On July 26, 1701, two days after his arrival, Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac, founder of Detroit, built a chapel dedicated to Ste. Anne, patron saint of New France. Father Francois Vaillant, a Jesuit, and Father Nicholas Constantine Delhalle, a Franciscan, were instrumental in the founding of the parish. The church records, which date from 1704, are now the second oldest continuous Roman Catholic parish records in the nation. From 1833 to 1844, Ste. Anne's was the Cathedral Church for the diocese of Michigan and the Northwest. The cornerstone for the present Gothic Revival building, the parish's eighth home was laid in 1886. The handsome structure, designed by parishioner Leon Coquard, displays the oldest stained glass in the city. In the Gabriel Richard Chapel, enclosed in a marble tomb, lie the remains of Father Gabriel Richard.
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