Fort Homer W. Hesterly Armory – Tampa FL

Description

“Fort Homer W. Hesterly is a historic building at 522 North Howard Avenue in the West Tampa section of Tampa, Florida. An art deco style building. It took ten years to find an occupant for the building, once a premiere venue. It is now home to the Tampa Jewish Community Center & Federation.^[1][2] Performers have included Elvis Presley, U.S. President John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Jr., Tom Jones, The Animals, James Brown, Buddy Holly, Andy Griffith, Pink Floyd and the Doors. Many graduations and weddings have been held at the Fort.^[3][4] The National Guard used the armory until 2005.^[4]

The armory was built in the 1930s under Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s New Deal and dedicated the day after the Pearl Harbor attack.”