Founders Hall • SJC Brooklyn
The Diocese of Brooklyn purchased the former Pratt mansion at 232 Clinton Ave. in 1936 and converted it into a convent for the Sister faculty at St. Joseph’s College. Called Founders Hall in honor of the College’s founders – the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph – the surrounding gardens became the college campus, complete with a sunken archery range and a softball field that could be flooded in the winter months for ice skating. The first outdoor commencement was held on a temporary stage on the grounds in 1938.