Basilica of St. Louis, King of France
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Basilica of St. Louis, King of France | |
 |
|
| Basic information | |
|---|---|
| Location | 209 Walnut Street, St. Louis, Missouri |
| Geographic coordinates | Coordinates: |
| Religious affiliation | Roman Catholic |
| Website | psichurch.com |
| Architectural description | |
| Architect(s) | Joseph Laveille and George Morton |
| Architectural style | Neoclassical |
| Direction of facade | Southwest |
| Groundbreaking | 1770 (first church) 1831 (current church) |
| Year completed | 1834 |
| Specifications | |
| Materials | Limestone |
The Basilica of Saint Louis, King of France, formerly the Cathedral of Saint Louis, and colloquially the Old Cathedral, was consecrated in 1834. It was the first cathedral west of the Mississippi River and until 1845 the only parish church in the city of St. Louis, Missouri. It is one of two basilicas in St. Louis, and is named after Louis IX of France, the namesake of Saint Louis.
It is located on the historic riverfront of Saint Louis, near the Gateway Arch. Because of the historical significance of the church, it was left intact while the neighboring buildings were all torn down to make way for the Gateway Arch.
The church is especially noted for its neo-classical marble altars, a painting given by Louis XVIII of France of a vision of Saint Louis, and an accurate copy of the painting of the Crucifixion by Diego Velázquez.
The church basement has a number of artifacts associated with the history of the Diocese (and later, Archdiocese) of St. Louis. Bishop Joseph Rosati, who had the Old Cathedral built, is buried within a vault underneath the sanctuary.
[edit] History
The church is the only building that is in its original location that tracks back to the founding of St. Louis in 1764. Pierre Laclede who established the town dedicated the square just west of his home. A small log house was built on the site in 1770. A cemetery was established on the side of the building in which all the early founders of St. Louis were buried.
Pedro Piernas, the lieutenant governor of all of the Louisiana Purchase area north of modern day Louisiana, donated the bell (which is still visible in the Cathedral museum.
In 1826 after the establishment of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Saint Louis, the first bishop Joseph Rosati laid a cornerstone for the building in 1831. It was dedicated in 1834 and was the first Cathedral west of the Mississippi River.
It was designed by the firm of Lavielle and Morton, which also designed the early buildings at Jefferson Barracks as well as the 1826 courthouse on the Old Courthouse site. The firm is reported to the first architect firm west of the Mississippi River above New Orleans. Joseph Laveille as street commissioner in 1823-26 was the one who devised the city's street name grid with ordinal numbers for north south streets and arboral names for the east-west streets.[1]
Engraved in gold over the entrance are the words "In Honorem S. Ludovici. Deo Uni et Trino Dicatum. A. MDCCCXXXIV" which translates into "In honor of St. Louis. Dedicated to the One and Triune God. 1834."[2]. The Hebrew name for Yahweh is above the engraving on the main entrance.
The first meeting of the St. Vincent de Paul Society in the United States was held at the Cathedral in 1845.
In the 1840s and 1850s, bodies in the cemetery were moved to the Bellefontaine Cemetery.
In 1914 a new larger church New Cathedral was built on Lindell Boulevard.
On Christmas 1922, a High Mass was broadcast on KSD and is claimed to be the first broadcast a Holy Mass over the radio.
In 1936 when the City of St. Louis and the United States government began buying the entire original town plat of St. Louis to form, the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, the church was the only structure that was not sold.
On January 26, 1961 Pope John XXIII designated it a Basilica, giving it the present name, the Basilica of Saint Louis, King of France
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Basilica's official website
- Fact Sheet, from the website of the St. Louis Convention & Visitors Commission
