Tarlac Cathedral

The San Sebastian Cathedral Parish, commonly known as the Tarlac Cathedral, is a post-war, Neo-Gothic Roman Catholic church located in Brgy. Mabini, Tarlac City, Philippines. The cathedral, which was dedicated to Saint Sebastian in 1686, is the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Tarlac. A historical marker of the National Historical Commission of the Philippines was unveiled near the cathedral's entrance on July 15, 2022.

Parish history


The town of Tarlac was said to have been established in 1686 by priests assigned to Magalang, Pampanga. The town was managed by the Augustinians from Pampanga until in 1725, a petition was brought to the attention of the Father Provincial to separate Tarlac from its distant matrix. In 1727, the separation was fulfilled with Tarlac being declared an independent parish. In 1757, however, the parish of Tarlac was annexed back to Magalang for quite some time.

Architectural history


The first parochial building of Tarlac is attributed to Father Agustin Barriocanal in 1740. Later on, in 1872, a wood and stone church was erected by Father Baltasar Gamarra. Construction of the said structure lasted until 1875 by Father Tomas Fito and was completed by Father Fermin Sardon in 1890. The finished church was said to have been identical to the church of Concepcion. The church was completely destroyed during the war, in 1945. It was later rebuilt into the present-day church structure.