Cathedral Church of St Mary

St Mary’s Catholic Cathedral was designed by Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin. Completed in 1844 it was designated the Cathedral Church for the diocese of Hexham and Newcastle in 1850.

In 2003 the underground crypt, unused since 1848 was located. William Riddell and William Fletcher, the first two priests to serve St Mary’s were buried here in the 1840’s both dying from the typhus epidemic. Following Father Fletcher’s burial in 1848 the crypt was sealed.