US is protected by the Immaculate Conception

Dear friends,

the story of an important place of worship in Washington interests me.
In Washington, there is the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception .
The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception was commissioned by the fourth Rector of the Catholic University of America Thomas Joseph Shahan in 1913.
The sanctuary was dedicated to Immaculate Conception, which in 1847 he was chosen by Archbishop John Carroll of Baltimore as the patroness of the United States.
On 23 September 1920, the first stone was laid by the Archbishop of Baltimore Cardinal James Gibbons (1834-1921).
The work continued until 1929, when there was the Great Depression.
In 1953, the archbishop of Fort Wayne-South Bend John Francis Noll, and the archbishop of Washington, Cardinal Patrick Aloysius O 'Boyle (1896-1987) began to make a new fund-raising and the works were resumed.
November 20, 1959, the church was consecrated but the work ended in 1961.
St. John Paul II (May 18, 1920- April 2, 2005) elevated the church to the rank of minor basilica in 1990.
In 2008, Pope Benedict XVI gave to it the golden rose, papal an award which was also given to other important places of worship, such as the Basilica of the Holy House of Loreto.
The National Basilica of the Immaculate Conception is the tallest building in the American capital and is also the largest Catholic place of worship in the US.
It is worthy of the patroness of the United States, which gives them their protection.
Best regards.