In New York, St Patrick’s Cathedral stands on land bought in March 1810 by Father Anthony Kohlmann and other Jesuits for 11,000 dollars, between Fifth Avenue, Madison Avenue and 50th and 51st Streets; the Jesuits built a college with a chapel there, handed to the diocese of New York in 1813, the school closing the following year and the land also used for burials. The foundation stone of the present cathedral was laid on 15 August 1858 by Archbishop John Hughes, before some 100,000 people, to a design by the architect James Renwick Jr., who drew in particular on Cologne Cathedral, then still unfinished; work was suspended in August 1860 for lack of funds and further delayed by the Civil War, resuming only in the years that followed. In 1858 the site lay on the northern edge of the then developed city, largely open country, so much so that critics mocked the project as “Hughes’ Folly”; only as New York grew northwards would the area become the heart of Manhattan. The building was substantially completed in 1878 and formally dedicated on 25 May 1879, while the two twin spires were finished in October 1888, becoming at the time the tallest structures in New York City. Gothic Revival in style, built chiefly of white marble quarried between New York and Massachusetts, with foundations of blue gneiss granite, the cathedral seats around 2,400, up to 3,000 counting standing room, and has spires about 329.5 feet high, commonly rounded to 330. It has hosted the funerals of many famous Americans, among them Babe Ruth’s on 19 August 1948, with around 5,000 people inside and tens of thousands outside, and Robert F. Kennedy’s on 8 June 1968, musically directed by Leonard Bernstein, with Andy Williams among the singers and the eulogy given by his brother Edward Kennedy; it also remains traditionally bound up with the blessing of the annual St Patrick’s Day parade. A major restoration, carried out mostly between 2012 and 2015 and announced by Cardinal Timothy Dolan in March 2015, cost according to the sources between 175 and 200 million dollars. The cathedral remains the seat of the Archbishop of New York and one of the most visited churches in the United States, with a widely quoted estimate of around five million visitors a year.
About St. Patrick’s Cathedral
In New York, St. Patrick’s Cathedral stands on land purchased in March 1810 by Father Anthony Kohlmann and fellow Jesuits for $11,000, bounded by Fifth Avenue, Madison Avenue and 50th and 51st Streets; the Jesuits built a college with a chapel there, later sold to the Diocese of New York in 1813, with the school closing the following year and the land also used for burials. The cornerstone of the present cathedral was laid on 15 August 1858 by Archbishop John Hughes, before a crowd of roughly 100,000, to a design by architect James Renwick Jr., who drew particular inspiration from Cologne Cathedral, then still unfinished; work was suspended in August 1860 for lack of funds and further delayed by the Civil War, resuming only in later years. In 1858 the site sat on the northern edge of the then-developed city, largely farmland, so much so that critics mocked the project as “Hughes’ Folly”; only as New York grew northward did the area become the heart of Manhattan. The building was substantially completed by 1878 and formally dedicated on 25 May 1879, while the twin spires were finished in October 1888, briefly making them the tallest structures in New York City. In Gothic Revival style, built mainly of white marble quarried in New York and Massachusetts, with a foundation of blue gneiss granite, the cathedral seats roughly 2,400, up to 3,000 counting standing room, with spires roughly 329.5 feet tall, commonly rounded to 330. It has hosted the funerals of numerous notable Americans, including Babe Ruth’s on 19 August 1948, with about 5,000 inside and tens of thousands outside, and Robert F. Kennedy’s on 8 June 1968, musically directed by Leonard Bernstein, with Andy Williams among the singers and the eulogy delivered by brother Edward Kennedy; it also remains traditionally tied to the blessing of the annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade. A major restoration, carried out mostly between 2012 and 2015 and announced by Cardinal Timothy Dolan in March 2015, cost, according to sources, between $175 and $200 million. The cathedral remains the seat of the Archbishop of New York and one of the most visited churches in the United States, with a widely cited estimate of around five million visitors a year.
Key facts
- 1858-1888: built and finished with twin spires, designed by James Renwick Jr.
- Once mocked as “Hughes’ Folly” for standing on then-rural land north of the developed city
- ~2,400 seated, spires roughly 330 feet tall, briefly the tallest structures in New York
- 1948 and 1968: site of the funerals of Babe Ruth and Robert F. Kennedy
- 2012-2015: major restoration costing an estimated $175-200 million
- Still the seat of the Archbishop of New York, among the most visited churches in the US
History
Ridiculed as “Hughes’ Folly” for its placement on what was then Manhattan’s rural fringe, St. Patrick’s Cathedral ended up at the exact centre of the city it was accused of standing too far from, as New York’s growth overtook the site within a few decades. Its role as the setting for major American funerals, from Babe Ruth to Robert F. Kennedy, has layered civic and cultural memory onto a building whose own construction was itself repeatedly delayed by war and financial hardship.
What you see
White marble Gothic Revival spires, inspired by Cologne Cathedral, rise roughly 330 feet above Fifth Avenue, framing an interior that seats around 2,400 worshippers. The 2012-2015 restoration returned the century-old stonework and stained glass to a condition close to their original state, ahead of the cathedral’s continued role hosting major state and civic occasions.
Practical information
- Opening hours: generally open daily outside major services; check current hours before visiting
- Address: 5th Avenue between 50th and 51st Streets, New York, NY, United States
Getting there
The cathedral stands on Fifth Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, directly across from Rockefeller Center, easily reached by subway. GPS: 40°45′29″N, 73°58′32″W.
Nearby
- Rockefeller Center — the landmark complex directly across Fifth Avenue
- Fifth Avenue — Manhattan’s famous shopping and landmark avenue
Sources
- Wikipedia — “St. Patrick’s Cathedral (New York City)” (en.wikipedia.org)
- Official cathedral site — History & Heritage page (saintpatrickscathedral.org)
- NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission — designation report
Gallery
St. Patrick's Cathedral, photographed by Luigi De Marchi.
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