Prospect Park South - Definition and Overview

Prospect Park South is a community of Brooklyn, New York City.

It is bordered by Church Avenue on the north, the Brighton Beach Line of the New York Subway on the east, Beverley Road (sometimes spelled Beverly) on the south, and a line between Stratford Road and Coney Island Avenue on the west. It is considered part of the larger Flatbush community.

Prospect Park South was developed at the beginning of the 20th century as a community of large, individually designed homes. Its motto was rus in urb (country in the city). It was built to take advantage of the elevated train service on the Brighton Line that connected the community with Manhattan near City Hall, at the western end of the Brooklyn Bridge.

Though not on large properties by modern standards, a number of the homes would still be considered mansions and attracted prominent individuals of means. A Japanese-styled home on Buckingham Road was the residence of the Japanese ambassador to the United States, and the nearby Matts Mansion on the north side of Albemarle Road, bordering on the railway, but torn down after being in ruins for decades, was the home of the founder of the Ex-Lax company.