St Paul's Cathedral is in a prominent location at the centre of Melbourne, on the eastern corner of Swanston and Flinders streets.

It is situated diagonally opposite Flinders Street station, which was the hub of 19th-century Melbourne and remains an important transport centre.

Continuing south down Swanston Street is Princes Bridge, which crosses the Yarra River, leading to St Kilda Road.

To fit the block, the cathedral is orientated in line with the central city grid, on the north-south axis, rather than facing east, the traditional direction.

The foundation stone was laid in 1880 by the Governor of Victoria, John, Earl of Hopetoun (later Marquess of Linlithgow), in the presence of the Rt Revd Charles Perry, Bishop of Melbourne.

The winner, announced in Feb 1925, was John Barr, of Sydney,[6] with a traditional Gothic Revival style, and the central spire much taller than the original design.

The central tower was named the Moorhouse Spire, and reached its full height of 312 ft (95m) in 1932,[7][8] and on 30 April 1933 a service of thanksgiving was held for its completion.

[2] The tower of St Paul's became the tallest structure in central Melbourne and dominated the city's skyline when viewed from the south.

While the towers were underway, additions were made to the Chapter House, enlarging the two storey section facing Flinders Street by one bay and one floor, in exactly matching stonework.

For about 30 years it was however somewhat dominated by the 16-storey Gas & Fuel buildings built along Flinders Street to the east in 1967, but demolished in 1997 to make way for Federation Square.

A public appeal, led by the then Dean of Melbourne, David Richardson, raised A$18 million to restore the spires and improve the interior of the building.

As part of the work, stone heads of former dean David Richardson and philanthropist Dame Elisabeth Murdoch, created by Melbourne sculptor Smiley Williams and carved by stonemason Daryl Gilbert, were added to the spires and new dalle de verre glass was created by Janusz and Magda Kuszbicki for the west doors and the "Eighth Day" lantern in the Moorhouse Tower.

A former director of music and organist, June Nixon, was awarded a Lambeth doctorate (DMus) by George Carey, Archbishop of Canterbury, in 1999.

In its restored state the organ has four manuals and pedals with 53 stops, all with electro-pneumatic action, and is housed in the cathedral's south transept behind newly stencilled façade pipes.

The Girls' and Boys' Voices now sing the same number of services per week, and take an equal share in the musical life of the cathedral.

St Paul's continues to be the choice venue for many state funerals and has played host to those of many prime ministers, premiers, governors, governors-general and other significant people.

On 28 November 1986, on his arrival in Melbourne, Pope John Paul II paid a visit to St Paul's Cathedral in recognition of the dialogue between the Anglican and Roman Catholic churches in Melbourne fostered by their respective former archbishops, the Most Reverend Sir Frank Woods (Anglican) and the Most Reverend Sir Frank Little (Roman Catholic).

A memorial chapel (pictured right) commemorates this historic occasion: only the third time in four centuries when a reigning Pope had made an official visit to an Anglican cathedral.