Dahlgren Iron Cross

The Dahlgren Cross, named after the church it resides in, is no ordinary item. For one, this nearly 25-pound cross is fabricated from metal and measures 2 feet by 4 feet. It is also reported to have been constructed around the year 1634 with materials from the ships the Ark and the Dove, which carried settlers from England to the New World. It is said to have been used by Jesuit priests at the first Roman Catholic mass given in English in the newly founded colonies in Maryland, at St. Mary’s City, St. Clement’s Island.

The cross arrived in Georgetown sometime toward the end of the 19th century. After nearly another century of neglect, it was recovered from a basement located somewhere in Healy Hall on the Georgetown University campus. The cross is inscribed with a saying in Latin: ad perpetuam rei memoriam, which translates to: “May this be eternally remembered.”

The Dahlgren Cross was used in the first mass given in America by Pope Francis in September 2015. It also participated in a year-long exhibition entitled “Religion in Early America” at the Smithsonian Institute beginning in 2017.