Melanie
Tell your husband (kindly) that my father was born in Alton and lived there until he was 13 years of age, but in all his years I always heard him refer to Sts Peter and Paul Catholic Church as "the Old Cathedral". I had to frequently ask as a young child which church he was referring to and after some years finally could remember. Those who grew up in its neighborhood or was a member of another Catholic church in Alton most likely referred ot it as "the Old Cathedral" all their lives and now their children, grandchildren, gr-grandchildren etc probably do the same thing. Of course it's somewhat shorter in name.
Debbi