Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament

Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament is downtown at 1017 11th St. (at K St.). A landmark that is part of a complex of historic buildings, this cathedral was built in the late 1880s and remained the largest Roman Catholic church west of the Mississippi River until 1966. The Italian Renaissance-style exterior is distinguished by a 218-foot-tall bell tower. The interior dome, 110 feet above the floor, features 16 decorative roundels—each 5 feet in diameter—that depict scenes based on scripture quotations. The massive stained-glass windows, restored wood pews, octagonal-shaped marble baptismal font, wall frescoes and 13-foot crucifix suspended above the altar are all noteworthy.