Permanent heritage listing for St Mary's Roman Catholic Cathedral

25/10/95

St Mary's Roman Catholic Cathedral, the symbolic seat of the Church in Western Australia, is to have its heritage values protected forever by the State Government.

Heritage Minister Richard Lewis said the Victoria Square cathedral would be placed on the State Government's permanent register of heritage places.

Mr Lewis said St Mary's was not only highly valued by the Catholic community of WA but was also an outstanding Perth landmark.

"The cathedral stands on high ground in the centre of Victoria Square, a site which was designated on the first town plan of Perth as 'Church Square'," Mr Lewis said.

"St Mary's was built to supersede the earlier and smaller St John's Pro-Cathedral, as it was considered there was a need for a more worthy cathedral for the Perth Catholic community.

"The Church Square had originally been set aside for use by the Church of England, but they preferred a site in St George's Terrace.

"The Governor therefore ceded the site to the Catholic Church in 1859."

The administrator of the Perth diocese, Bishop Serra, travelled to Rome and while there, sought support for construction of the new cathedral.

Francis II, the King of the Two Sicilies, donated one thousand scudi and the Benedictine Brothers of the monastery of St Paul's Outside the Walls donated marble for the altar, which was designed and made in Rome and arrived in Fremantle in 1862.

The following year enough money had been raised by Bishop Salvador, the only Catholic bishop in the colony at the time, to lay the foundation stone.

Construction of the new cathedral was slow because of a lack of funds and builders and it was finally completed in January 1865 at a cost of £4,000.  It was named the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception.

Mr Lewis said early photographs showed the cathedral to be a simple building in the Norman Gothic style, with a tower on the southern side.

"Between 1897 and 1910 a number of alterations and additions were made which emphasised the Gothic character of the cathedral," he said.

In 1924 a larger cathedral was planned and an impressive Academic Gothic cathedral was designed by architect Michael Cavanagh. However, again due to budgetary constraints, it was decided to use the existing cathedral as the nave and only build the new transept and sanctuary.

It was formally blessed on May 4, 1930 and Catholic dignitaries came from all over Australia.

Mr Lewis said St Mary's was an unusual demonstration of different expressions of Gothic ecclesiastic architecture in the one building.

"The cathedral is a major Perth landmark and contributes strongly to the visual character of the historic Murray Street East precinct," he said.

"St Mary's is highly valued by the Catholic community of WA as the symbolic seat of the Church.  The enclosed garden setting of the cathedral grounds is also enjoyed by members of the local community."

Media contact: Bronwyn Hillman 221 1377, 222 9595