WASHINGTON CATHEDRAL
NATIONAL SHRINE OF THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION
The building is constructed of limestone. The sculpture and beautifully stained glass windows form the principal decorations.
The total length of the building from the exterior of the apse at the eastern end to the main entrance at the western end will be 534 feet. The total spread of the transepts will be 215 feet, and each of these arms of the cross will be 105 feet wide. The ground area of the cathedral will be 71,000 square feet, and this will be ample to provide standing room for 27,000 persons or seating space for 7,500. The central tower will rise to a height of 262 feet and each of the two western towers will be 195 feet high. The nave will have a span of 40 feet and its height will be 95 feet.
Within the cathedral are buried Woodrow Wilson, our World War President; also Admiral George Dewey, General Nelson A. Miles, and several bishops of the Episcopal Church.
The grounds comprise 67 acres, and the carefully designed Bishop’s Garden forms an interesting feature. The National Cathedral School for Girls and for Boys and the College of Preachers are within the grounds.
NATIONAL SHRINE OF THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION
This cathedral has been designed in the Roman-Byzantine style of architecture. It is located on Michigan Avenue, Brookland, in the Catholic University grounds. The cornerstone for the church was laid in 1920. It is estimated that the total cost will be $50,000,000. The architects are Maginnis & Walsh, of Boston, and Professor Frederick V. Murphy, architect, of Washington.
The building as designed is cruciform in plan, with a triple apse, at the focus of which is placed the central altar within a great baldachin. The apse is of vast scale and, with the presbytery that separates it from the transepts, will admit of important ceremonies. The dome will be 250 feet high; the tall campanile, or bell tower, 330 feet high. The building is to take its place with such notable memorials as Santa Maria Maggiore, of Rome, and Santa Maria del Fiore, of Florence. It is to stand as a symbol of American Catholic devotion to the Virgin Mary. The availability of the Byzantine tradition for the rendering of this idea was readily perceived. The crypt, capable of seating approximately 1,500 persons, has been completed. Here a most interesting decorative scheme in terms of faïence has been introduced to enrich the effect of the vaults. The central altar is of Algerian onyx. The pavement is of Italian marble. The crypt is richly treated with still other marbles and with mosaics.