St Mary’s Cathedral Perth

On 8 February 1863, Bishop Salvado laid the foundation stone of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary on a reserve of land known as Victoria Square. Fr Martin Griver, later Bishop of Perth, was responsible for the building. The architect and master mason was Joseph Ascione. The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary was blessed and opened on 29 January 1865. Two porches and the spire were added by Bishop Matthew Gibney in 1905.

Bishop Patrick Clune CSsR, first Archbishop of Perth, set out to build a new Cathedral, the foundation stone of which was laid on 25 April 1926. It was opened at the height of the “Great Depression” on 4 May 1930. The original plan envisaged the present apse and transepts with a nave extending towards Murray Street. The intention was to finish it in Gothic style. Due to the events of the Depression, World War Two and its aftermath, no funds were ever available for this undertaking. For years, the iron bars stood out ready to link the two parts of the Cathedral.

On 27 August 2006, the Cathedral was closed by Archbishop Barry James Hickey, fifth Archbishop of Perth, for construction to begin on the conservation and completion of the Cathedral. The Cathedral was reopened on 8 December 2009, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary which is the Patronal Feast of the Cathedral.