed in 1885, served as the cathedral for nearly 20 years and remains a Catholic church to the present day. Junger's successor, Edward O'Dea

Edward John O'Dea

Edward John O'Dea was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of Seattle from 1896 until his death in 1932....

, realized that Vancouver was no longer the economic and population center it once was. At the urging of Francis Xavier Prefontaine

Francis X. Prefontaine

Monsignor Francis Xavier Prefontaine was a French Canadian priest and missionary, an early resident in the pioneer days of Seattle, Washington, and a figure in the history of Seattle and the Puget Sound region of Washington State...

, a priest in rapidly-growing Seattle, O'Dea moved the episcopal see

Episcopal See

An episcopal see is, in the original sense, the official seat of a bishop. This seat, which is also referred to as the bishop's cathedra, is placed in the bishop's principal church, which is therefore called the bishop's cathedral...

 to Seattle in 1903, and immediately set out to build a new cathedral there.

The current cathedral grounds were purchased in 1903; planning began in 1904, and construction began in early 1905. The cornerstone was laid November 12, 1905, with more than 5,000 people in attendance. It was said to be the largest religious gathering in Seattle up to that time. While the cathedral was under construction, a small temporary structure, St. Edward's Chapel, served as the pro-cathedral for Bishop O'Dea. It was designed by Seattle architect James Stephen, and was located on the cathedral block, at the corner of Terry Avenue and Columbia Street. The diocese of Nisqually was officially renamed the Diocese of Seattle on September 11, 1907, and the cathedral was dedicated on December 22, 1907.

On February 2, 1916, the 120-foot dome which crowned the cathedral collapsed under the weight of a heavy snow accumulation. The dome was never rebuilt, and when the cathedral reopened on March 18, 1917, the interior had changed dramatically. Another major renovation took place in 1950, marking the centennial of the diocese. In 1984, the Seattle city council designated the cathedral, rectory

Rectory

A rectory is the residence, or former residence, of a rector, most often a Christian cleric, but in some cases an academic rector or other person with that title...

, and grounds as a city landmark.

In 1994, the cathedral underwent its most recent major restoration and renovation, which sought to incorporate changes brought about by the Second Vatican Council

Second Vatican Council

The Second Vatican Council addressed relations between the Roman Catholic Church and the modern world. It was the twenty-first Ecumenical Council of the Catholic Church and the second to be held at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. It opened under Pope John XXIII on 11 October 1962 and closed...

. The renovation was supervised by Father Richard S. Vosko

Richard S. Vosko

Richard S. Vosko is a liturgical design consultant and priest of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany who has overseen the redesign and renovation of numerous churches and cathedrals around the country. Vosko has worked throughout the U.S. and Canada as a designer and consultant for worship...

, a liturgical design consultant and priest of the Diocese of Albany who has overseen the redesign and renovation of numerous churches and cathedrals around the country. These changes included moving the altar

Altar (Catholicism)

In the liturgy of the Roman Catholic Church, the altar is where the Sacrifice of the Mass is offered. Mass may sometimes be celebrated outside a sacred place, but never without an altar, or at least an altar stone.-Precedent:...

 from its traditional location at the east end of the cathedral to the crossing

Crossing (architecture)

A crossing, in ecclesiastical architecture, is the junction of the four arms of a cruciform church.In a typically oriented church , the crossing gives access to the nave on the west, the transept arms on the north and south, and the choir on the east.The crossing is sometimes surmounted by a tower...

 (i.e., the center) and installing an oculus

Oculus

An Oculus, circular window, or rain-hole is a feature of Classical architecture since the 16th century. They are often denoted by their French name, oeil de boeuf, or "bull's-eye". Such circular or oval windows express the presence of a mezzanine on a building's façade without competing for...

 and skylight

Skylight

Skylight may refer to:* Skylight * Skylight , by David Hare* Skylight of a lava tube, a hole in the ceiling of the tube* Skylight, Arkansas* Skylight, a short film by David Clayton Rogers* Skylight Pictures, a film company...

 above the new altar, where the original dome had been. As part of the 1994 renovation, relic

Relic

In religion, a relic is a part of the body of a saint or a venerated person, or else another type of ancient religious object, carefully preserved for purposes of veneration or as a tangible memorial...

s of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini were sealed beneath the altar; Cabrini had worshiped at the cathedral while she worked in Seattle from 1903–1916.

The cathedral campus today includes buildings for cathedral outreach service. Outreach ministries such as Health and Healing, Homeless Ministry & Nightwatch, St. Vincent de Paul, Environmental Justice and St. James ESL

St. James ESL

St. James ESL Program, est. 1975, is a community-based volunteer literacy organization in Seattle, Washington. provides free ESL instruction and naturalization assistance to low-income adult immigrants and refugees in King County. This community outreach service of St...

, the English as a Second Language (ESL) Program operate from the Pastoral Outreach Center, once the convent

Convent

A convent is either a community of priests, religious brothers, religious sisters, or nuns, or the building used by the community, particularly in the Roman Catholic Church and in the Anglican Communion...

 of the Sisters of the Holy Names. The rectory and cathedral hall buildings are located on the campus.

Art & music

Major art

Art

Art is the product or process of deliberately arranging items in a way that influences and affects one or more of the senses, emotions, and intellect....

work at St. James Cathedral include an extensive collection of stained glass

Stained glass

The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings...

 by Charles Connick

Charles Connick

Charles Jay Connick was a prominent American painter, muralist, and designer best known for his work in stained glass in the Gothic Revival style. Born in Springboro, Pennsylvania, Connick eventually settled in the Boston area where he opened his studio in 1913...

, installed in 1917-1920, during the rebuilding of the cathedral following the collapse of the dome. In 1994, three new windows were added, the work of Hans Gottfried von Stockhausen, a noted German stained-glass artist, who has served on the faculty of the Pilchuck School. In 1999, ceremonial bronze doors were added, the work of German sculptor Ulrich Henn. A bronze tabernacle by the same artist was installed in 2003. Henn's only other works in the United States are the bronze gates at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. St. James Cathedral is also home to an altarpiece by Florentine artist Neri di Bicci

Neri di Bicci

Neri di Bicci was an Italian painter of the Renaissance. A prolific painter of mainly religious themes, he was active mainly in Florence and in the medium of tempera. His father was Bicci di Lorenzo. His grandfather, Lorenzo di Bicci was also a painter in Florence, a pupil of Spinello...

, dating to 1456. It represents the Madonna and Child surrounded by six saint

Saint

A saint is a holy person. In various religions, saints are people who are believed to have exceptional holiness.In Christian usage, "saint" refers to any believer who is "in Christ", and in whom Christ dwells, whether in heaven or in earth...

s.

The cathedral's original choir space in the west gallery features an organ built by the Boston firm of Hutchings-Votey (Opus 1623), completed in 1907. When the altar was moved to the center of the cathedral in 1994, the east apse area was converted into a second choir area, which features another organ, called the Archbishop Thomas J. Murphy Millennium Organ, built by Manuel Rosales Organ Builders of Los Angeles

Los Ángeles

Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

, California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

(Opus 30) and completed in 2000.

Pastors

1906–1910 – Monsignor Daniel A. Hanly

1910–1919 – Monsignor William J. Noonan

1919–1935 – Monsignor James G. Stafford

1935–1943 – Father William Henry O'Neill

1943–1954 – Father John Gallagher

1955–1973 – Bishop Thomas E. Gill

1973–1988 – Father William E. Gallagher

1988–present – Very Rev. Michael G. Ryan

Pictures

• Interior and exterior photos
• Interior and exterior photos
• Interior and exterior photos
• Interior and exterior photos

External links

• http://www.stjames-cathedral.org/