[1] The first Mass in Puerto Princesa, initially a barrio, was held at the site of the present cathedral on March 10, 1872, by the Augustinian Recollect Fray Ezequiél Moreno (now a saint), six days after the Spanish expedition arrived in the area.

[2] Subsequently, Moreno established the town and its parish mission under the patronage of the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary.

[3] During World War II, on December 14, 1944, the parish witnessed the Palawan massacre at the adjacent Plaza Cuartel where more or less 150 American soldiers were burned by the Imperial Japanese forces.

[4][5] The church has been rebuilt several times since its establishment, wherein the present structure took almost a century before it was completed in 1961 to serve as a cathedral of the then Palawan Apostolic Vicariate under the helm of Most Rev.

[3] At present, the cathedral and the Rizal Park at its front, is usually included in the itinerary of city tour packages around Puerto Princesa, including, but not limited to Iwahig Prison and Penal Farm, Palawan Heritage Center, Palawan Butterfly Ecological Garden and Tribal Village, and Palawan Wildlife Rescue and Conservation Center (Crocodile Farm).