__NOTOC__ The Cathedral of the Sacred Heart or Sacred Heart Church is a historic

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * Chri ...

located at 414 West 11th Street in

Pueblo, Colorado Pueblo () is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Pueblo County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 111,876 at the 2020 United States Census, making Pueblo the ninth most popu ...

. It is the

mother church Mother church or matrice is a term depicting the Christian Church as a mother in her functions of nourishing and protecting the believer. It may also refer to the primary church of a Christian denomination or diocese, i.e. a cathedral or a metropo ...

of the

Diocese of Pueblo The Diocese of Pueblo ( la, Dioecesis Pueblensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in southern Colorado. The diocese was created on November 15, 1941. It encompasses the southern half of Colorado, fro ...

. Its building, built in 1912-13, was 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 ...

in 1989. It was deemed "an outstanding example of

Gothic Revival architecture Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...

, includes an inspiring spire, pointed arch windows, and soaring interior vaulting". With

History

In October 1860, Fr. Projectus Machebeuf, and Fr. J.B. Raverdy began the 300-mile journey from

Santa Fe, New Mexico Santa Fe ( ; , Spanish for 'Holy Faith'; tew, Oghá P'o'oge, Tewa for 'white shell water place'; tiw, Hulp'ó'ona, label= Northern Tiwa; nv, Yootó, Navajo for 'bead + water place') is the capital of the U.S. state of New Mexico. The name “S ...

, north into Colorado Territory. Months later they arrived at the

Arkansas River The Arkansas River is a major tributary of the Mississippi River. It generally flows to the east and southeast as it traverses the U.S. states of Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. The river's source basin lies in the western United ...

, at the present site of the city of Pueblo. Initially, the priests celebrated mass in the homes of local

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

s, then they began to hold public services in the old Courthouse on 3rd and Santa Fe Avenue, until finally a proper church was established on 13th and West Streets. In 1873 it was the first parish in Pueblo, and it was called St. Ignatius. A fire destroyed St. Ignatius and its rectory in 1882. Under the direction of the Jesuit priests assigned to serve it, money was raised and second church was built. This time St. Ignatius was situated near the heart of the city, on Grand between 10th and 11th Streets. Eventually, it served as the parish hall when the present church was built under the pastorate of Msgr. Thomas Wolohan. In 1910, Msgr. Wolohan began planning for a new church to be dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. On May 5, 1912, the church cornerstone was laid, and within a year, Sacred Heart was dedicated by the Most Reverend Nicholas Matz, Archbishop of Denver. The construction costs of the church were $48,000 and was realized with the help of the congregation of 190 families. Msgr. Wolohan served as pastor of Sacred Heart for thirty-six years. He is buried in a crypt in the cathedral. On November 15, 1941, Sacred Heart was elevated to the status of a

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 denominations ...

with the establishment of the new

. Since the establishment of Sacred Heart as a Cathedral, it has been served by eight rectors and administrators. In the past few years, the parish has grown from 930 families to well over 1,200. It truly has become a model of good liturgy and ministry for other parishes to emulate as the parish church of the Bishop. In 1997, the Cathedral celebrated its 125th anniversary with a year-long series of events. It adopted as its motto that year, Strong at Heart after 125 years. In 1989, the Cathedral was added to the

by the U.S. Department of the Interior. In 2008, the

steeple In architecture, a steeple is a tall tower on a building, topped by a spire and often incorporating a belfry and other components. Steeples are very common on Christian churches and cathedrals and the use of the term generally connotes a religi ...

of the cathedral was struck by lightning and was engulfed by flames and was damaged. Work has been completed to replace the steeple and install a

lightning rod A lightning rod or lightning conductor (British English) is a metal rod mounted on a structure and intended to protect the structure from a lightning strike. If lightning hits the structure, it will preferentially strike the rod and be conducte ...

. Work was done by HW Houston Construction and Vision Mechanical and the new cross was dedicated. The Bishop of Pueblo was then Stephen Berg.

References

Colorado Historical Society

External links

Official Cathedral Site

Diocese of Pueblo Official Site
{{National Register of Historic Places Religious organizations established in 1873 Roman Catholic churches completed in 1913 Churches in Pueblo, Colorado Sacred Heart Pueblo Churches in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Pueblo Churches on the National Register of Historic Places in Colorado National Register of Historic Places in Pueblo, Colorado Gothic Revival architecture in Colorado 20th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United States

History

See also

References

External links