Our first landmark in western Kansas was a bit overhyped. Our second landmark was the famed “Cathedral of the Plains” which turned out not to be a cathedral at all – a designation that requires the church be the seat of a bishop. Nonetheless, the church is especially impressive when you consider that the town has only a population of 1,214 and has only barely doubled in the last century.
Saint Fidelis Catholic Church in Victoria, Kansas was designed by Pittsburg architect John T Comes and completed in 1911 using limestone native to the area (perhaps near Castle Rock?). It was built by the local German population as they outgrew the smaller church buildings in the area. A testament to its German roots is that the town was originally called Herzog but renamed Victoria in 1913.
We’ll have to return to Victoria some time in August to celebrate their annual Herzogfest.
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