The cathedral was built between 1859 and 1867, and designed by architect Leopold Eidlitz. The Gothic Revival structure was an expression of the city's sense of its significance as the United States expanded westwards. It was one of the earliest churches influenced by the revival within the Episcopal Church of early Christian practices and styles, which later was influenced by the Oxford Movement originating in England. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1994.[2]
The cathedral is located in what is now downtown St. Louis, at the southeast corner of Thirteenth and Locust streets. The main body of the church was built of Illinois sandstone, and its roof is of purple and green slate. It is basically a cruciform structure, with a tower projecting from the northern facade at the northwest corner. The base of the tower houses a baptistry, with a font of Italian marble.[3]
A smaller sandstone chapel dates to 1893–95. From 1910 to 1912, a tower and porch were added of Indiana limestone.[3] The chime of three steel bells, dedicated in 1912, were cast by the Bochumer Verein Foundry in 1904.[4] The bourdon bell, weighing 5,732 pounds, is the largest bell in Missouri.[5] The cathedral originally housed an organ from the Roosevelt Organ Company; in 1926 the Skinner Organ Company installed a new organ.[6]
Montana silver magnate Charles D. McLure, a St. Louis native, was revealed to be the anonymous donor of $50,000 toward constructing the cathedral (approximately $6.5 million today).[7][full citation needed]
