Saint Joseph Cathedral is located at 50 Franklin Street in downtown

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from Sou ...

within the Joseph Ellicott Historic District, and is currently the

cathedral church A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominatio ...

of the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Buffalo The Diocese of Buffalo is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church headquartered in Buffalo, New York, United States. It is a suffragan diocese within the metropolitan province of the Archdiocese of New York. The Diocese of Buffalo inclu ...

History

Buffalo's first bishop,

John Timon John Timon, C.M. (February 12, 1797 – April 16, 1867) was a prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the bishop of the new Diocese of Buffalo in Western New York and founder of the brothers of the Holy Infancy religious order. B ...

, established St. Joseph's in 1847 to be the seat of the new diocese. Because of the economic situation in the city he raised funds to build the church while he was in Europe. The

cornerstone The cornerstone (or foundation stone or setting stone) is the first stone set in the construction of a masonry foundation. All other stones will be set in reference to this stone, thus determining the position of the entire structure. Over tim ...

was laid on February 6, 1851. During construction, a storm approached the city from

Lake Erie Lake Erie ( "eerie") is the fourth largest lake by surface area of the five Great Lakes in North America and the eleventh-largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and therefore also h ...

and destroyed several homes in the area. Bishop Timon allowed the residents to set up tents within the cathedral's walls for several weeks. The cathedral was usable, but not complete, when it was dedicated on July 1, 1855. The south tower was completed in the summer of 1862. Bishop Timon consecrated the completed cathedral on August 21, 1863. In 1902, Bishop James Quigley decided that the diocese required a new cathedral and purchased property at Delaware Avenue and Utica Street beginning in 1902. Italian architect Aristide Leonori designed a new Gothic Revival cathedral which was constructed between 1912 and 1915. The new edifice became known as St. Joseph's (New) Cathedral and this church became known as St. Joseph's Old Cathedral. This time both towers of the new cathedral were completed to a height of . Unfortunately, the cathedral was better suited for Rome's climate rather than Buffalo's. By 1924, the north and south transepts required major repairs and by 1927, the towers were so unstable they were removed. The exterior marble started to separate from the brick and Bishop Edward D. Head determined in 1976 that repairs would be too costly for the "new" St. Joseph's and the diocese. In 1977, after the demolition of the new cathedral, the "old cathedral" once again became known as St. Joseph's Cathedral.

Architecture

Bishop Timon selected New York architect Patrick C. Keely, who had worked with A. W. N. Pugin, to design the church. He created a Gothic Revival structure in length by across. The original plan called for towers on the north and south corners of the facade, however only the south tower was finished. The tower contained a 43-bell carillon by Bollee & Son of Le Mans, France. At the time of its completion in 1869, the carillon was the largest in the U.S. and the third largest in the world. Installed in St. Joseph's in 1870, the bells were too large for the cathedral's tower and never worked properly. At present, all but 2 of the bells have been removed from the church tower. Bishop Stephen V. Ryan added the Lady Chapel built at the rear of the cathedral in 1873. The three lancet windows above the altar were produced at the direction of King

Ludwig II of Bavaria Ludwig II (Ludwig Otto Friedrich Wilhelm; 25 August 1845 – 13 June 1886) was King of Bavaria from 1864 until his death in 1886. He is sometimes called the Swan King or ('the Fairy Tale King'). He also held the titles of Count Palatine of the ...

for the Paris Exposition of 1855. During his trips to Europe, Bishop Timon saw the windows and asked if the King would donate them to the new structure. After first being refused, the Bishop persisted and the Ludwig relented. The cathedral was renovated in 1882, 1903–05, 1937–47 and most recently in 1977.

Organ

The choir loft houses a 3,627 pipe

Hook & Hastings E. and G.G. Hook was a pipe organ designing and manufacturing company, located in Boston, Massachusetts, which operated from 1827 to 1935. It was started, and originally run, by brothers Elias and George Greenleaf Hook. History The Hook brothers ...

organ, Opus 828. The organ was built in 1876 for the

Philadelphia Centennial Exposition The Centennial International Exhibition of 1876, the first official World's Fair to be held in the United States, was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from May 10 to November 10, 1876, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the signing of the ...

, where it was played frequently for concerts. It was moved to the Cathedral following the end of the Exposition February 13, 1877. The organ was updated in 1925 and 1976, but by 1996 had become unplayable. In 1998, the bishop and parish council engaged the Andover Organ Company to restore and expand the instrument. Andover installed the restored instrument in 2001 as its Opus R-328. It currently contains three manuals and 90 stops.

Gallery

File:Saint joseph cathedral2.JPG, Façade detail looking northwest File:Saint joseph rectory.JPG, East Rectory façade File:Saint joseph cathedral sign.JPG, Identification plaque at the entrance File:Saint joseph cathedral sign2.JPG, Marker commemorating Bishop John Timon at the entrance File:St. Joseph's Cathedral in 1914.jpg, A 1914 view of the cathedral and rectory File:St. Joseph Cathedral Sacred Heart Altar.jpg, The north transept in 1914 File:St. Joseph Cathedral Interior - Buffalo, NY.jpg, Sanctuary in 2017 File:Chapel - Saint Joseph Cathedral (Buffalo, New York).jpg, The Lady Chapel File:Bishop's Graves Saint Joseph Cathedral - Buffalo.jpg, Marker denoting the burials of Bishop Timon and Bishop Ryan File:San cesario buffalo.jpg, Bishop Richard J. Malone and Msgr. David S. Slubecky beneath a calendar reliquary (tapestry) of 365 saints and icon of Saint

Caesarius of Terracina Saint Caesarius of Terracina (Saint Cesario deacon in Italian) was a Christian martyr. The church of San Cesareo in Palatio in Rome bears his name. Life Caesarius was a deacon of Africa, martyred at Terracina in Italy. The ''"Passio"'' (story of ...

References

External links