St. Hyacinth's Cathedral, Saint-Hyacinthe, Roman Catholic cathedral in Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec, Canada

St. Hyacinth's Cathedral is a church building in Romanesque Revival style with two slender bell towers and red brick walls from the late 19th century. The structure displays classic architectural features of that period with carefully crafted details.

The Diocese of Saint-Hyacinthe was erected on 8 June 1852, and its first pro-cathedral, a red brick chapel near the Hôtel-Dieu, showed weakness during Bishop Jean-Charles Prince's funeral in 1860. Bishop Louis-Zéphirin Moreau funded the present cathedral from his predecessor's savings; architect Adolphe Lévesque built it in 1880 for $50,000. In 1908 Maurice Perrault and Albert Mesnard secured the foundation on the clay soil and replaced the square towers with two slender bell towers.

The cathedral is named for St. Hyacinth of Poland, a Dominican confessor who died in 1257. The Casavant Frères organ, opus 8, was inaugurated in 1885; the firm has been based in Saint-Hyacinthe since 1879. Painters Ozias Leduc and Joseph Uberti exhibited works here, and Leduc painted the Eternal Father in the choir vault.

The cathedral stands in the heart of Saint-Hyacinthe, and visitors enter through the forecourt repaired in 1998–1999. Look for the tomb of Bishop Louis-Zéphirin Moreau in the left transept. Dress modestly, since this is an active diocesan church, and check opening times before setting out.

The vault of the choir carries a painting of the Eternal Father by Ozias Leduc, the painter and decorator from Saint-Hilaire. Look up above the altar to find it. The cathedral also keeps a harmonium given in 1853 by Bishop Ignace Bourget of Montreal, used until the Casavant organ, opus 8, was installed in 1885.