Basilicas in the DC Metro Area

The Basilica of Saint Mary in Old Town Alexandria is the 84th Minor Basilica designated in the United States, the second in the State of Virginia, and the first in the Diocese of Arlington.  Other Minor Basilicas located among the neighboring Dioceses include:

• The Basilica National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Baltimore, Maryland (1937)
• The Basilica National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, Washington, DC (1990)
• The Basilica National Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, Emmitsburg, Maryland (1991)
• The Basilica of Saint Mary of the Immaculate Conception, Norfolk, Virginia (1991)

As of September 4, 2024, there are two other Basilicas besides St. Mary’s in Virginia: the Basilica of St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception in Norfolk, VA, which was named a Minor Basilica on December 8, 1991. The church was built in 1842, but was destroyed by fire in 1856 rendering the building dysfunctional. In 1858, the building was rebuilt and it was dedicated to Mary of the Immaculate Conception, and was the first church to bear the name after the dogma of the Immaculate Conception by Pope Pius IX. The other one is the Basilica of Saint Andrew in Roanoke, VA.