Pierre Laclede, co-founder of the city of St. Louis, set aside the land for the Church of St. Louis, which became the city's first parish in 1776. The first bishop of St. Louis, Joseph Rosati, oversaw construction of the present building, which was dedicated in 1834 and served as the diocese's cathedral until the "new cathedral" was raised in 1914. Pope John XXIII designated it a basilica in 1961.
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