Cathedral of Saint Joseph (Wheeling, West Virginia)

	Cathedral of Saint Joseph
	U.S. Historic district – Contributing property
	Cathedral of St. Joseph in 2025
Location	1312 Eoff Street; Wheeling, West Virginia
Coordinates	40°3′59.47″N 80°43′11.82″W / 40.0665194°N 80.7199500°W
Built	1926
Architect	Edward J. Weber
Architectural style	Romanesque Revival
Part of	East Wheeling Historic District (ID99001402)
Added to NRHP	November 22, 1999

The Cathedral of Saint Joseph of Wheeling or Saint Joseph's Cathedral is the seat of the bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Wheeling–Charleston.The cathedral is home to the oldest congregation in the city of Wheeling, West Virginia, in the United States.^[2]

The current pastor of the cathedral is the bishop of the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston, the Most Reverend Mark E. Brennan. The current rector is Father Penumaka "Pen" Manikyalarao and the vice-rector is Father John Soplinski.

History

Saint James the Apostle Church

During the first half of the 19th century, Wheeling was part of the State of Virginia and under the Catholic jurisdiction of the Diocese of Richmond. The first Catholic church in Wheeling was a small log church constructed in 1822 by the missionary Edward Fenwick for German and Irish immigrants.^[3]By 1847, the parish had constructed a larger church, Saint James the Apostle, on 13th and Eoff Street in Wheeling.^[3]

First Saint Joseph the Workman Cathedral

In 1850, Pope Pius IX in 1850 erected the Diocese of Wheeling and appointed Bishop Richard Vincent Whelan as its first bishop.^[4] Saint James the Apostle Church now became Saint James the Apostle Cathedral.^[3]Whelan In 1872 petititioned the Vatican to change the cathedral name to Saint Joseph the Workman. This was in recognition of the many parishioners who worked in coal mines in the region.^[3]

With after start of the American Civil War in 1861, the West Virginia area seceded from Virginia to become a separate state.^[5]After the end of World War I in 1919, Bishop Patrick Donahue began planning a new, larger cathedral to meet the diocese's changing needs. However, he died in later 1922 before he could start the project. He was succeeded by Bishop John Joseph Swint.^[3]

A fire heavily damaged the cathedral in early 1923, forcing Swint to quickly restart the new cathedral project. He hired the architect Edward J. Weber of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to design the structure. He chose a Neo-Romanesque style for the cathedral. The cornerstone for the new cathedral was laid on May 5, 1923.^[3]

Second Saint Joseph the Workman Cathedral

The second Saint Joseph the Workman Cathedral was dedicated on April 21, 1926. The project cost $500,000 ( equivalent to $9,100,000 in 2025).^[6]At that time, Swint commented that he had

"planned to build not for a few years, for fifty years or a hundred years, but to erect a building that would stand for hundreds of years and be a beautiful legacy which the present congregation would bequeath to future generations" (West Virginia Register 12/30/22).^[7]

In 1973, Bishop Joseph Hodges changed the cathedral interior to comply with liturgical changes from the Second Vatican Council of the early 1960s. He moved the main altar under the cathedral dome, removed the ambo and communion rail, and reoriented the side pews to face the main altar.^[3]

During the early 1990s, Bishop Bernard W. Schmitt began a major renovation of the cathedral interior. Contractors restored the murals and paintings, added new furnishings to match the cathedral woodwork and upgraded heating, cooling, electrical, lighting, and sound systems. A new baptismal fountain was constructed and the floors were refinished. The project was completed in 1996.^[3]The diocese in 1995 merged three parishes in Wheeling into the cathedral parish. Sacred Heart , St. Joan of Arc and Blessed Trinity.^[3]In 1999, the cathedral was a contributing property to the East Wheeling Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places.^[1]

Bishop Michael J. Bransfield in 2006 started needed repair work on the cathedral roof and external windows. The stained glass windows were restored and the original cathedral was brought back.^[3] Six years lager, Bransfield installed a new marble floor, altar, and ambo and restored the pews.^[3]

In 2011, the diocese closed the cathedral school due to low enrollment and repurposed the building as a chancery. It also developed a new courtyard with a fountain, along with a garden dedicated to the Virgin Mary.^[8]

Architecture

Rectory

The adjacent rectory is a three-story, five-bay house that was built in the Gothic revival style in 1920.^[9] It is a brick structure built on a stone foundation; it is capped with a mansard roof with dormers. Plain brackets are located under the eaves.

The wood-carved double entrance way to the rectory is flanked by columns that are capped with decorative stone carvings. The third floor features Gothic-arched tracery windows and a balcony with decorative stonework.^[9]

Cathedral interior

According to the architect, the colorful interior of St. Joseph was created in the Mediaeval Byzantine style. The primary dome is filled with a depiction of heaven. The mural, “Enthroned Christ and the Communion of the Saints,” which fills the half-dome of the apse, was painted by the American artist Felix B. Lieftuchter. The medieval-style stained glass was created by George W. Sotter of Philadelphia.

The long, broad nave is covered with a barrel vault decorated with colorfully painted trompe l'oeil coffers. A free-standing ciborium, another feature typical of Lombard Romanesque churches, protects the marble high altar on which the tabernacle rests.

Cathedral exterior

The cathedral is a Lombardi Romanesque structure with a modified basilica floor plan that is cruciform in shape. The inspiration for St. Joseph the Workman came from several churches in Italy; the Church of San Pietro in Toscanella and the Cathedral of Saint Stephen in Prato. Bishop Swint wanted the dome to be based on the dome of the cathedral of Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore in Florence, Italy.

St. Joseph the Workman features a dome that rises 148 feet (45 m) above the crossing.^[9] Two turrets flank a rose window on the main facade.The sculpture in the tympanum of the main doorway, depicting "Christ in Majesty", was carved by the sculptor Francis Aretz of Pittsburgh. Carved symbols of the Four Evangelists occupy quadrants around the wheel window, and a statue of St. Joseph stands above them.

The exterior pulpit and sounding board, both of stone, on the northeast corner of the facade derive from also derives from Cathedral of Saint Stephen. A belfry tower at the southeast corner, between the transept and apse, is visible from the cathedral courtyard.

Cathedral images
Cathedra (2023)
Baptismal font (2023)
Mural, Depiction of Heaven (2023)
Station of the cross (2023)
Shrine of the Blessed Virgin (2023)
Ciborium (2023)

Notes

^ ^a ^b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
^ "Cathedral Facts". St. Joseph Cathedral. Archived from the original on February 6, 2012. Retrieved December 6, 2012.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k "Cathedral of St. Joseph Our History". Cathedral of St. Joseph. Retrieved April 22, 2026.
^ "Wheeling-Charleston (Diocese) [Catholic-Hierarchy]". www.catholic-hierarchy.org. Retrieved April 22, 2026.
^ "Reorganized Government of Virginia Approves New State". www.wvculture.org. Archived from the original on April 7, 2010. Retrieved April 22, 2026.
^ 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved February 29, 2024.
^ "History of the Building". Cathedral of St. Joseph. Archived from the original on September 26, 2018. Retrieved September 25, 2018.
^ "Diocese of Wheeling". Coldspring. Retrieved April 23, 2026.
^ ^a ^b ^c Jeanne Grimm. "East Wheeling Neighborhood". National Park Service. Retrieved May 7, 2015.

External links

[nris-1] "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.

[facts-2] "Cathedral Facts". St. Joseph Cathedral. Archived from the original on February 6, 2012. Retrieved December 6, 2012.

[:0-3] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k "Cathedral of St. Joseph Our History". Cathedral of St. Joseph. Retrieved April 22, 2026.

[4] "Wheeling-Charleston (Diocese) [Catholic-Hierarchy]". www.catholic-hierarchy.org. Retrieved April 22, 2026.

[5] "Reorganized Government of Virginia Approves New State". www.wvculture.org. Archived from the original on April 7, 2010. Retrieved April 22, 2026.

[inflation-US-6] 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved February 29, 2024.

[7] "History of the Building". Cathedral of St. Joseph. Archived from the original on September 26, 2018. Retrieved September 25, 2018.

[8] "Diocese of Wheeling". Coldspring. Retrieved April 23, 2026.

[Grimm-9] Jeanne Grimm. "East Wheeling Neighborhood". National Park Service. Retrieved May 7, 2015.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

v t e Diocese of Wheeling–Charleston
Bishops	Ordinaries Richard Vincent Whelan John Joseph Kain Patrick James Donahue John Joseph Swint Joseph Howard Hodges Francis B. Schulte Bernard William Schmitt Michael J. Bransfield Mark E. Brennan Bishop-elect Evelio Menjivar-Ayala Coadjutor Thomas John McDonnell Auxiliary James Edward Michaels
Churches	Cathedrals Cathedral of St. Joseph, Wheeling Basilica of the Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart, Charleston Parishes Good Shepherd Church, Coalburg St. Peter's Church, Harpers Ferry St. Francis Xavier Church, Parkersburg Former parishes St. Bernard Church, Camden St. Colman's Church, Dillon
Education	Higher education Catholic International University Wheeling Jesuit University High schools Charleston Catholic High School, Charleston Madonna High School, Weirton Notre Dame High School, Clarksburg Parkersburg Catholic High School, Parkersburg St. Joseph Central Catholic High School, Huntington Wheeling Central Catholic High School, Wheeling Former high school Mount de Chantal Visitation Academy, Wheeling Grade school Cathedral Parish School
Catholicism portal

v t e U.S. National Register of Historic Places in West Virginia
Topics	Contributing property Keeper of the Register Historic district History of the National Register of Historic Places National Park Service Property types
Lists by county	Barbour Berkeley Boone Braxton Brooke Cabell Calhoun Clay Doddridge Fayette Gilmer Grant Greenbrier Hampshire Hancock Hardy Harrison Jackson Jefferson Kanawha Lewis Lincoln Logan Marion Marshall Mason McDowell Mercer Mineral Mingo Monongalia Monroe Morgan Nicholas Ohio Pendleton Pleasants Pocahontas Preston Putnam Raleigh Randolph Ritchie Roane Summers Taylor Tucker Tyler Upshur Wayne Webster Wetzel Wirt Wood Wyoming
Other lists	Bridges National Historic Landmarks
Category:National Register of Historic Places in West Virginia Portal:National Register of Historic Places