The Our Lady of the Annunciation Cathedral anchors Catarman's central plaza in the Spanish colonial manner that structured every Philippine town of any significance. The current building is a substantial masonry structure; the parish dates back to the Spanish period, when the Augustinian friars established the church as part of their mission network across the Visayas and Mindanao.
The interior is cool and quiet compared to the midday streets outside. Mass is said regularly, and the church is a working part of the community rather than a tourist attraction — which makes it more worth visiting. The plaza around it is where Catarman's daily life concentrates in the early morning and early evening, with vendors, schoolchildren, and the slow rhythms of provincial Philippine city life.