The cathedral as an ecclesiastical entity dates from 1867, when Jackson Kemper, the first bishop of Wisconsin, and his coadjutor William Armitage, were deeded the assets of a small mission church in downtown Milwaukee and renamed it "All Saints Pro-Cathedral.

[1][5] The cathedral complex, which includes the church, an attached guild hall and nearby bishop's manse, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and was designated a Milwaukee City Landmark in 1973.

The tower and steeple, approximately 200 feet tall, houses a bronze bell cast in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1867 one year before the church was built.

In the liturgical "east end" of the sanctuary, elevated on a triple-step dais of white marble, stands the high altar and triptych presented as a memorial gift to the cathedral in 1922 during the tenure of Dean Charles S. Hutchinson.

The figures on the predella (just below the center panel) are from the left: Saints Thomas Becket, Joan of Arc, St. Mary the Virgin, Francis of Assisi, and Demetrius of Alexandria.