st. columba cathedral \ Details about the church

St. Columba Cathedral, 154 W. Wood St., Youngstown, is marking its 50th year in its current building. The Rev. John E. Keehner is rector, and the Rev. Edward Brienz, associate pastor. Sister Isabel Rudge is pastoral minister.

First church: There have been four St. Columba churches. The parish was first organized in 1847. The first church, a wooden structure, was built in 1853 on donated land at the corner of Wood and Hazel streets. Twenty families, all immigrants from Ireland, did the work. After the second church was built, the first was moved across the street as a residence for the pastor, the Rev. Eugene O’Callaghan.

Second church: The second church, a project of Father O’Callaghan, was begun about the time of the Civil War. A history of St. Columba noted that “According to accounts in The Vindicator, Father O’Callaghan supervised the church excavation himself.” After the men of the church finished 12-hour shifts in the mills, they would work on the new brick church. This second church was home to what is now known as the “silent bell,” which is next to the cathedral bell tower. The bell was rung for the first time at midnight Mass on Christmas Eve in 1867. In 1887, a new brick pastor’s residence was built and the frame rectory was torn down.

Third church: About 1887, property was bought at Elm and Wood streets for a new church, a Gothic structure of gray granite. The cathedral history again mentions The Vindicator story that focused on the laying of the cornerstone July 2, 1900. The newspaper called it “an epoch-making event in the history of Catholicity in the valley.” Bishop Ignatius Horstmann dedicated the church June 28, 1903. Throughout this history, priests of Irish lineage figure prominently as do Irish families in the parish. The third St. Columba, now a landmark in Youngstown, was struck by lightning Sept. 2. 1954, and then destroyed by fire.

Current church: The fourth and current St. Columba was built for $2,058,000. Simplicity of design is the hallmark of the new church, which had its first Mass on Nov. 9, 1958, and was dedicated April 12, 1959.

Cathedral details: The cathedral is contemporary in style and blends Mankato stone, steel and glass in a Romanesque style. Its ceiling is of acoustical mosaic plaster and is the background for a central chandelier of cast bronze. The outer doors of stainless steel is highlighted by 50 symbols including the seven sacraments, the Passion of Christ, Hebrew scriptures, the Lord, Blessed Mother and the church itself. The coat of arms of Bishop George V. Murry is above the doors. The cathedral seats about 800. Two tiers of stained-glass windows commemorate the 12 Apostles, St. Paul and the Blessed Virgin and the lower windows depict the Apostles Creed. Aluminum relief and bronze Stations of the Cross line the walls. Coats of arms of former bishops of the Youngstown diocese, Bishops James McFadden, Emmet M. Walsh, James W. Malone and Thomas J. Tobin, are in the Eucharistic Chapel. The sanctuary features a main altar of hand-chiseled travertine marble. The backdrop is a 60-foot mosaic of satin glass representing the ethnic roots and vocations of people in the diocese. Various saints represent the many ethnic groups in the diocese. The pipe organ has 39 ranks and 2,788 pipes, arranged symmetrically on either side of the gallery. The highlight is a 45-foot stained-glass window showing the life and legends of St. Columba, the church patron. An 11-foot statue of St. Columba, made of Mankato stone, welcomes worshippers and visitors to the church. Because Irish immigrants were the first members of the church, the Irish missionary saint was selected as the patron.