St. Joseph HS for Girls, Willoughby St.

I am saddened by the announcement that the long-serving St. Joseph's at Bridge and Willoughby Streets will close in 2020. Megan McGibney mentions that in an excellent survey article in Bklyn, linked HERE.

Merger of two parishes

Effective November 1, 2018, the parish of St. Teresa of Avila on Sterling Place was merged into the parish of the Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph on Pacific Street.  The decree of merger is linked HERE. The records of St. Teresa's parish will be moved to 856 Pacific Street.

St. Joseph Co-cathedral, Pacific Street

St. Joseph parish, Prospect Heights, is located at 856 Pacific Street, Brooklyn NY 11238, telephone 718-638-1071.  The website is linked here. The parish was established in 1850 by Archbishop John Hughes of New York.  The diocese of Brooklyn was created in late 1853.  "Diocese of Immigrants" shows an older church here with one steeple.  The cornerstone of this church is dated 1912.

The above interior photo was taken in early 2012, before the extensive renovations.

This banner appears adjacent to the apse, along the Dean Street side of the church.  Any photo may be enlarged by clicking on it.

The former school, built around 1920, is a senior residence at 683 Dean Street.  The church apse may be seen to the east.

This view southeast from Atlantic Avenue shows both the church and the school.  In 2012, construction continues on the 22-acre Atlantic Yards project, of which Vanderbilt Avenue (crossing this photo) is the eastern end.
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The bulletin reported attendance at three Sunday Masses on 8.14.2016 as about 375.

St. Joseph Patron of the Universal Church, Bushwick

The mailing address of St. Joseph's parish is 185 Suydam St., Brooklyn NY 11221, telephone 718-386-0175. Its website is linked HERE.
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The parish of St. Joseph, Patron of the Universal Church, is known colloquially as St. Joseph, Suydam Street, to distinguish it from other parishes named after St. Joseph. From its 1919 origins, the parish was principally Italian. Now it is administered by the Scalabrini Fathers, an Italian congregation founded to accompany emigrants to their new lands and help them there. In this instance, it is obvious that they now assist new immigrants from Latin America. Many of the Germans, Irish, and Italians of Bushwick have emigrated again, this time to suburbs.
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The school, named St. Frances Xavier Cabrini Catholic Academy, is at 181 Suydam St., Brooklyn NY 11221, telephone 748-386-9277. Adjacent to the church on Suydam Street, between Central Avenue and Wilson Avenue, this is north of the Central Avenue station of the M train. For decades, the Dominican Sisters staffed the parish school.
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Unfortunately, on February 8, 2019, the diocese announced that this school would be merged into St. Brigid Catholic Academy a mile east at Grove Street and St. Nicholas Avenue. Please see the official announcement HERE. There seem to be structural problems with the school on Suydam Street.
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NBC has a report HERE.

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Many thanks for the following comment received 6.17.2011:

I tried to leave a comment on your home page, but I was unsuccessful.

I've been searching for quite some time for a web site for St. Joe's and was happy to come across one tonight.

I am not sure if there is a historian or if anyone is interested in stories from years ago. If so, here is a brief family history.

My parents, Salvatore and Rose Marie Lardizzone, married in St. Joe's Church in April of 1950. My brother, sister, and I were baptized there. My brother and I received our Communion and Confirmation at St. Joe's. I attended school there from 1957 to Nov. '62, my brother from '59 to Nov. '62. My parents bought a house in L.I. in '62 and we moved from Evergreen Ave., Brooklyn. My sister was 4 at the time.

One of the nuns would put on an annual show for the Bishop when he visited. One year I was a clown in the chorus (4th grade) and the following year I was a ballerina (5th grade). If I remember correctly the nun's name was Sr. Maria Concetta. My brother & I were cadets and participated in the annual marching competition. There is really only one student I remember. Her name is Edith Ciro. I've tried to locate her on Facebook, but to no avail.

I became a special education teacher 11 years ago.

I am sure the school and parish has been through some changes since the 50s. If there is any information you could share about the school or the nuns, I would love to hear it. Some where in my files I still hold dear my St. Joseph Patron School report cards.

Thank you in advance,

Anna M. (Lardizzone) Kearney

mskearneysped(at)juno(dot)com