2. Packer Mansion, Brooklyn Heights
Located right across from the Prentice Mansion was the brick mansion of John’s business partner, William Satterlee Packer. At 2 Grace Court, Packer built an impressive mansion for himself and his wife Harriet. Harriet had been the live-in governess for the Prentice children when she and William met. The mansion was designed by English architect Richard Upjohn and completed in 1850. William, unfortunately, did not get to enjoy his mansion for long. He died in December 1850 and Mrs. Packer continued to live in the home.
In a Brooklyn Daily Eagle article from 1916, the reporter notes the home’s “stone balcony of Gothic design” at the entrance, and the Grecian-style hand-painted ceiling of the drawing room, “but the most interesting thing in the house was the Italian marble mantel.” It was an imitation of a design by Dutch sculptor Bertel Thorwaldsen, which Mrs. Packer had custom-made in Italy. Another interesting feature of the home was the stained glass rotunda which sat below the attic. “At night gas jets would shed gleaming rays of light through the dome giving the hallways the appearance of a fairyland,” the reporter wrote.
The Packer mansion was a popular spot for visiting dignitaries, poets, musicians, and artists. In honor of her late husband, Mrs. Packer founded the Packer Collegiate Institute on Joralemon Street in 1854 after the original Brooklyn Female Academy (BFA) burned down.
The Packer family lived in the home until the early 1900s when it was purchased for $147,000. The mansion was demolished in 1916 and the site was temporarily used for tennis courts. In the 1920s, a massive apartment complex was built at the site, and remains today.
