Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul in the City and Diocese of Washington, The

George Washington was the first person to suggest a “great church for national purposes in the capital city.” In 1893 Congress granted a charter to the Protestant Episcopal Cathedral Foundation of the District of Columbia that empowered it to establish a cathedral. In 1898 Bishop Henry Yates Satterlee arranged the purchase of fifty-seven acres, which is now Mount St. Alban. The cornerstone was laid on Sept. 29, 1907. The completed nave was dedicated in 1976. Philip Hubert Frohman was the main architect. He took over the design in 1921, and worked until his death in 1972. After eighty-three years of construction, the cathedral was consecrated on Sept. 30, 1990. Bishop Satterlee envisioned the cathedral as “a House of Prayer for All People,” especially at times of significance for the nation such as crises, celebrations, and funerals. The cathedral is the seat of the Bishop of Washington. As it was being built and finished it also became “by custom and tradition” the seat of the Presiding Bishop. It is the sixth largest cathedral in the world. It is also known as the Washington Cathedral, the National Cathedral, and the Washington National Cathedral.