[2] The earliest immigrants to Philadelphia settled in Northern Liberties between Sixth and Seventh Streets, south of Girard Avenue.

Archbishop Ambrose Senyshyn chose to build on the property where the old church stood hoping that the East Poplar Redevelopment Area would rejuvenate the neighborhood.

[3] The cornerstone was laid on October 16, 1966 and it contains a stone from St. Peter's tomb that Pope Paul VI gave to Archbishop Senyshyn.

The cathedral was designed by Julian K. Jastremsky in the Byzantine Revival style and loosely inspired by the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul.

They depict the coat of arms of the regions of Ukraine, the popes, the bishops and the religious orders that contributed to the growth of the Ukrainian Catholic church in the United States.