St. John the Evangelist Milwaukee WI

October 2016 - Milwaukee WI

The Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist is the episcopal see of the Catholic Archdiocese of Milwaukee.

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OK I had to see what Wikipedia meant by episcopal see. An episcopal see is, in the usual meaning of the phrase, the area of a bishop's ecclesiastical jurisdiction.

Phrases concerning actions occurring within or outside an episcopal see are indicative of the geographical significance of the term, making it synonymous with "diocese".

Archbishop John Henni purchased land for the cathedral in 1844. The cornerstone was laid on December 5, 1847, after nearly $30,000 was raised for construction. It was completed in 1852 and dedicated to John the Evangelist.

The original tower was deemed unsafe and the section above the clock was replaced with a taller tower in 1893, which was designed by noted Milwaukee architects George Ferry & Alfred Clas. A fire partially destroyed the church and most of its contents in January 1935. Only the tower remained fully intact. Rebuilding was completed in time for midnight mass on Christmas Eve of 1942.

In 2001 a gated garden and atrium were added at the north end of the building.

A large tomb-shaped baptismal pool and marble font is also situated prominently in the center of the sanctuary.

A huge crown of thorns.