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Basilica of the Immaculate Conception
Location	121 E. Duval St. Jacksonville, Florida
Country	United States
Denomination	Catholic Church
Website	www.icjax.org
History
Status	Basilica/Parish
Founded	1845
Dedication	Immaculate Conception
Dedicated	December 8, 1910
Architecture
Functional status	Active
Architect(s)	M. H. Hubbard
Style	Gothic Revival
Years built	1907–1910
Specifications
Number of spires	Two
Administration
Diocese	St. Augustine
Clergy
Bishop(s)	Most Rev. Erik T. Pohlmeier
Pastor(s)	Very Rev. Jan Ligeza (as of July 1, 2024)
Church of the Immaculate Conception
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
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Coordinates	30°19′44″N 81°39′19″W / 30.32889°N 81.65528°W / 30.32889; -81.65528
Area	less than one acre
Built by	Halsema-Woodcock Co.
MPS	Downtown Jacksonville MPS
NRHP reference No.	92001695
Added to NRHP	December 30, 1992

The Basilica of the Immaculate Conception is a historic Catholic church in Downtown Jacksonville, Florida, U.S. A parish church in the Diocese of St. Augustine, it represents Jacksonville's oldest Catholic congregation. The current building, dating to 1910, was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1992 as the Church of the Immaculate Conception, and was named a minor basilica in 2013. It is located at 121 East Duval Street; its current pastor is Father Jan Ligeza.

History

The congregation was established in about 1845 as a mission of the Catholic parish of Savannah in Georgia, and the first church building was constructed by 1847. Immaculate Conception was designated its own parish in 1854, but the original building was destroyed by Union forces during the American Civil War. A second building was planned shortly after Jacksonville became part of the newly created Catholic Diocese of St. Augustine in 1870, and was completed in 1874. This was destroyed along with most of downtown Jacksonville in the Great Fire of 1901.

The current building was designed in 1905 by architect M. H. Hubbard, also the designer of Bethel Baptist Institutional Church. Construction began in 1907 and completed on December 8, 1910, when the building was dedicated. The structure is an example of Late Gothic Revival architecture, considered one of the best such examples in Florida, featuring a cruciform floor plan, pointed arches, tracery on the windows, buttresses and pinnacles, high spires, and a high vault on the interior. The building's 178.5-foot (54.4 m) steeple, topped by a gold-plated cross, was the highest point in the city for three years until the Heard National Bank Building was finished in 1913.

In 1979, the church received solemn dedication, meaning the structure cannot be demolished willfully or converted to another purpose besides a church. On December 30, 1992, it was listed in the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. Beginning in 2005 the church sought designation as a minor basilica from the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments due to its history. The request was renewed in 2013 by Bishop Felipe de Jesús Estévez and granted; the designation was announced on August 15, 2013.

References

1. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
2. ^ Wood, Wayne (1992). Jacksonville's Architectural Heritage. University Press of Florida. ISBN 0-8130-0953-7.
3. "Jacksonville's Immaculate Conception named a Minor Basilica". The Florida Times-Union. August 15, 2013. Retrieved December 5, 2013.

External links

• Official website
• Florida's Office of Cultural and Historical Programs
• Duval County listings

v t e Roman Catholic Diocese of St. Augustine
Bishops	Augustin Verot John Moore William John Kenny Michael Joseph Curley Patrick Joseph Barry Joseph Patrick Hurley Paul Francis Tanner John J. Snyder Victor Galeone Felipe de Jesús Estévez Erik T. Pohlmeier
Churches	Cathedral Cathedral Basilica of St. Augustine Parishes Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, Jacksonville
Education	High schools Bishop John J. Snyder High School, Jacksonville Bishop Kenny High School, Jacksonville St. Francis High School, Gainesville St. Joseph Academy, St. Augustine Former college Saint Joseph College of Florida
Priests	Joseph Keith Symons
Miscellany	Florida Catholic
Catholicism portal

v t e U.S. National Register of Historic Places in Florida
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• Basilica churches in Florida
• Roman Catholic Diocese of Saint Augustine
• Churches in Jacksonville, Florida
• History of Jacksonville, Florida
• National Register of Historic Places in Jacksonville, Florida
• Churches on the National Register of Historic Places in Florida
• Downtown Jacksonville
• 1845 establishments in Florida
• Roman Catholic churches completed in 1910
• 20th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United States