Hi all,
Other than the cathedral of Washington, are
there other churches/cathedrals/Basilicas in USA that mimic the opulence of the churches in Europe?

Also, what about other impressive buildings in US? Are there any replicas of structures in europe?

Thanks!

I don't know about mimicry of the opulence but St. John the Divine comes to mind..

Grace Cathedral in San Francisco is modeled on Notre Dame in Paris, and also has a copy of the labyrinth at Chartres.

"Are there any replicas of structures in europe?" - Nashville, TN has a replica of the Parthenon.

"Grace Cathedral in San Francisco is modeled on Notre Dame in Paris, and also has a copy of the labyrinth at Chartres" - actually, there are 2 labyrinths, one in the yard, on the right side of the church, free to everybody. The one inside is behind a sign "$5 donation requested".

St. Patrick's Cathedral in NYC reminds me of a European church.

Buffalo, New York, has many many beautiful old Catholic churches modeled after ones in Europe. Quite a few will be closing in the near future due to a decline in attendance. It's really a shame. I wonder what will become of the lovely old buildings.

The only replicas you'll find in the US are either at Disney's Epcot or Las Vegas.

For Cathedrals, the Natinal Cathedral in Washington and St Pat's and St John the Divine - both in NYC are impressive. (There may be others - I'm not that familiar with US churches).

But if you're interested in architecture you should be looking for what is unique in the US - like skyscrapers in NYC (the Art Deco Chrysler biulding and the Empire State Building - or even the first skyscrpaer - the Flatiron Building in lower Manhattan) - or historic preservations like Grand Central Station.

There are also estate that rivall some of Europe's famous mansions - from Biltmore to the summer "cottages" of the 400 in Newport.

If you're asking for churches/cathedrals/basilicas that are built in European style, not ones that try to copy an exact building, there are many Catholic churches in practically every US city that fit the bill.

For instance, in Denver, one of my favorites is the Church of the Holy Ghost, a gorgeous Catholic church downtown. It has a history which I am not sure of, but believe its beautful marble interior was imported from Italy. It's stunning, especially during Christmas.
>-

Not the US but in Montreal.

Sacre Coeur in Paris and St Joseph's Shrine in Montreal. Similar shape and setting.

Notre Dame in Paris and Notre Dame in Montreal. Similar shape.

Hmmmm - replicas of structures in Europe The Las Vegas strip ....

The Basilica of the Assumption in Covington, Kentucky is a scale replica of Notre Dame in Paris and like the original, is still unfinished after more than 100 years.

The Cathédrale-Marie-du-Monde is a scale replica of St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican.

On the campus of Marquette University in Milwaukee is the Chapel of St. Joan of Arc. The chapel was originally known as the Chapel of St. Martin du Sayssuel and was built in a village south of Lyon around the 15th century. It was was abandoned for over 100 years and then shipped to the US and incorporated into a French-style chateau built on Long Island in 1927.
After the chateau burned in the early 1960s, it was donated to the University.

While many churches are designed in neo-gothic or romanesque revival, many others attempt to break with the European traditions completely.

Among the first was the Shrine of the Little Flower in Royal Oak, Michigan which was built in 1928 in the art deco style with a round sanctuary. The Air Force Academy Chapel in Colorado Springs is one of the more recent.

The Chapel at Duke University is an imposing neo-gothic structure.

Bryn Athyn Cathedral, in Bryn Athyn just outside of Philadelphia, was built using medieval techniques and is quite lovely; you can visit Glencairn Castle at the same time.

(and you could visit The Basilica of Sts. Peter and Paul while in Philadelphia...as well as Christ's Church and the Free Quaker Meeting House to round out your trip.)

Oh, and the Masonic Temple on Broad Street next to the also architecturally fascinating City Hall

The church of St Mary, Aldermanbury, designed by Christopher Wren in London, was moved to Fulton MO and reconstructed after being destroyed in WWII. It is not opulent but is very graceful and a lovely building. It is part of the Winston Churchill memorial museum at Westminster College.

St. Josaphat's Basilica in Milwaukee is beautiful. It was totally redone about 8 years ago - the paintings cleaned, the stained glass windows taken down and cleaned, etc.

The church was built with donations from the working class, mostly on the south side, many Polish. They took all of the materials from the Chicago post office after the great fire, put it on a barge and floated it up to Milwaukee. If you look closely you'll see things like a door knob that has the U.S. Postal Seal on it.

St. John's Cathedral is not as ornate, but it's beautiful too.

In the small north central Alabama town of Cullman, you will find Ave Maria Grotto.

Ave Maria Grotto has replicas of many of the worlds greatest churches and other buildings, in miniature.

http://www.avemariagrotto.com/home.asp