Pratt Institute - Prattonia Yearbook (Brooklyn, NY)

Page 10 text:

bove her neigh- bors Shop and mart = and Stands the home of stu- dent la- bors, No- blest — of them all! BO Fes ee SS Ss, Oe JE (ON) SOUS) CG AE? LR AEE A ES ae A SE eee: At each meet- ing, give her greet- ing, Raise the proud sa- lute! RS Gn ee eS a a S| SO hoe eee ee teas Sa | STS ee Le ee | ee Gey ee ee Hail to thee, our Al- ma Ma- ter, Hail, Pratt In- sti- tute! Round the world the chain extending In our hearts her precepts linger, Each to other binds, Her example gleams, All her honored name defending, Showing with unerring fingers Hearts and hands and minds. Guerdon of our dreams. At our meeting, give her greeting, At our meeting, for our greeting, Raise the proud salute! Bring her noble fruit, Hail to thee, our Alma Mater, Hail to thee, our Alma Mater, Hail, Pratt Institute! Hail, Pratt Institute!

Page 9 text:

The Library The Library, founded in 1888 by Charles Pratt as a public library, cost close to a million dollars. It was the first public library in Brooklyn and the first library anywhere to have a children’s room. Two years later, Pratt established what is now the oldest library school in existence. Looking at the library now, it’s interesting to read a description of how it appeared then. The floors of the stack room were glass slabs set in a white iron framework. The book- shelves were dark oak and sup- ported by iron uprights and brackets which were copper electroplated. The building’s interior was de- fern Ip) ann iM NTU} hua Aah signed by the Tiffany Glass and De- corating Co. The walls and ceilings were of soft yellows, creams, buffs, terra-cottas, and yellow-greens. Siena marble columns and pilasters in the entrance hall complimented the “electric lights of latest device.” The library must have been some- thing else! Well, even if it doesn’t glitter and gleam like it used to, it’s still something else: A handy source of information and a quiet place to escape for a while. The Pratt House The mansion at 229 Clinton Av- enue was built around 1890 and was at one time, the residence of the second president of the Institue, Frederick B. Pratt. He and his wife, Caroline Ladd, lived there until his death in 1945. It was a magnificent home! Rich, dark, oak panels and a fab- ulous staircase were the beginnings of a lavish interior. Other features included a handsome library, and a reception hall which took up almost a third of the spacious floor. The outside was distinguished by a vine-covered portico, graced with sculpted columns in the form of draped ladies and gentlemen. Students began to enjoy the comforts of Pratt House in 1945, when the mansion was given to the Institute and converted into a clubhouse and a dormitory for freshman women. It now serves as a residence for male graduate or in- ternational students.

Page 11 text:

Library, 4 1889 ; . 7 | The aren, 1971 Cafeteria, c. 1901 The PI Shop, 1975 The Gymnasium, c. 1907 The Gym, 1975 Main Building, c. 1887