Harold Whitehouse, renowned for his cathedrals in other western cities, designed the Cathedral, for which the cornerstone was laid on September 10, 1931 and, $90,000 later, was consecrated on Easter, March 27, 1932. Not particularly large or extravagant as Cathedrals go, it is, nonetheless an attractive building, faced with rough cut native granite. Considering that the Cathedral was built and paid for at the beginning of the "Great Depression", it was quite a feat for the diocese to have built any sort of Cathedral at that time.
The long, narrow sanctuary has transepts extending from each side, a larger one to the north and a smaller one to the south. Down each side of the sanctuary are Gothic arched windows, each filled with beautiful stained glass, and each one dedicated to a past parishioner or a past Rector. This window was dedicated to Jessie Dean Sieben. Born Jessie Dean Green, Jessie was the wife of Henry Sieben, born in Laubenheim, Germany (February 1, 1847 - November 26, 1937).
Jessie seems to have been the second wife of Henry Sieben, pioneer stockgrower, one of the state's most successful sheep ranchers and co-founder of the Montana Woolgrowers Association. It is assumed that Henry's first wife, Alberta Gordon, died at a relatively young age, as Henry's daughter,
Bernice Sieben, is listed in a genealogy as Jessie's stepdaughter. Neither birth nor death dates for Jessie are known to the writer.
IN LOVING MEMORY OF
JESSIE DEAN SIEBEN