For almost 160 years, this beautiful cathedral of St Mary’s has stood proudly at 162 feet (49 metres) in length, 100 feet (30 metres) broad in the transepts, and with a central tower that is 186 feet and six inches (57 metres) to the pinnacles of the tower. The foundation stone was placed on August 18, 1843, and it was inaugurated and consecrated on October 4, 1857, by Most Reverend Edward Walsh, Bishop of Ossory.
Every generation since has added to the building’s grandeur, adding altars and sculptures, Stations of the Cross and mosaic embellishments, murals and paintings, and, in recent years, cleaning and conserving.
This church is a dynamic site of prayer and faith. It is a parish church that serves the parishioners of the Marble City’s oldest neighbourhood. It is a place where hundreds of people have gathered in song and celebration to welcome new bishops and newly ordained priests, to witness weddings, to bury the dead, to celebrate First Communions, and to welcome the Holy Spirit in Confirmation – a place that has celebrated life and death, joys and sorrows.
