The Florida Theater- 710 Franklin Street

The Florida Theater 710 Franklin St

The Entrance to the Florida Theatre. 1941. Robertson and Fresh. Courtesy of the USF Digital Collection

The Florida Theater opened as the Franklin Theater in 1924 in the heart of downtown Tampa's retail section. In 1938, it was renamed the Florida Theater and stood across the street from its much fancier neighbor, the Tampa Theatre.

The theater changed ownership several times and suffered the impact of the loss of retail downtown starting in the 1950s. It finally closed in the early 1970s and was demolished later that decade. The TECO headquarters now sits where the theater, O Falks Department Store, and Citizen’s Bank once stood.

The Florida Theater was across Franklin St. from the Tampa Theater.

Franklin Street with Christmas decorations, looking north from Zack Street. 1952 Burgert Brothers Courtesy of the Hillsborough County Library

Crowd Outside of the Florida Theatre, 1938. Robertson and Fresh. Courtesy of the USF Digital Collection

1927-View of Franklin Street (600-700 blocks), looking south from Polk Street. [with o.Falks Department Store and the Franklin Theater- before it changed to the Florida Theatre. 1927. Burgert Brothers. Courtesy of the Hillsborough County Library