The Cathedral was started in 1926, and the original plans called for a very large gothic-style cathedral. Construction was begun when the Great Depression hit, and the economic downturn of the country caused the building plans to be massively curtailed. The existing building is, essentially, only the crossing of the original cruciform cathedral plans. In 1941, the vestry, unable to keep up on the mortgage, closed the building. During World War II it was used by the Army as a training site for artillery. The building was back in use as a house of worship by the end of the War, and on Palm Sunday, 1947, the mortgage was ceremonially burned.