April 19, 1911 at the Cathedral

Consecration Invitation — Invitation to the Consecration – Museum of the City of New York

Leading up to April 19, 1911 at the Cathedral, several milestones have taken place. Some of these were engineering feats never seen previously. Much was accomplished in those 18 years.

1893 – Excavation Begins

1895 excavation for the Cathedral — Excavation for the Cathedral. – Irma and Paul Milstein Division of United States History, Local History and Genealogy, The New York Public Library.

Building the Massive Granite Foundations and Piers

1899 – Services Begin in the Crypt

Crypt Interior, Tiffany Chapel 1899. – Photo New York Public Library1

1899 – Great Eastern Arch is Finished

Keystone being placed in Great Eastern Arch — Irma and Paul Milstein Division of the United States History, Local History and Genealogy, The New York Public Library. (1899). Manhattan: Amsterdam Avenue – Cathedral Parkway Retrieved from http://digitalcollections.nypl.org

1901 – Belmont Chapel (St. Savior) is Underway

1903 -Installation of the Eight Monumental Granite Columns

1903 – Fundraising Push

Three New Arches — New York Times – March 30, 1903

1904 – First Use of Mohegan Golden Granite on the Walls of the Choir and the Apse.

1906 – King Chapel (Chapel of St. Columba) is Underway

1907 – George Heins, architect, partner in the firm Heins & LaFarge, dies, voiding the contract between the firm and the Cathedral. The Trustees retain Grant LaFarge to complete Crossing, Choir and High Altar.

1908 – Bishop Henry Codman Potter Dies. He led the effort to build the Cathedral from the laying of the cornerstone.

1908 Installation of The Guastavino tile ceiling and roof over the Choir completed.

1909 Temporary Guastavino Dome over Crossing is complete

America's Largest Dome — Completed Dome – Archives of the Cathedral

1909 to 1911 – The Completion of Interior Stone Work on the Choir and Chancel

Stone Cladding on Pier — Jasper, Serpentine, Dolomite and Frontenac Limestone Cladding going up on interior Piers

Crossing.from Choir — Looking West from Chancel at the temporary wall to future Nave

The Consecration on April 19, 1911 at the Cathedral concludes the first phase of construction. The foundations for the Nave would begin in 1916. World War I and the lack of funds caused it to stop. The laying of the Cornerstone for the Nave will not happen until 1925. A month after the Consecration, the Trustees dismiss architect LaFarge. Immediately, they install Ralph Adams Cram as consulting architect.

View of Cathedral 1910 from Morningside Ave

On the left, the eastern end of the Cathedral as seen from Morningside Drive. On the right, the western end of the Crossing walled in. The Nave will begin at this point more than a decade later.

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The majority of the images shown here are from the Irma and Paul Milstein Division of United States History, Local History and Genealogy, New York Public Library, unless otherwise noted.

Dear Mr. Murphy,
I am Tim de Christopher, once employed by Cathedral Stoneworks as a draftsman and carver at St. John’s, from 1990-92. I used to walk past the photo of Eduardo Ardolino when walking into the gift shop of the cathedral on a regular basis. I always admired the image of what struck me as an obviously Italian stone carver at work. It made me think of my grandfather, a stone cutter from Italy.

Much to my surprise I have recently learned that the man in the picture is Eduardo Ardolfino, and he was from the same town as my grandfather, Torre le Nocelle, in Avollino. Also to my great surprise, and delight, I discovered we were cousins.

It has made me feel an even deeper connection to the cathedral, a place and an experience I will never forget.