St. Joseph's Preparatory School was founded in 1851 in Philadelphia. The school grew out of a small church created by Rev. Joseph Greaton, S.J. in center city in 1733. As the city and the parish grew over time, the Jesuits of the Maryland Province decided to create St. Joseph's College with a preparatory department to serve the public. The college was first located in Willings Alley at the site of Fr. Greaton's residence, but in the late 1800s the school moved to Girard Avenue. The new location allowed for the building of a new school and a new church, the Gesu. Soon after the move, St. Joseph's College moved to City Line Avenue leaving all the buildings for St. Joseph's Preparatory School. The school continued to grow and change over the next seventy years until a devastating fire in January 1966 burned two-thirds of the school down. Sixteen months after the fire, The Prep was rebuilding again on Girard Avenue. The traditions of The Prep still continue today as the school, the faculty, and the student body continue to grow and change.