Cathedral Church of St. Paul, Detroit

Infobox_nrhp | name =Cathedral Church of St. Paul Complex
nrhp_type =

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caption = Cathedral Church of Saint Paul from acros Woodward
location= Detroit, Michigan
lat_degrees = 42
lat_minutes = 21
lat_seconds = 22.43
lat_direction = N
long_degrees = 83
long_minutes = 3
long_seconds = 49.66
long_direction = W
locmapin = Michigan
area =
built =1908
architect= Ralph A. Cram
architecture= Late Gothic Revival, Other
added = August 03, 1982
governing_body = Private
mpsub=Religious Structures of Woodward Ave. TR
refnum=82002893cite web|url=http://www.nr.nps.gov/|title=National Register Information System|date=2007-01-23|work=National Register of Historic Places|publisher=National Park Service] The Cathedral Church of St. Paul, Detroit is the cathedral church of the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan. St. Paul's is located at 4800 Woodward Avenue in Detroit, adjacent to the campus of Wayne State University.

History

The parish of St. Paul was founded in 1824, as the first Episcopal and the first Protestant congregation in the then Michigan Territory. [http://www.detroitcathedral.org/history/history.htm History page] from the Cathedral Church of St. Paul] The original site of St. Paul’s church was on Woodward Avenue, between in Congress and Larned. In 1851, the church moved to the corner of Congress at Shelby.

Architecture

The current building, designed by renowned church architect Ralph Adams Cram, dates from 1907. It remains unfinished, the bell tower having never been completed. The church is built entirely of limestone, using medieval construction techniques, with no supporting steel superstructure. The building boasts soaring, pointed arches, wide expanses of stained glass, and elaborate tracery, exemplary of Gothic architecture, and includes a large architectural installation of Pewabic Pottery. In 1912 it became the cathedral of the diocese.

Significance

St. Paul's Cathedral is one finest examples of the Late Gothic Revival, an architectural style popular in the early years of the 20th century. [http://www.nps.gov/history/nR/travel/detroit/d26.htm Cathedral Church Of St. Paul] from the National Park Service] American architect of the mid-1800s imported and re-interpreted the English Gothic Revival style, based on the visually lush details of Medieval cathedrals. [http://www.nps.gov/history/nR/travel/detroit/d18.htm Fort Street Presbyterian Church] from the National Park Service] The American architects copied the "Gothic" elements and combined them with simple building plans to create an American architectural style known as "Victorian Gothic." The Fort Street Presbyterian Church, built in 1876, is a premier example of early Victorian Gothic architecture.

In contrast, in the early 1900s, more American architects attended new schools at M.I.T. and Columbia, or traveled to France for training at the École des Beaux-Arts. These architects, including Ralph A. Cram, felt Gothic architecture should develop from, rather than just copy, the architecture of Medieval churches. St. Paul's Cathedral is one of Cram's major early projects, one that defines his "Late Gothic Revival" style.

Present use

The current dean is the Very Reverend S. Scott Hunter, formerly Canon to the Ordinary of the Diocese of Michigan. [http://www.detroitcathedral.org/whos_who/who%20clergy.htm Clergy] from the Cathedral Church of St. Paul] The cathedral coordinates programming with the Detroit Cultural Center.

References

External links

* [http://www.detroitcathedral.org/ Cathedral Church of St. Paul Web site]