St. Cecilia Cathedral is the cathedral church of the
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Omaha
The Archdiocese of Omaha ( la, Archidioecesis Omahensis) is Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in the United States. Its current archbishop, George Joseph Lucas, was installed in Omaha on July 22, 2009. The ar ...
, USA. Located at 701 North 40th Street in the
Gold Coast Historic District, the cathedral was ranked as one of the ten largest in the United States when it was completed in 1959. It is also listed on 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 ...
.
About
Begun in 1905 and consecrated in 1959, it was designed by architect
Thomas Rogers Kimball
Thomas Rogers Kimball (April 19, 1862 – September 7, 1934) was an American architect in Omaha, Nebraska. An architect-in-chief of the Trans-Mississippi Exposition in Omaha in 1898, he served as national President of the American Institute o ...
. Ranked among the ten largest
cathedral
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 ...
s in the United States when it was completed, the cathedral is 255 ft. long, 158 ft. wide and 222 ft. tall (78 m by 48 m by 68 m).
The architectural style of the building is
Spanish Renaissance Revival, rather than the
European Gothic architecture popular in the early 20th century. Kimball justified his choice because of the early influence of
Spain and Mexico on the region. It was once part of the missionary area subject to the
See of Santiago de Cuba.
On March 16, 2007, a painting of ''The Virgin Immaculata'' was reported stolen from St. Cecilia. About 7:30 am, church officials noticed the artwork had been cut from its frame. The painting was an 8 foot by 5 foot image, part of a collection donated to the cathedral in 2002. The painting had an estimated value of $100,000.
[Olson, Chris, "Another Church, Another Art Theft", ''Omaha World-Herald'', 16 March 2007:26.1]
Organ
The
organ of the cathedral was built by
Pasi Organ Builders and inaugurated in 2003. The instrument has 55 stops, three manuals and pedals. A unique feature of the organ is the option of playing 29 of the stops in either
meantone
Meantone temperament is a musical temperament, that is a tuning system, obtained by narrowing the fifths so that their ratio is slightly less than 3:2 (making them ''narrower'' than a perfect fifth), in order to push the thirds closer to pure. Me ...
or
Wegscheider well-tempered tuning (the remaining stops being well-tempered).
See also
*
List of Catholic cathedrals in the United States
The following is a list of the Catholic cathedrals in the United States. The Catholic Church in the United States comprises ecclesiastical territories called dioceses led by prelate bishops. Each bishop is assigned to a cathedral from which he ...
*
List of cathedrals in the United States
This is a list of cathedrals in the United States, including both actual cathedrals (seats of bishops in Episcopal polity, episcopal Christian groups, such as Catholic Church, Catholicism, Anglicanism, Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodoxy and ...
*
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Omaha
The Archdiocese of Omaha ( la, Archidioecesis Omahensis) is Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in the United States. Its current archbishop, George Joseph Lucas, was installed in Omaha on July 22, 2009. The ar ...
*
List of churches in Omaha, Nebraska
Christianity in Omaha, Nebraska has been integral to the growth and development of the city since its founding in 1854. In addition to providing Christian religious and social leadership, individually and collectively the city's churches have also ...
References
External links
Official Cathedral web siteRoman Catholic Archdiocese of Omaha official web site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Cecilia Cathedral
Landmarks in North Omaha, Nebraska
Roman Catholic churches in Omaha, Nebraska
Cecilia
Cecilia is a personal name originating in the name of Saint Cecilia, the patron saint of music.
The name has been popularly used in Europe (particularly the United Kingdom and Italy, where in 2018 it was the 43rd most popular name for girls born ...
National Register of Historic Places in Omaha, Nebraska
Churches on the National Register of Historic Places in Nebraska
Omaha Landmarks
History of North Omaha, Nebraska
Roman Catholic churches completed in 1959
20th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United States
Tourist attractions in Omaha, Nebraska
Thomas Rogers Kimball buildings