The Cathedral of the Plains - St. Fidelis Basilica
Since St. Fidelis is not the seat for a bishop, it is not a Cathedral. It received its nickname from William Jennings Bryan when he visited St. Fidelis in 1912. After several years of petition, St. Fidelis Catholic Church was declared a minor basilica as of February 21, 2014. The Cathedral of the Plains is the first basilica in Kansas and the 78th in the United States. The church now displays a tintinnabulum (bell) and an ombrellino (umbrella) in the sanctuary as symbols of the basilica's link to the pope. The official name is now The Basilica of St. Fidelis, but most people continue to call it the Cathedral of the Plains. Three previous churches served the community of predominately German immigrants, but the present church was begun in 1908 and completed in 1911. The exterior is constructed of large native limestone blocks weighing from 50 to 100 pounds each. The Romanesque design church contains German windows & works of art, Austrian hand carved stations of the cross, and Italian marble altar. The church is open to the public (free) from dawn to dusk and an audio tour is available. Stop by early on a Friday evening and you may be treated to the sounds of the Saint Fidelis organist rehearsing. Groups or individuals may arrange a guided tour by contacting the Parish Office at 785-735-2777. Sunday Masses are celebrated in Basilica of St. Fidelis at 5 PM on Saturday and 10 AM on Sundays. Daily Mass is celebrated at 7 PM on Monday and 6:45 AM on the other weekdays. Eight Wonders of Kansas In 2007, the Kansas Sampler Foundation selected the Cathedral of the Plains as one of the Eight Wonders of Kansas. Other sites selected as the Eight Wonders of Kansas include the Kansas Cosmosphere, Monument & Castle Rocks, Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve and the Eisenhower Presidential Library. On May 14, 1971, St. Fidelis Church was placed in the National Register of Historic Places.
S Basilica
of St. Fidelis web site Beautiful
& Historic Kansas Churches
copyright 2005-2025 by Keith Stokes |
The
"Cathedral
of the Plains" is Saint Fidelis Basilica in Victoria, Kansas.
It has seating for 1,100 people, which, at the time of it's dedication
in 1911, made it the largest church west of the Mississippi River. The
church is 220 feet long, 110 feet wide at the transepts and 75 feet at
the nave. Its ceiling is 44 feet above the ground and the towers are 141
feet tall.
