San José City Landmarks

The Cathedral Basilica of St. Joseph had four predecessors, two at the same location and one a few blocks away. The earliest church at the site was built in 1803 and was the first non-mission parish church in California. It was destroyed, along with the three replacement churches that followed over the decades, usually by earthquake or fire. The fifth church, completed in 1885, is the cathedral we see today. In 1990, the church was dedicated as the cathedral for the Diocese of San José. Located within the church, there is an Odell Tracker pipe organ that was built in 1886.