St. Patrick's Pro-Cathedral is a

pro-cathedral A pro-cathedral or procathedral is a parish church that temporarily serves as the cathedral or co-cathedral of a diocese, or a church that has the same function in a Catholic missionary jurisdiction (such as an apostolic prefecture or apostoli ...

of the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, located in

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the seat of Essex County and the second largest city within the New York metropolitan area.Archdiocese of Newark The Archdiocese of Newark is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in northeastern New Jersey, United States. Its ecclesiastic territory includes all of the Catholic parishes and schools in the New Jers ...

. It was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

on November 3, 1972, for its significance in architecture, art, religion, and social history. With It was added as a contributing property of the

James Street Commons Historic District The James Street Commons Historic District is a historic district located in Newark, Essex County, New Jersey, United States. The district was added to the National Register of Historic Places on January 9, 1978, for its significance in archi ...

on January 9, 1978.

Description

Saint Patrick was built in 1846 and served as the seat of its

prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Christian clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which means 'carry before', 'be set above or over' or 'pref ...

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

from 1853 until the completion of the Basilica of the Sacred Heart. The red brick building features

Gothic Revival architecture Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...

and a tall central tower with copper spire. The building has undergone extensive rehabilitation over the past fifteen years following years of declining membership. Several traditions remain, connecting the parish to its history as the "Old Cathedral" of Newark, including the 12:15 Ash Wednesday Liturgy with the Archbishop, the 12:15 Sunday Liturgy on Easter in memory of the 1916 Easter Rising in Dublin, the annual Newark Fire Department memorial Mass, and many other archdiocesan and Irish-heritage events. The parish is also the national shrine to Our Lady of El Quinche.

History

With the influx of Irish and German immigrants in the 1840s, Bishop John Hughes of New York authorized Rev. Patrick Moran, pastor of St. John’s Parish, to build a new church. The building was probably designed by architect

Patrick Keely Patrick Charles Keely (August 9, 1816 — August 11, 1896) was an Irish-American architect based in Brooklyn, New York, and Providence, Rhode Island. He was a prolific designer of nearly 600 churches and hundreds of other institutional buildin ...

of Brooklyn. The property was the Thomas Ward estate. When it was sold at auction, several parishioners purchased the lots.Wister, Robert James. "St. Patrick's Pro-Cathedral: An Historical Reflection", Immaculate Conception Seminary School of theology
/ref> Bishop Hughes laid the cornerstone on Sept. 17, 1848. Rev. Louis Dominic Senez, assistant at St. John's was named the first pastor. The church was dedicated on March 10, 1850. St. Patrick's was the third Catholic church in Newark, after St. John's and the German parish of St. Mary's. The old ward mansion became an Orphan's Asylum. Father Senez set up his residence in the same building, where he tended the children during the smallpox epidemic the following year. In 1853, the Diocese of Newark was created, and

James Roosevelt Bayley James Roosevelt Bayley (August 23, 1814 – October 3, 1877) was an American prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as the first Bishop of Newark (1853–1872) and the eighth Archbishop of Baltimore (1872–1877). Early life and educa ...

named bishop. He designated St. Patrick's as the pro-cathedral until such time as a cathedral could be built. He appointed Rev. Bernard McQuaid as rector. Following the Pontifical Mass welcoming the bishop, McQuaid hosted the diocesan clergy at a dinner, but had to sell his horse and buggy to cover the expense. The

Sisters of Charity of New York The Sisters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul of New York, most often known as the Sisters of Charity of New York, is a religious congregation of sisters in the Catholic Church whose primary missions are education and nursing and who are dedicated ...

were brought in to manage to the Orphan's Asylum. To accommodate the increased ceremonies of a cathedral, McQuaid added a sacristy. The addition of the Chapel of St. Vincent de Paul in 1859 created room for another 400 people.

John Jelliff John Jelliff (July 30, 1813 – July 2, 1893) was a significant furniture designer and manufacturer, based in Newark, New Jersey during the second half of the 19th century. By the 1850s, John Jelliff & Co. had become the leading furniture manuf ...

of John Jelliff & Co of Newark designed the bishop's chair as well as the cover of the baptismal font. Although forbidden to volunteer as a Union chaplain, in the spring of 1864 McQuaid managed to visit

Fredericksburg, Virginia Fredericksburg is an independent city located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 27,982. The Bureau of Economic Analysis of the United States Department of Commerce combines the city of Fredericksburg wi ...

and tended to the wounded and dying soldiers.

Present day

The parish serves both a small Catholic community in downtown Newark and a larger community of commuters who work in Newark."Welcome", St. Patrick's Pro-Cathedral
/ref>

References

External links

*
Parish website
{{DEFAULTSORT:St. Patrick's Pro-Cathedral Patrick Newark Former cathedrals in the United States Roman Catholic churches in Newark, New Jersey Churches on the National Register of Historic Places in New Jersey Gothic Revival church buildings in New Jersey Roman Catholic churches completed in 1846 19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United States Roman Catholic churches in New Jersey Brick buildings and structures National Register of Historic Places in Newark, New Jersey New Jersey Register of Historic Places Historic district contributing properties in Newark, New Jersey Individually listed contributing properties to historic districts on the National Register in New Jersey

Description

History

Present day

See also

References

External links