Jazz great Louis Armstrong performed three times at St. Petersburg’s Manhattan Casino, in 1940, 1946 and 1957. He was a major star by the time of that third appearance, but Armstrong – even though he’d already headlined the much larger Coliseum downtown – insisted on returning to the Manhattan, located in The Deuces, the centerpiece of the city’s African American community.
According to 1957 news reports, “Satchmo” and his band played for four hours.
A mural painted in 2014 on the north-facing wall of 922 22nd Street depicted the iconic trumpet player as he might have appeared on the neighborhood stage (the Manhattan Casino is at No. 642, just up the street). The mural was created by Tampa artist Herbert Davis.
Tuesday morning, a small work crew whitewashed the Armstrong mural, leaving no trace of Davis’ work. No explanation was offered. Residents immediately took to social media to express their displeasure that local history could be so “disrespected.”…