The construction of the Church of Notre-Dame was one of the boldest building projects of the nineteenth century. The first major example of Gothic Revival architecture in Canada, it was, at the time of its completion, the largest building in North America. Franklin Toker treats the church not only as a work of art but also as a historical document that reflected the social and nationalist aspirations of the community and marked a high point in the fascinating career of its architect, James O'Donnell.

Franklin Toker (1944-2021) was a professor and director of graduates studies in the Henry Clay Frick Department of Fine Arts, University of Pittsburgh.

"Franklin Toker's book undoubtedly will prove to be the definitive study of La Paroisse, the parish church of Montreal. From first inception to last coping-stone, no detail of its history has been overlooked. The scholarship is meticulous, the writing style is pleasant ... it is everything a book of its kind should be." Artscanada --- "Fascinating ... long overdue ... the very sort of informed, broad and yet specific interpretation of the individual monument which is needed in most areas of North American studies to place the work in context and give it definition ... Toker documents the remarkable harmony -- interracial and interdenominational -- surrounding the commission and construction of the church ... The range of plates is especially resourceful: architects' drawings, early prints and historical photographs, a model, and even an aerial view." Art Bulletin --- "Toker's thorough and well-documented history of the actual building campaign makes fascinating and lively reading. So too does the summary of the later additions and alterations." Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians