St Peter's was consecrated on 4th October 1859. The new church consisted of an aisled nave, transepts, four-sided apse, various chapels and bell tower. The original organ was brought from Dalton Square, but, in 1888, Richard Leeming donated the present organ, built by Henry Ainscough of Preston; Paley and his new partner, Hubert James Austin, designed the organ loft over the west door. The sacristy was added in 1887, and the baptistery (pictured right), designed by Paley and Austin, was consecrated in August of 1901.

The stained glass was largely executed by Hardman's of Birmingham and Shrigley & Hunt of Lancaster; the glazing in the apse and the side chapels was in place by 1859. The Te Deum window (over the west door) and the rose window (in the south transept) were donated in 1888, and the St Peter windows (north aisle) were added in 1894-5. The original peal of eight bells was installed in 1879.  

Click here to continue reading - the next page covers the Golden Jubilee of St Peter's in 1909.
St Peter's: the first 50 years
St Peter's and presbytery under construction 1857-1858
Interior of St Peter's on its opening in 1859
St Peter's is raised to Cathedral status with the formation of the new diocese of Lancaster in 1924
The Cathedra (bishop's throne) in 1924
Alterations were made after the liturgical reforms of the 1970s
The Cathedral was reordered in 1995
Lancaster Cathedral 1859-2009
The gateway to the baptistery, added 1901
The baptistery today, as seen from the tower