Mulberry Street, New York, New York, USA
Old St. Patrick's Cathedral
The original cathedral of the Archdiocese of New York, a Federal-style church on Mulberry Street in NoLita that served as the city's mother church from 1815 to 1879.
Before the famous St. Patrick's on Fifth Avenue, there was this one — a modest yellow-brick church on Mulberry Street in what was then the heart of immigrant New York. Dedicated in 1815, Old St. Pat's was the first cathedral built for the Diocese of New York and served that role until the new cathedral opened uptown in 1879. The church burned in 1866 and was rebuilt, keeping its Federal-style bones. The interior is surprisingly spacious, with a vaulted ceiling, pipe organ, and side altars. The walled churchyard outside is one of the oldest Catholic cemeteries in the city, with graves dating to the early 1800s. This is where New York Catholicism began.
Diocese: Archdiocese of New York
Style: Federal
What to See
Walk the churchyard first — the old headstones and the brick wall around the grounds give you a sense of how different this neighborhood once was. Inside, the proportions are generous for a building of its era. The pipe organ and side altars repay attention.
Pilgrim Notes
Mass is offered daily. The church is in NoLita, between SoHo and Little Italy, and easy to reach by subway. Guided tours of the catacombs beneath the church are available by appointment and are well worth the time.