Dahlgren Chapel of the Sacred Heart explained

Denomination:Roman Catholic
Church Name:Dahlgren Chapel of the Sacred Heart
Imagealt:A frontal view of the red, brick edifice of the chapel. In front is a brick quadrangle with some snow on the ground, all centered between two trees in the foreground.
Coordinates:38.9073°N -77.0736°W
Location:Dahlgren Quadrangle,
Old N. Way,
Georgetown University,
Washington, D.C., U.S.
Religious Institute:Society of Jesus
Dedication:Sacred Heart
Consecration Year:1893
Status:Chapel
Functional Status:Active
Style:Gothic Revival
Groundbreaking:1892
Year Completed:1893
Capacity:275
Materials:Brick
Bells:1
Parish:Holy Trinity
Archdiocese:Archdiocese of Washington
Embedded:
Embed:yes
Nocat:yes
Nrhp Type:nhldcp
Partof Refnum:67000025
Designated Nrhp Type:May 28, 1967
Designated Other1:DCIHS
Designated Other1 Abbr:DCIHS
Designated Other1 Date:November 8, 1964

Dahlgren Chapel of the Sacred Heart, often shortened to Dahlgren Chapel, is a Roman Catholic chapel located in Dahlgren Quadrangle on the main campus of Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. The chapel was built in 1893, and is located in the historic center of the campus.

The chapel falls within the territorial jurisdiction of the Archdiocese of Washington and is administered by Jesuits. It is a part of the Parish of the Holy Trinity.[1]

Located in the Georgetown neighborhood, the chapel is a contributing property of the Georgetown Historic District and is listed on the District of Columbia Inventory of Historic Sites.[2]

History

Construction

Construction on Dahlgren Chapel began in 1892. Built with red brick, the chapel was the first building on Georgetown University's campus to be funded entirely by external philanthropy and the first to be named after a non-Jesuit.[3] Elizabeth Wharton Drexel, spouse of Georgetown undergraduate, graduate, and law school alumnus John Vinton Dahlgren, whose father was Rear Admiral John Dahlgren, donated $10,000 for its construction as a memorial to their first son, Joseph Drexel Dahlgren, who died at the age of one year in 1891.

Drexel took a personal interest in overseeing the fabrication of the stained glass windows, which were designed by Franz Mayer of Munich.[4] The windows depict sixteen unique scenes of Jesus, the Virgin Mary, and several saints including Joan of Arc and Ignatius of Loyola.[5] [6] At the laying of the cornerstone, an address was given by James Gibbons, the Archbishop of Baltimore.[7]

Construction of the roughly neo-Gothic building was completed in 1893, and dedication of the Sacred Heart of Jesus occurred that same year. At the time of its completion, Dahlgren Chapel was positioned in the geographic center of campus, behind Healy Hall and adjacent to Old North, the oldest-standing building on campus. It now resides in the historic and administrative center of campus and, along with its surrounding buildings, encloses Dahlgren Quadrangle.[8] Prior to the opening of the new house of worship, students utilized a chapel on the second floor of Isaac Hawkins Hall, known then as Mulledy Hall.[9]

Beneath the altar of the chapel is the Dahlgren family crypt, where Elizabeth and John Dahlgren and their son, Joseph, are buried[10] The church bell atop the chapel was the bell of the Calvert mission in the Maryland colony.[11]

Historic cross

After years of disregard, a large iron cross was rediscovered in the basement of Healy Hall in 1989. The 2 ft by 4 ft cross, weighing 24 pounds, is horizontally inscribed with "ad perpetuam rei memoriam," which translates from Latin as "may this be eternally remembered," and vertically inscribed with "This cross is said to have been brought by the first settlers from England to St. Mary's." It is believed to have been carried by ship from England to St. Clement's Island and St. Mary's City of the Maryland Colony by the Jesuits, making it the first Roman Catholic Mass said in English-speaking North America. The cross is housed in Dahlgren Chapel.[12]

The cross was used in a Mass celebrated by Pope Francis at the Basilica of the National Shrine on September 23, 2015, when he visited Washington, D.C., his first Mass in the United States as Pope.[13] [14]

The cross was displayed in an exhibition of the Smithsonian Institution at the National Museum of American History for one year in 2017.[15]

Though weddings in the chapel were suspended by the archdiocese in the 1990s, the chapel is now a popular venue for weddings of Georgetown alumni.[16]

21st century

In 2011, Georgetown undertook an $8 million renovation of the chapel, the fourth in its history. Major structural renovations and interior refurbishments were made, including a reinforcement of the foundation,[17] and the stained glass windows were removed, re-leaded, and re-installed.[18] A new pipe organ was installed during the renovation.[19] [20] The building had previously been renovated in 1976 and 1990. Following its most recent renovation, the chapel can seat 275 people.[21]

In 2013, the chapel was vandalized, which resulted in damage to furniture and a processional cross. An investigation concluded the damage was not motivated by religious desecration.[22]

In popular culture

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Sacramental Records. Holy Trinity Catholic Church. https://web.archive.org/web/20161104015650/https://trinity.org/sacraments-rites/sacramental-records/. 4 November 2016. live. 30 July 2018.
  2. Web site: District of Columbia Inventory of Historic Sites. District of Columbia Office of Planning. https://web.archive.org/web/20170926235646/https://planning.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/op/publication/attachments/New%20Inventory%20Sep%202004%2003%2011.pdf. 26 September 2017. live. 30 July 2018.
  3. Book: McFadden, William C.. Georgetown at Two Hundred: Faculty Reflections on the University's Future. Georgetown University Press. 1990. 087840502X. Washington, D.C.. 342. Google Books.
  4. Web site: Dahlgren Chapel of the Sacred Heart & Dahlgren Quadrangle. December 12, 2014. Silman. https://web.archive.org/web/20160527171253/http://www.silman.com/projects/religious/georgetown-university-dahlgren-chapel-quadrangle/. May 27, 2016. live. October 1, 2018.
  5. Web site: Laying the foundations: The story of Georgetown's architecture. Tanaka. Julia. February 6, 2014. The Georgetown Voice. https://web.archive.org/web/20160304041317/http://georgetownvoice.com/2014/02/06/laying-foundations-story-georgetowns-architecture/. 4 March 2016. live. 11 August 2015.
  6. Web site: Dahlgren Undergoes Restoration. 26 January 2012. Georgetown University. https://web.archive.org/web/20130508162338/https://www.georgetown.edu/news/dahlgren-chapel-restoration.html. 8 May 2013. live. 31 July 2018.
  7. Book: Visiting Georgetown University in Mid-Twentieth Century. Georgetown University. 7. https://web.archive.org/web/20180409203222/https://repository.library.georgetown.edu/bitstream/handle/10822/1045139/Visiting_GU_Information_desk_iii.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y. 9 April 2018. live.
  8. Web site: A Portrait Restored. Georgetown University Library. https://web.archive.org/web/20100711064206/https://www.library.georgetown.edu/vault/portrait-restored. 11 July 2010. live. 11 August 2015.
  9. Web site: The Quadrangle: A history in fifty images. Georgetown University Library. https://web.archive.org/web/20180710194801/https://www.library.georgetown.edu/exhibition/quadrangle-history-fifty-images. 10 July 2018. live. 31 July 2018.
  10. News: Hidden In Plain Sight: Accessing The University's Artifacts. Greene. Ryan. 19 February 2015. The Georgetown Voice. 13 March 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20160306020849/http://georgetownvoice.com/2015/02/19/hidden-in-plain-sight-accessing-the-universitys-artifacts/. 6 March 2016. live. Chatlani. Shalina.
  11. Web site: Photo of Dahlgren Chapel. Wallace. Natasha. 1 April 2003. John Singer Sargent Virtual Gallery. https://web.archive.org/web/20120321050201/http://jssgallery.org/Other_Artists/Boldini_Giovanni/Photos/Dahlgren_Chapel.htm. 21 March 2012. live. 13 March 2018.
  12. Web site: Discovering a Piece of History on Campus. Cona. Louis. March 20, 2015. The Hoya. https://web.archive.org/web/20170620101618/http://www.thehoya.com/discovering-pieces-of-history-on-campus/. 20 June 2017. live. 11 August 2015.
  13. Web site: Pope Francis' Mass Include Georgetown's 17th-Century Iron Cross. georgetown.edu. September 14, 2015 . Georgetown University. https://web.archive.org/web/20170702154207/https://www.georgetown.edu/iron-cross-at-first-pope-francis-mass-in-us. 2 July 2017. live. 16 September 2015.
  14. Web site: Mcdonald . Thomas L. . The Fascinating Story of a Historic Cross at Papal Mass in DC . patheos.com . Patheos . 16 September 2015 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20150928232653/http://www.patheos.com/blogs/godandthemachine/2015/09/the-fascinating-story-of-a-historic-cross-at-papal-mass-in-dc/ . 28 September 2015 .
  15. Web site: Georgetown's Iron Cross to Become Part of Smithsonian Exhibition. June 23, 2017. Georgetown University. https://web.archive.org/web/20170731231733/https://www.georgetown.edu/news/Georgetown-iron-cross-part-of-Smithsonian-exhibit. 31 July 2017. live. 23 July 2017.
  16. News: Georgetown Love Stories Unfold at Dahlgren. Cooke. Molly. February 15, 2018. The Hoya. October 1, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180615133041/http://www.thehoya.com/georgetown-love-stories-unfold-dahlgren/. June 15, 2018. live.
  17. News: Chapel Revamp Ongoing. Albornoz. Bebe. 7 September 2012. The Hoya. 31 July 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20170620003545/http://www.thehoya.com/chapel-revamp-ongoing/. 20 June 2017. live.
  18. Web site: Restoring Dahlgren Chapel. The Campaign for Georgetown: For Generations to Come. https://web.archive.org/web/20160305014252/http://campaign.georgetown.edu/dahlgren.html. 5 March 2016. dead. 11 August 2015.
  19. Web site: OrganID 53863. Organ Historical Society Organ Database. https://web.archive.org/web/20180313214342/https://pipeorgandatabase.org/OrganDetails.php?OrganID=53863. 13 March 2018. live. 13 March 2018.
  20. Web site: Dahlgren Chapel receiving new organ as part of renovation. Echarte. Isabel. January 24, 2014. Vox Populi. The Georgetown Voice. https://web.archive.org/web/20140129135606/http://blog.georgetownvoice.com/2014/01/24/dahlgren-chapel-receiving-new-organ-as-part-of-renovation/. 29 January 2014. live. 11 August 2015.
  21. News: Vandals damage Georgetown's Dahlgren Chapel, campus officials say. Weil. Martin. 14 April 2013. The Washington Post. 30 July 2018.
  22. News: Vandals damage Georgetown's Dahlgren Chapel, campus officials say. Weil. Martin. April 14, 2013. The Washington Post. October 1, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20181001225755/https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/vandals-damage-georgetowns-dahlgren-chapel-campus-officials-say/2013/04/14/2698de7c-a575-11e2-a8e2-5b98cb59187f_story.html. October 1, 2018. live.
  23. News: 'The Exorcist' is forever a spooky part of DC. Petenbrink. Troy. October 11, 2014. AXS TV. October 1, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20161026125614/http://www.axs.com/the-exorcist-is-forever-a-spooky-part-of-dc-23025. October 26, 2016. live.

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