Part of the Ecclesiastical Province of Brisbane, the region covered was initially administered by the Archdiocese of Sydney.

The gothic revival cathedral is located on a site bounded by Elizabeth, Charlotte and Edward Streets, in the Australian city of Brisbane.

On 26 December 1863, the Feast of St Stephen, Quinn laid the foundation stone for a grand cathedral designed by Benjamin Backhouse.

Backhouse's original design was changed and downsized numerous times over the course of the cathedral's completion, mainly for economic reasons.

In 1927, there was a plan to replace St Stephen's with a new Holy Name Cathedral to be built in Fortitude Valley, Brisbane.