The Cathedral of Saint Patrick in Norwich is a cathedral of the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

located in

Norwich, Connecticut Norwich ( ) is a city in New London County, Connecticut, United States. The Yantic River, Yantic, Shetucket River, Shetucket, and Quinebaug Rivers flow into the city and form its harbor, from which the Thames River (Connecticut), Thames River f ...

. It is the mother church of the

Diocese of Norwich The Diocese of Norwich is an ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Church of England, forming part of the Province of Canterbury in England. Its origins trace back to the early medieval bishopric of See of Elmham, Elmham and Thetford, which were ...

and is the seat of its prelate bishop.

Parish history

In 1833, Father James Fitton celebrated the first Catholic mass in Norwich in a third floor loft with 12 people in attendance. By 1842, the first building in town to serve as a church was a shed in Twomeytown. A year later, Norwich became the jurisdiction of the newly erected Diocese of Hartford. St. Mary, the first Roman-Catholic church in Greeneville, was dedicated in March 1845. It was enlarged in 1858. St. Mary's parish continued to grow into the late 1860s, when Father James Mullen recognized that a new church was needed to address the overcrowding. A site was chosen not far from the wealthy homes where so many of the Irish worked as servants. Architect James Murphy of

Providence, Rhode Island Providence () is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Rhode Island, most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. The county seat of Providence County, Rhode Island, Providence County, it is o ...

, was selected to design the building. "On the morning of Good Friday in 1873, the Irish marched from Greeneville with picks and shovels and dug the foundation of the church by hand.""Cathedral of Saint Patrick", 'Walk Norwich Trails', Norwich Historical Society
/ref> The cornerstone of the church was laid on July 13, 1873; parishioners paid ten cents a week to finance the construction. St. Patrick's parish was incorporated in 1878. The formal opening and dedication for the new church was held on September 28, 1879. St. Mary's church was closed later that year. St. Patrick's sustained some damage during the

1938 New England hurricane The 1938 New England Hurricane (also referred to as the Great Long Island - New England Hurricane and the Long Island Express) was one of the deadliest and most destructive tropical cyclones to strike the United States. The storm formed near th ...

. In 1953, the

was created as a suffragan to the

Archdiocese of Hartford The Metropolitan Archdiocese of Hartford () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Connecticut in the United States. It is a metropolitan see. It was established as the Diocese of Hartford in 1843, whe ...

, and St. Patrick's Church became the cathedral for the new diocese. The Most Reverend Bernard J. Flanagan, then Chancellor of the Diocese of

Burlington, Vermont Burlington, officially the City of Burlington, is the List of municipalities in Vermont, most populous city in the U.S. state of Vermont and the county seat, seat of Chittenden County, Vermont, Chittenden County. It is located south of the Can ...

, was appointed the first Bishop of Norwich by

Pope Pius XII Pope Pius XII (; born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli; 2 March 18769 October 1958) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 2 March 1939 until his death on 9 October 1958. He is the most recent p ...

. He was installed on December 9, 1953.The New Diocese of Norwich
File:Cathedral of Saint Patrick interior - Norwich, Connecticut 01.jpg, View up nave toward altar File:Cathedral of Saint Patrick interior - Norwich, Connecticut 04.jpg, Cathedra File:Cathedral of Saint Patrick interior - Norwich, Connecticut 12.jpg, Stained glass windows File:Saint Patrick Rectory - Norwich, Connecticut 01.jpg, Rectory File:Saint Patrick School - Norwich, Connecticut.jpg, School

References

External links

*
Official Cathedral Site

Diocese of Norwich Official Site
{{Roman Catholic Ecclesiastical Province of Hartford, state=collapsed Patrick Norwich Buildings and structures in Norwich, Connecticut Roman Catholic Diocese of Norwich Churches in New London County, Connecticut James Murphy (architect) buildings Roman Catholic churches completed in 1879 19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United States Churches on the National Register of Historic Places in Connecticut Historic district contributing properties in Connecticut National Register of Historic Places in New London County, Connecticut 1879 establishments in Connecticut

Parish history

See also

References

External links