The Manhattan Casino was the center of social activity for The Deuces neighborhood for nearly 40 years. Photo: Paul Barco/St. Petersburg Museum of History.
The Manhattan Casino, built in the mid 1920s by pioneering St. Petersburg businessman Elder Jordan in the neighborhood known as The Deuces, was a centerpiece of the city’s Black community for close to four decades.
It opened, in 1931, as the Jordan Dance Hall.
As a social center, the Manhattan was ground zero for weddings, tea parties, dances, talent shows, high school graduation ceremonies and regular Sunday gospel programs hosted by local celebrity Goldie Thompson, a radio DJ and empresario.
James Brown’s first appearance, 1956. He would return, as the star of the show, in ’58.
Famously, it was St. Petersburg’s stop on the so-called Chitlin’ Circuit. African American entertainers, most of them forbidden by the Jim Crow laws of the era from performing at “white” venues, played to capacity audiences.
READ MORE: Vintage St. Pete: The Manhattan Casino
Over the decades, the Manhattan Casino – which was not an actual casino and did not sell alcohol – played host to Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong, Ray Charles, B.B. King, Etta James, Sam Cooke, Little Richard, James Brown, Count Basie, Otis Redding and numerous others.
In its latest attempt to breathe some life back into the 12,000-square-foot building at 642 22nd Street S., the City of St. Petersburg has spent $4.8 million to renovate both the upstairs dance hall (now known as the Jordan Ballroom) and the downstairs event space (now known as the Legacy Room).
A ribbon-cutting has been announced for Saturday, Sept. 19 at 10 a.m.
The Jordan Ballroom, on the second floor, has been extensively renovated. Photo: City of St. Petersburg.
“We do not have an event venue on the South Side of this magnitude, and it’s needed,” St. Petersburg City Councilmember Corey Givens told the Catalyst in 2025, when renderings of the new facility were made public. “It’s going to be great for the local economy. I love the fact that we’re preserving our local heritage.”
Inside the 2026 Manhattan Casino. Photo: City of St. Petersburg.
The original Manhattan Casino fell on hard times after closing its doors in 1968. Purchased by the city in 2011, the venue went through different unsuccessful permutations, including a food hall.
“The community needs somewhere to remind them of their history, and the Manhattan does just that,” councilmember Deborah Figgs-Sanders said in 2025.
“It’s been a long time coming,” she said. “And The Deuces need that revitalization.”
Standard six-hour rentals start at $1,500 (Friday through Sunday) for the Legacy Room, and $2,500 for the Jordan Ballroom. The entire facility can be rented, for six hours, for $3,000 (Monday -Thursday) or $4,000 (Friday-Sunday).
Event packages are available, as are short-term (four-hour) rentals.
All information is available on the city’s Historic Manhattan Casino website.
This statue of St. Pete pioneer Elder Jordan Sr. was erected near the Manhattan Casino in 2021. Photo by Bill DeYoung.