DALLAS - The Cathedral Santuario de Guadalupe is located in the Dallas Arts District. The impressive Roman Catholic building was built in the High Victorian Gothic style. The church was formally dedicated on October 26, 1902 by Bishop Edward Dunne. Originally the cathedral was known as the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, but in 1977 it was renamed the Catheral Santuario de Guadalupe (the Cathedral Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe). It is one of two cathedrals in the United States to honour Our Lady of Guadalupe, the patroness of the Americas.

The cathedral was constructed out of red brick and limestone and features many beautiful stained glass windows. Its neighbours are the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center and the Dallas Museum of Art. A bell tower and a second smaller tower on the west side of the church were part of the original 1898 design by architect Nicholas Clayton, but due to a lack of money at the time, none of them was realized. Instead the cathedral was left with stunted towers, barely rising above the roof line.

SMALL SPIRE AND STEEPLE WITH BELLS
Fortunately, as part of the Centenary Observance, a campaign was launched to raise new funds in order to complete the Cathedral. The building of the two steeples, a high one for the carillon and a smaller spire, started in 2004. Construction crews first had to strengthen the original tower frame and also needed to add more steel to support the bells of the new carillon and the playing room. So after more than a century the cathedral has at last its long- anticipated steeples. The finished bell tower soars 224 feet into the Dallas skyline.

All 49 bells were cast in 2004 by Royal Eijsbouts of The Netherlands. They were shipped to Houston in January and later on transported to Dallas on a truck. In celebration of the bells' arrival, Bishop Charles Grahmann blessed them in a special ceremony on March 1, 2005. The bells were a gift of James M. Moroney Jr. and his wife Lynn. The pitch of the heaviest bell is A0# and is connected to the Bflat making it a concert pitch instrument. Royal Eijsbouts installed the instrument in 2005 and also supplied the playing and practice keyboards (North American standard).

INSCRIPTIONS
The larger bells feature several inscriptions. On the top of the bell is "Eijsbouts Astensis me fecit ANNO MMIV", referring to the bell-founder and the year 2004. At the center of larger bells is the diocesan crest with underneath the inscription: "Most Rev. Charles V. Grahmann" and "Bishop of Dallas".

On September 11, 2005, the new carillon sounded officially for the first time, signaling the completion of a 107-year-old architectural plan. The grandson and great-grandson of architect Clayton, who is regarded as the premier architect of 19th-century Texas, were both present at the dedication. The inaugural concert was played bij Gert Oldenbeuving who also consulted on the design and installation of the carillon. Carol Anne Taylor is the new resident carillonneur.