Cathedral of Saint Paul overlook

St. Paul grew up as a river town on a bend of the Mississippi, and by the turn of the twentieth century it was a booming capital in need of a cathedral to match. The archbishop who drove the project chose a commanding site at the head of Summit Avenue and a French-trained architect to design it, and the great domed church rose over the following decades, its interior finished piece by piece over many years.

Modeled in spirit on the grand domed churches of Europe, the cathedral seats thousands beneath a soaring dome, with rose windows, chapels, and stonework meant to inspire. It remains the mother church of the Catholic archdiocese and an active place of worship, as well as a landmark that anchors the skyline and the identity of the city.

Long before the cathedral or the capitol, this bluff country along the Mississippi was Dakota homeland, part of Mni Sota Makoce, the land that gives Minnesota its name. The confluence of the Mississippi and Minnesota rivers just downstream, known to the Dakota as Bdote, is a place of deep spiritual meaning, understood by many as central to their creation and their history.

The city that became St. Paul rose on that homeland after treaties in the eighteen hundreds transferred the land and pushed most Dakota bands west, and the US-Dakota War of 1862 and the harsh exile that followed marked the people of this river deeply. The Dakota remain a living presence in Minnesota, and the ground beneath the capital carries a history far older than its grand buildings.

Behind the cathedral stretches Summit Avenue, a long boulevard of stone and brick mansions built by the lumber, railroad, and milling fortunes of St. Paul's boom years. It is often called one of the finest surviving Victorian-era residential streets in America, lined with old trees and grand homes, including the railroad baron James J. Hill's mansion and a house where the writer F. Scott Fitzgerald lived as a young man.

From the cathedral steps the whole city opens up, downtown towers, the river beyond, and the capitol dome gleaming to the north. The overlook is a favorite spot to take in St. Paul, especially in the low golden light of morning and evening, when the stone of the cathedral and the streets below warm to the sun.

The cathedral and its overlook are worth a visit in any season, though the exposed hilltop feels every change in the weather. Summer brings warm evenings and long light over the city, and the grounds and Summit Avenue are pleasant to stroll, while fall lights the boulevard's old trees in color.

Winter can be sharp and windy on the hill, but the cathedral against snow and a cold blue sky is a memorable sight, and holiday services fill the great church with music and light. Spring greens the avenue and softens the light, a fine time to walk the historic street and take in the view from the steps.

The closest Boutel™ stays, so you can turn this stop into an overnight. Each is an independently owned, editorially selected place to stay.