Co-Cathedral of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Juneau, Alaska) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Co-Cathedral of the Nativityof the Blessed Virgin Mary |
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Co-Cathedral of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Juneau
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 Location in Alaska
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| 58°18′12″N 134°24′30″W / 58.30336°N 134.40831°W | |
| Location | 416 Fifth Street Juneau, Alaska  |
| Country |  United States |
| Denomination | Roman Catholic Church |
| History | |
| Founded | 1885 |
| Founder(s) | John Althoff |
| Architecture | |
| Completed | 1910 |
| Specifications | |
| Materials | Wood |
| Administration | |
| Diocese | Anchorage-Juneau |
The Co-Cathedral of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary is an important Catholic church located in Juneau, Alaska. It used to be the main church, also called the mother church, for the Diocese of Juneau until 2020. Now, it serves as a co-cathedral for the larger Archdiocese of Anchorage-Juneau. This church is quite special because it might be the smallest cathedral in all of North America! You can find it at 416 Fifth Street in Juneau.
Contents
A Look Back: History of the Co-Cathedral
Building a Church for Juneau
In 1885, a person named John Althoff was sent to Juneau. His job was to create a church for the many miners and their families living in the Silverbow Basin area of Alaska.
A church building was first built in 1886. It was located on the same street, Fifth Street, where the current church stands today. The church you see now was built later, in 1910, replacing the older one.
Becoming a Cathedral
In 1951, something big happened: the church was officially made into a cathedral. This happened when the Diocese of Juneau was created. A bishop is a leader in the Catholic Church. Robert Dermot O'Flanagan became the first Bishop of Juneau. He had been a priest in Alaska since 1933.
Growing the Church Community
In 1962, the cathedral started a new "mission church" in the Mendenhall Valley. A mission church is like a smaller church that helps serve people in a different part of the community. This new church helped people in the Mendenhall Valley and around the Auke Bay area.
Ten years later, in 1972, this mission church became its own separate parish. A parish is a local church community. This new parish was named St. Paul the Apostle Parish. Francis Thomas Hurley helped make this separation happen.
Recent Changes
In 2019, people started raising money to make big improvements to the cathedral. Andrew E. Bellisario supported these efforts.
On September 17, 2020, the Diocese of Juneau joined together with the Archdiocese of Anchorage. An archdiocese is a larger group of Catholic churches led by an archbishop. Because of this merger, the church building in Juneau is now a co-cathedral. This means it shares the role of a main church with another cathedral, Our Lady of Guadalupe Cathedral in Anchorage, Alaska.
See also
In Spanish: Concatedral de la Natividad de la Santísima Virgen María (Juneau) para niños
