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Saint Raphael's Cathedral parish is the Cathedral parish for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Madison and is located in downtown Madison, Wisconsin at 222 West Main Street. In March 2005, the Cathedral building located at 204 W. Main St. was heavily damaged in a fire and was demolished. The parish community remained active, and intends to rebuild the cathedral. As of October 2015, no plans have been announced for the rebuilding. In late 2012, a park was constructed on the former site, called Cathedral Square or Cathedral Place, and features a Way of the Cross.
In the early 1840s, immigrants from Ireland settled in what would later become Madison. They were soon organized into a parish named after the Archangel Raphael. On August 15, 1842, Mass was offered for the first time by Father Martin Kundig. The land upon which the parish buildings and a later parking lot would be built was donated by Governor James Duane Doty, a close friend of Father Samuel Mazzuchelli.
From 1842 until 1853, the parish did not have a church of its own. Mass was often celebrated in homes and in the state capitol. In 1853, Father Francis Etchmann began constructing the most recent church building. The cornerstone was laid on May 28, 1854 by Bishop John Henni of the Diocese of Milwaukee. He dedicated the new building because the parish was under his jurisdiction at the time. The spire and bells were added in 1885.
On January 9, 1946, Pope Pius XII created the Diocese of Madison for an 11-county area in the southwestern area of the state. Territory was taken from the Archdiocese of Milwaukee and the Diocese of La Crosse to form the new diocese. St. Raphael's was then chosen as the Cathedral Parish for the Madison diocese. At the time of the parish's elevation to a cathedral, Msgr. William Mahoney was the pastor.
On March 14, 2005, a fire caused extensive damage to St. Raphael's Cathedral, affecting not only those who attended the church, but the entire diocesan community.
The fire caused the roof to collapse into the building, although the walls and steeple remained standing. There was further damage from the water and there were fears that the refurbished steeple would collapse, although the steeple was found to be stable in the days following the fire. The mosaics sustained smoke and water damage, and the stained glass windows were damaged but still in place.
The cause of the fire was determined to be arson. Forty-one-year-old William J. "Billy" Connell was arrested for setting the fire and charged with burglary, arson, and bail jumping. Connell said that he had broken into the Cathedral using a crowbar, stole a bottle of wine, and then "messed around with some stuff". The fire started in an office/storeroom under the spire, and the crowbar was found in that room. Connell had a history of mental problems, and had previously been in trouble with the law. Connell was sentenced to 15 years in prison to be followed by 15 years of close supervision.
On June 10, 2007, Bishop Morlino announced his intention to have the structure demolished and replaced with a new and larger church capable of seating 1,000 people. The Diocese of Madison announced on March 13, 2008, that St. Raphael's would be demolished by June of that year and that some items from the old Cathedral would be saved, including the spire, the three bells from the steeple, three mosaics from the sanctuary, the marble sanctuary appointments, one large undamaged stain glass window, three smaller undamaged semicircular stain glass windows, some ornamental stonework from around the doorways, and some other stone from the building. The demolition plan sparked debate among some in the city who felt portions of the structure should be preserved or declared a landmark.
When demolition of the structure began, Bishop Morlino stated that the diocese would wait at least one year after the demolition before it began fundraising or planning for a new sanctuary. On July 1, 2008, the parish of St. Raphael merged with the nearby parishes of St. Patrick and Holy Redeemer churches to form a new Cathedral Parish of St. Raphael. The parish will be housed in facilities of the other two churches until the new cathedral is built.
On June 24, 2011, the parish purchased the structure it built in 1962 to house St. Raphael's School from 1963 until it closed in 1970. The parish demolished the building and in late 2012 created a park across the entire property featuring a Way of the Cross.
