St. Mary's Cathedral (Portland, Oregon)
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St. Mary's Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception is the seat of the
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Portland The Archdiocese of Portland in Oregon (''Archidioecesis Portlandensis in Oregonia'') is a Latin Church archdiocese of the Catholic Church in western Oregon in the United States. Established in 1846, it was the second Catholic archdiocese establi ...
in
Portland Portland most commonly refers to: *Portland, Oregon, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon *Portland, Maine, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine *Isle of Portland, a tied island in the English Channel Portland may also r ...
,
Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...
,
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
and serves
Roman Catholics The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
in western Oregon.


History

In 1925 Archbishop Alexander Christie authorized construction of a new cathedral at the corner of NW 18th and Couch streets as he struggled with a mortal illness. Parishioners and clergy from all over the archdiocese responded. In less than a year, on February 14, 1926, the new church opened. The first services were held on Friday, February 19, 1926. In 1993, a restoration study was completed. Thomas Hacker and Associates, a Portland architectural firm, was asked to a draft detailed restoration plan for the cathedral and a larger master plan that would provide for long-range improvements around the cathedral in keeping with the Catholic tradition of service. The cathedral was restored for the 150th anniversary of the Portland Archdiocese in 1996. The restoration included seismic strengthening, electrical, heating, and lighting updating, as well as liturgical and artistic modifications.


Art

The marble statues of
Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a female given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religion * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also called the Blesse ...
and the
Sacred Heart The Most Sacred Heart of Jesus () is one of the most widely practised and well-known Catholic devotions, wherein the heart of Jesus Christ is viewed as a symbol of "God's boundless and passionate love for mankind". This devotion to Christ is p ...
against the north walls of both transepts were carved in
Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...
and brought to the earlier 3rd and Stark Street cathedral by the
Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...
monks, who later founded
Mount Angel Abbey Mount Angel Abbey is a Catholic monastery of Benedictine monks located in Saint Benedict, Oregon, northeast of Salem, it was established in 1882 from Engelberg Abbey, in Switzerland. The abbey, located on the top of Mount Angel, a , has its ...
. The
Narthex The narthex is an architectural element typical of Early Christian art and architecture, early Christian and Byzantine architecture, Byzantine basilicas and Church architecture, churches consisting of the entrance or Vestibule (architecture), ve ...
doors' glass etching contains subtle symbols of the seven
Sacraments A sacrament is a Christian rite which is recognized as being particularly important and significant. There are various views on the existence, number and meaning of such rites. Many Christians consider the sacraments to be a visible symbol of ...
. The
transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform ("cross-shaped") cruciform plan, churches, in particular within the Romanesque architecture, Romanesque a ...
windows date from the 1870s and were brought from two earlier cathedrals, as well as the Archbishop's Chair.


Stations of the Cross

The
Stations of the Cross The Stations of the Cross or the Way of the Cross, also known as the Via Dolorosa, Way of Sorrows or the , are a series of fourteen images depicting Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ on the day of Crucifixion of Jesus, his crucifixion and acc ...
are original to the cathedral.


Architectural style and details

The architectural plans were by Jacobberger and Smith. The architectural style is 20th-century Romanesque and Byzantine, with a red tiled gable roof, cast-stone Corinthian columns, and a square tower with copper cornices. The marble floor in the
apse In architecture, an apse (: apses; from Latin , 'arch, vault'; from Ancient Greek , , 'arch'; sometimes written apsis; : apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical Vault (architecture), vault or semi-dome, also known as an ' ...
was laid in 1926. The new marble on the floor in the remainder of the cathedral is a pattern of several
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
marbles. The doors are white
oak An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' of the beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne within a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisp ...
in cast
bronze Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals (such as phosphorus) or metalloid ...
on the exterior. Letters on the granite sign are Roman
majuscule Letter case is the distinction between the letters that are in larger uppercase or capitals (more formally '' majuscule'') and smaller lowercase (more formally '' minuscule'') in the written representation of certain languages. The writing syste ...
s from the
Trajan Trajan ( ; born Marcus Ulpius Traianus, 18 September 53) was a Roman emperor from AD 98 to 117, remembered as the second of the Five Good Emperors of the Nerva–Antonine dynasty. He was a philanthropic ruler and a successful soldier ...
inscription in
Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...
. The
coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...
on the sign is of the Archdiocese of Portland in Oregon.


Bells

The three bells of the tower were cast in the late 1880s and originally installed in the former cathedral at Third and Stark Streets. They were manually pealed until 2017, when the bells and yokes were refurbished and fitted with linear ringing motors. They sound at the pitches of D¹, F¹, and Ab¹.


See also

*
List of Catholic cathedrals in the United States The Catholic Church in the United States comprises ecclesiastical territories called dioceses, eparchies, and ordinariates led by prelate Ordinary (church officer), ordinaries known as bishops. Each bishop is assigned to a cathedral from which ...
*
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 an ...


References


External links


Official Cathedral SiteRoman Catholic Archdiocese of Portland Official Site
{{Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Portland in Oregon, state=collapsed Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Portland in Oregon Mary in Portland, Cathedral of Saint Mary in Portland, Cathedral of Saint 1925 establishments in Oregon Historic district contributing properties in Oregon Churches on the National Register of Historic Places in Portland, Oregon Buildings and structures in Northwest District, Portland, Oregon