You are here

North Dakota » South Central Region » By County » Burleigh County » Cathedral of the Holy Spirit

Cathedral of the Holy Spirit

-A A +A
1941–1945, William F. Kurke. 520 N. Raymond St.
  • (Photograph by Steve C. Martens)

Bismarck’s Cathedral of the Holy Spirit, which anchors the western edge of the Hill District, is a streamlined Art Moderne design with much grandeur, drama, and verticality in its expression. Construction began in 1941, and despite the stringencies imposed by World War II, the cathedral was dedicated by Bishop Vincent Ryan in 1945. Known as the “Building Bishop” during the eleven years of his episcopacy, Ryan supervised more than ten million dollars in the construction of church buildings, including rectories, schools, institutions for the elderly, hospitals, convents, a motherhouse, and parish halls. The cathedral is certainly Kurke’s purest and most expressive Art Moderne design. The tall nave with a narrow vertical window in the gabled front, the dominating square tower with slight setbacks near the top and a shallow dome, and the white-painted exterior make the building particularly imposing.

Writing Credits

Author: 
Steve C. Martens and Ronald H. L. M. Ramsay
×

Data

What's Nearby

Timothy R. Atkinson House
Clarence B. Little House
Cathedral Hill Residential District
Patrick Byrne House
Bread of Life Episcopal Church

Citation

Steve C. Martens and Ronald H. L. M. Ramsay, "Cathedral of the Holy Spirit", [Bismarck, North Dakota], SAH Archipedia, eds. Gabrielle Esperdy and Karen Kingsley, Charlottesville: UVaP, 2012—, http://sah-archipedia.org/buildings/ND-01-BL15.

Print Source

Cover: Buildings of North Dakota

Buildings of North Dakota, Steve C. Martens and Ronald H. L. M. Ramsay. Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 2015, 197-197.

If SAH Archipedia has been useful to you, please consider supporting it.

SAH Archipedia tells the story of the United States through its buildings, landscapes, and cities. This freely available resource empowers the public with authoritative knowledge that deepens their understanding and appreciation of the built environment. But the Society of Architectural Historians, which created SAH Archipedia with University of Virginia Press, needs your support to maintain the high-caliber research, writing, photography, cartography, editing, design, and programming that make SAH Archipedia a trusted online resource available to all who value the history of place, heritage tourism, and learning.

,