St. Andrew's Roman Catholic Cathedral – Victoria, BC - Canada
N 48° 25.520 W 123° 21.745
10U E 473188 N 5363639
The oldest Roman Catholic church in Victoria and a fine old Cathedral too.
Waymark Code: WM2ZYY
Location: British Columbia, Canada
Date Posted: 01/17/2008
Views: 191
In floor space, St. Andrew's is one of Victoria's largest churches.
A decision was made in 1882 that a new Cathedral was needed in Victoria but it wasn’t until 1890 that the noted Montreal church architects, Maurice Perrault and Albert Mesnard had the design and plans finalized. On February 11, 1890, the Daily Colonist newspaper announced that working plans had been received by Bishop Lemmens for the new St. Andrew's Cathedral. Shortly thereafter, Bishop Lemmens laid before his congregation the construction tenders. A vote determined that the tender of Aeneas McDonald, for the sum of $81,052.00, be accepted. So work began on Victoria's second Cathedral church.
On October 30, 1892, Bishop Lemmens blessed the new cathedral, then held High Mass in front of a congregation of 2000. The architects produced a simple but handsome building, in the High Victorian Gothic style. It’s asymmetrical in plan and elevation to give it the ‘unfinished look’ that is was popular in 14th and 15th century churches.
Brick corner pilasters with Ionic capitals frame the facades. The central bay with columned portico is capped by the cornice and gable pediment which shelters a three-part "Venetian" window. The interior featured an open three-storey central stairwell lit by a roof-top skylight. Twenty one feature stained glass windows, flood the church with light through the side aisles and the chancel.
Back in the early history of Victoria this building would have dominated the skyline but today it’s only imposing once you near it on Blanshard St.
The Church is open every day at 7:00am. From Monday to Friday, it closes at 5:00pm, and on the weekend the Church closes at 6:30pm.
Type of Church: Cathedral
Status of Building: Actively in use for worship
Date of organization: 11/01/1858
Date of building construction: 01/01/1890
Dominant Architectural Style: High Victorian Gothic
Archdiocese: Archdiocese of Vancouver
Diocese: Diocese of Victoria
Address/Location:
740 View Street
Victoria, BC Canada
V8W 1J8
Relvant Web Site: [Web Link]
Associated Shrines, Art, etc.: Not listed
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