It is located on the Plaza Palmer in the center of town, and next to the Colegio Católico Notre Dame Elementary.

The patron saint of the church, as well as that of the city, is the Dulce Nombre de Jesús (Sweet Name of Jesus).

The cathedral was constructed where the old ermita (hermitage or rural chapel) of San Sebastián del Barrero used to be located.

The church was raised to the status of cathedral when the Roman Catholic Diocese of Caguas was created by Pope Paul VI in 1964.

Rodríguez, better known locally as "el beato Charlie", spent his life in the surrounding neighborhood and is a candidate for canonization, the only layman from Puerto Rico to be so honored by the Catholic Church, and the first such American to beatified.