Saint Peter Cathedral | |
---|---|
The cathedral clock tower from Sassafras Street
|
|
42°7′27″N 80°5′13″W / 42.12417°N 80.08694°WCoordinates: 42°7′27″N 80°5′13″W / 42.12417°N 80.08694°W | |
Location | 230 West 10th Street Erie, Pennsylvania |
Country | United States |
Denomination | Roman Catholic |
Website | stpetercathedral |
History | |
Founded | February 1873 |
Dedication | Saint Peter |
Dedicated | August 2, 1893 |
Consecrated | May 17, 1911 |
Architecture | |
Status | Cathedral |
Functional status | Active |
Architect(s) | Patrick Keely |
Style | Gothic Revival |
Groundbreaking | August 1, 1875 |
Construction cost | $274,000 |
Specifications | |
Length | 220 ft (67 m) |
Width | 112 ft (34 m) |
Number of spires | 3 |
Spire height | 265 ft (81 m) Central 150 ft (46 m) Side |
Materials | Sandstone |
Bells | 12 |
Tenor bell weight | 4,500 lb (2,040 kg) |
Administration | |
Diocese | Erie |
Province | Philadelphia |
Clergy | |
Bishop(s) | Most Rev. Lawrence Persico |
Rector | Rev. Michael Ferrick |
St. Peter Cathedral is a Roman Catholic church located at 230 West 10th Street (at Sassafras Street) in Erie, Pennsylvania.
Plans for the building of St. Peter Cathedral were initiated in 1873 by Bishop Tobias Mullen of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Erie. The cornerstone was laid in a formal ceremony held on Day (See General Roman Calendar as in 1954), 1 August 1875. After years of construction and a fundraising campaign that involved parishes throughout the diocese, the cathedral was completed in 1893. The architect was Patrick Keeley of Brooklyn, a prolific designer of churches whose works include 21 cathedrals in the eastern United States.
The cathedral is Gothic revival in the French Victorian tradition called Second Empire. Much of the stone for the foundation came from dismantling the locks of the Erie Extension Canal, which closed in 1871. The exterior consists of red sandstone from Medina, New York and white sandstone trim from Amherst, Ohio and Mercer County, Pennsylvania.
The central bell tower stands 265 feet (81 m) tall, while twin Norman style towers at 150 feet (46 m) each bracket the central tower. The bell tower contains a chime of twelve bells weighing 14 tons cast in 1903 by the Andrew Meneely Bell Foundry of West Troy, New York. The E. Howard Clock Company of Boston, New York, and Chicago, installed the clock in the tower, also in 1903.