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| Paroisse
SS. Pierre et Paul
SS. Peter & Paul Parish |
May
2005
Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul |
| Sts.
Peter & Paul have their own website where more information
and photos may be found. Please visit them at Basilica
of Saints Peter and Paul |
27 Bartlett St.
( at the corner of Ash & Bartlett)
Lewiston, ME |
This
is Lewiston's own magnificent cathedral, whose great rose
window was modeled after that of the cathedral at Chartres
and whose heaven piercing, 168-foot-tall towers rival
those of any place of worship anywhere in the Old World.
It all began with in 1873 when a, much smaller, brick
Gothic structure, with one tall tower, was completed.
This first church was built to serve our French-Canadian
ancesctors who had been recruited to work in the mills
at Lewiston.
By 1895, the old church had been torn down and work on
the lower part of the new church was begun. From then
on, however, it was a long row to hoe to complete the
new building. None of the parishoners could have realized
at the time, just how long it would take to realize thier
dreams.
The original architect of the church was a Belgian, Noel
Coumont, who lived in Lewiston in 1905 when the project
began. Coumont was let go or fired and he was followed
by other architects who managed to get the basement of
the church completed in 1906 so that mass could be regularly
held there. |
| Saints Peter and Paul
Church is a cultural monument and is the second largest
church in New England. |
Boston architect T.G. O'Connell completed
the design after a 28-year lapse in construction. Stained-glass
windows were installed in 1948. |
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Between
1906 and 1938 our devoutly Catholic parents, grandparents
and other ancestors labored, toiled and donated their hard
earned nickels and dimes to erect this imposing monument
to their faith.
Despite the difficult years of the Great Depression we were
determined to have a place to worship and the result is
a French Gothic structure built of Maine granite that has
enough wooden pews to seat 2,200.worshipers.
To realize the dream our families held bake sales, ball
games, and practically every other community event possible
to raise money. In a parish of shoe-factory and textile-mill
workers, there were no great benefactors available. And
so the $800,000 it took to build this cathedral was raised
literally nickel by nickel, dime by dime. |
A
View From the Inside
Located in the rear gallery, high above
the back of the church, sits the elegant "Opus
1588" organ with its 4,000 pipes, manufactured
by Casavant Freres, Limitee of Saint Hyacinthe, Québec.
The nearly 300-foot-long center aisle and the sheer
vastness of the church inspires awe!
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| Roman Catholic services are
still held today, and the church is open for group tours. |
The church
was consecrated on October 23, 1938. |
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Above the
altar rises one of the cathedral's great stained glass
windows, (commerating the family of Louis Malo - a direct
ancestor of mine) which seems to hover in the semi-darkness
like an immense, multi-hued jewel. "Its scale, as
well as its commanding location, emulate the way the medieval
cathedrals dominated their own communities," says
Earle G. Shettleworth, Jr., of the Maine Historic Preservation
Commission ...
"Certainly this church
was central to the lives of the immigrants who lived in
this community," |
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A Master Craftsman at work
(Aug 2001) |
During the 60's and 70's,
the great church of Saints Peter and Paul began to deteriorate.
Huge cracks appeared in the front towers. All around the
base lay bits of stone that had crumbled off. By the 1980s,
it was clear that the church was in need of major restoration,
but with the congregation having dwindled to 4,000, and
three priests to perform services, the future looked grim. |
Restoration in Progress
(Aug 2001) |
| The
restoration of the upper church was in progress during
my visit to Lewiston. I'm not sure quite how, or why I
was able to document some of the work in pictures, but
thanks to the Pastor, Rev. Robert D. Lariviere and my
cousin Roger Sutton, I have but four pictures of the meticulous
efforts undertaken to ensure the longevity of this magnificent
building for generations to come. |
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These carved
wooden figures had been removed, and painstakingly restored
to thier original grandeur and remounted to watch over
future generations who may find their way home.
At this point, the exterior of the cathedral
has been completely restored, a new zoned heating system
and handicapped-access elevator have been installed, and
work has just begun to repaint and replaster the flaking
and peeling water-damaged walls within the church as well
as complete restoration of other facets of the building...as
seen above.
Some of my information about the church
comes from an article in Down East Magazine
"The Cathedral That Nickels
and Dimes Built"
By Ellen MacDonald Ward - 1999.
Today, even with the dwindling number
of French speakers remaining in Lewiston, there is still
one mass each week offered in French. I was fortunate
to attend Mass with my cousins Roger and Adrienne Sutton
while I was there.
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A view from the corner |
SS
Peter & Paul Parish
27 Bartlett Street
Lewiston, ME 04240
Phone: (207) 777-1200
Office Hours
Monday through Friday
9:00 AM to 4:00 PM |
From Lewistons Web Page |
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