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P.O. Box 368
Miramichi (Chatham)
New Brunswick, E1N 3A7
Canada
Telephone: (560) 778-5150
Diocese of
Saint John
The first simple St. Michael's Church
opened in 1839, and became the Cathedral for the newly-formed diocese of
Chatham in 1860. It was destroyed by fire in 1878.
The second church was a wooden structure
at the same site after the fire. It was only known as St. Michael's Pro-Cathedral,
as plans were then underway to erect the present-day church.
The building of the present church
began in 1903 and finished in 1922. It has a seating capacity for about
1,400 people. The overall length of the church is 250 feet.
The seat of the Diocese of Chatham
was moved to Bathurst
in 1938, and St. Michael's ceased to be the Cathedral. In 1970-71, the church
was renovated in conformation with the directives of post-Vatican II.
In 1988,
Pope John Paul II designated the
church a minor basilica, for the 150th
anniversary of the opening of the first parish church.
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Imposing Gothic architecture
of the Basilica |
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View from the back
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The nave in its Gothic splendour |
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The sanctuary
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The old high altar behind
the new free-standing altar |
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