Cathedral of Mary Our Queen, Baltimore

39°21′31″N 76°37′34″W / 39.35861°N 76.62611°W / 39.35861; -76.62611Location5200 North Charles Street
Baltimore, Maryland Country United StatesDenominationRoman Catholic ChurchWebsitewww.cathedralofmary.orgHistoryStatusCathedralDedicationBlessed Virgin MaryConsecratedOctober 13, 1959 (1959-10-13)ArchitectureFunctional statusActiveArchitectural typeCathedralStyleEnglish Gothic/Neo-Gothic Art DecoGroundbreakingOctober 1954 (1954-10)Completed1959 (1959)SpecificationsCapacity2,000 sittingLength373 feet (114 m)Width132 feet (40 m)Number of spires2Spire height163 feet (50 m)Materialsbrick, limestoneAdministrationArchdioceseBaltimoreClergyArchbishopThe Most Reverend William E. LoriBishop(s)The Most Reverend Bruce A. Lewandowski, The Most Reverend Adam J. Parker, and The Most Reverend Denis J. MaddenRectorReverend Father Louis A. BiancoAssistant priest(s)Reverend Father Justin GoughDeacon(s)Reverend Mr. William Senft, Reverend Mr. Frederick Bauerschmidt

The Cathedral of Mary Our Queen is a Catholic cathedral located in northern Baltimore, Maryland, United States. It was completed in 1959.

The cathedral is the seat, holding the cathedra or "bishop's seat", of the Archbishop of Baltimore, joining the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, on Cathedral Street at Mulberry Street, in downtown Baltimore. Because the archdiocese is the premier episcopal see of the United States and the downtown basilica was the nation's first Catholic cathedral, this second edifice now serves as co-cathedral.

Location

The cathedral is located in the Homeland area of northern Baltimore near Loyola University Maryland and St. Mary's Seminary and University, the first Catholic seminary in the United States. It was constructed using funds bequeathed by an Irish Baltimore merchant, Thomas J O'Neill. It is said^{[by whom?]} to be "the only cathedral in the 2,000 year history of the Church that was donated by a single individual."^{[1][dubious – discuss]}

History

In October 1954 ground was broken for the new cathedral. On the morning of October 13, 1959, a few days past the fifth anniversary of the groundbreaking, Bishop Jerome Sebastian consecrated the cathedral.

Pope St. John Paul II visited both the Cathedral of Mary Our Queen and the older basilica in 1995 as Pope and in 1976 before he became Pope, while he was known as Cardinal Karol Wojtyla.

Architecture

The design is modified Gothic Revival architecture with Art Deco accents, constructed of brick-faced with limestone, and uses a classical east-facing cruciform floor plan. The cathedral measures 373 feet (114 m) long, 132 feet (40 m) wide and 163 feet (50 m) to the top of the two spires and can accommodate 2,000 people.^[2] The Cathedral features an extensive sculptural program executed by Joseph Coletti.^[3]

Burials in the crypt

The crypt under the main floor of the cathedral is reserved for the remains of archbishops and auxiliary bishops of Baltimore. Buried in the crypt are:

1. Bishop Jerome Aloysius Daugherty Sebastian, d. 1960
2. Archbishop Francis Patrick Keough, d. 1961
3. Cardinal Lawrence Shehan, d. 1984
4. Bishop Thomas Austin Murphy, d. 1991
5. Bishop Philip Francis Murphy, d. 1999^[4]
6. Archbishop William Donald Borders, d. 2010
7. Bishop William Clifford Newman, d. 2017^[5]

Organs

The cathedral has two organs. The original organs were Opus 9200 of the M. P. Moller Company of Hagerstown, Maryland. After 46 years of use and some considerable damage due to water and smoke the congregation decided to restore the cathedral organs in 2005. It chose Schantz Organ Co. of Ohio to restore and replace many parts of the original instruments. The restoration began with the removal of the Great Gallery organ and, after it was reinstalled and operable, work began on the chancel organ.

In addition to new pipe work, voice work, new wind chests, Schantz built two new identical four-manual consoles—one for the gallery and one for the chancel—allowing the organist to control both organs from either location. The chancel console can be moved around the sanctuary to suit various needs. In the original Moller installation, the Great Gallery organ console had four-manuals and could control over both the gallery and sanctuary organs. The sanctuary organ console was two manuals, had complete control over the sanctuary organ and the gallery organ through "blind" controls. The sanctuary console was replaced in 1974 due to a fire in the console which caused smoke damage to both organs' pipework. After the renovations, the Great Gallery organ holds 100 ranks, and the sanctuary organ holds 27.^[6]

The first solo concert performance on the restored organ occurred July 5, 2007, by Cherry Rhodes as part of the closing ceremonies of the American Guild of Organists regional convention held in Baltimore.^[7]

See also

Churches
and parishesCatholic
educationOrdinariesMiscellanySuffragan dioceses