St James Cathedral, Jay Street

In November of 2017, the Brooklyn Eagle (web version) published this article, which mentions interior renovations to St. James Cathedral.

The cathedral doors are often locked.  The above sign indicates that one may visit the church 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday to Friday.  Clicking on any photo will enlarge it.
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Please click on the word Comments above the photo to read 15 important comments, including a request for a photo of the graduating class of 1965, St. James Pro-Cathedral elementary school.  

The mailing address of St. James Cathedral is 250 Cathedral Place, Brooklyn NY 11201, telephone 718-855-6390. The above photo shows the cathedral on Jay Street, just north of congested Tillary Street, in the few blocks between the approaches to Brooklyn Bridge and to Manhattan Bridge. The history of this parish goes back to 1822. See the cathedral website here. The see of Brooklyn was created in 1853. It seems that there was a fire in the cathedral in 1889 and that the current structure was built in 1903, according to the AIA Guide to New York City. The architect at that time was George H. Streeton, who also designed the church of the Guardian Angel on West 23rd Street, Manhattan, in 1910, only to have that church destroyed about 1930 for the construction of the New York Central Railroad's freight elevated line, likewise short-lived. Streeton also designed St. Raphael's church at 502 West 41st Street, Manhattan, still standing.
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For about a century, this church was known as the Pro-Cathedral, in hopes that a larger cathedral would be built somewhere. The bus in the photo has as its destination 310 Prospect Park West and 19th Street, the location of some diocesan offices. After streetcar service ceased on this route about 1957, the diocese bought the carbarn at 20th Street and built Bishop Ford High School there.

Jay Street was narrower until about 1933. To construct an Independent Subway junction under Jay Street, the parish buildings on the west side of the street were cut back severely. The high school was moved to St. Augustine's parish and to the new Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School, where the school newspaper is still called The Jamesonian. The parish elementary school closed in 1973. The above photo shows the building on the west side of Jay Street.  Over the north door, a sign says Cathedral Pavilion, but other signs indicate use by a charter school. About 1985 or 1990, we heard an address by Mario Cuomo here, followed by a question-and-answer period.



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