THE CATHEDRAL
The Holy Rosary Cathedral is the mother church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Vancouver. Completed in 1900, the church is built in the traditional style of an early French Gothic cathedral with two steeples of similar design but uneven height. The stone building replaced a wooden church which had been on the site since 1887.
Cathedral Contact Information:
Telephone: +1 604-682-6774
Website: holyrosarycathedral.org
CATHEDRAL BELLS
There are 8 bells in the tower. Bells 1 to 5 were cast in 1906 by Llewellins & James at the Castle Green Foundry in Bristol, England. Bells 6 to 8 were cast in 1900 by the G & F Paccard Foundry in Annecy le Vieux, Savoie, France. The tenor weighs approximately 16 cwt. Read more about the Bells of Holy Rosary Cathedral.
CATHEDRAL LOCATION
The Holy Rosary Cathedral is located at the corner of Dunsmuir Street with Richards Street in the downtown core of the city within easy walking distance of most downtown hotels and attractions.
Click here for a map of the location of the Cathedral, as well as details on nearby parkades if coming by car as well public transit.
ACCESS TO THE TOWER
Access to the tower is through the narthex of the cathedral. The entrance doorway to the stairs leading up to the tower is in the alcove to the left of the kiosk, with one step up to the entrance landing. There are 3 flights of stairs up to the tower, with 13 standard steps to the first landing, 7 standard steps to the choir loft level and 20 narrow tread steep steps up to the trap door access into the bell ringing chamber. Mind your head as you come up through the trap door.
The door to the stairway is typically locked and a key pad code is required. If you do not know the code, you will need to ring the doorbell that sounds in the ringing chamber. The doorbell, a white rectangle with a circular button, is found outside of the cathedral by the east entrance door, (to the left as you are facing the cathedral) located high on the left side. If the bells are ringing, please wait until they stop before firmly pressing the white button once. Someone will come down to let you into the narthex via the east entrance doors as soon as possible.
In the event that the cathedral doors are locked, which is the case after 6:00 pm on practice nights, as well as at other times during weekdays and weekends, you will need to ring the doorbell firmly once, when the bells are silent, and someone will come down to let you in as soon as possible, typically within a few minutes. You will be warmly welcomed.