Cathedral Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi

Archbishop Lamy broke ground on this Romanesque Revival cathedral in 1869, importing French architects and Italian stonemasons to build something that would stand in stark contrast to the adobe city around it. The yellow limestone came from quarries near present-day Lamy, New Mexico. Construction wrapped around the existing adobe church — demolishing it only once the new walls were complete — and the cathedral was dedicated in 1887. Pope Benedict XVI elevated it to a minor basilica in 2005. It remains the mother church of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe.