Ritz-Carlton Atlantic City
A historic luxury hotel on Atlantic City's Boardwalk that later became a residential condominium building.
Last updated August 24, 2026
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Overview
Ritz-Carlton Atlantic City was a landmark luxury hotel at 199 South Iowa Avenue on the Boardwalk in Atlantic City, New Jersey. It opened on June 21, 1921, during the city's resort boom and the wider prosperity of the Roaring Twenties. Designed by New York architect Charles D. Wetmore and built by the Thompson-Starrett Company, the 18-story building had 131 feet of Boardwalk frontage and rose approximately 222 feet. Its construction cost $6.25 million, below the originally projected $8 million, making it one of the city's most ambitious hospitality projects. The property was conceived as an upscale resort hotel with an unusually elaborate set of amenities. Guest rooms included separate hot and cold fresh-water and salt-water faucets, while the building had an artesian well, landing pantries intended to accelerate room service, and special elevators with rubber-lined walls and cork flooring that allowed bathers to travel between the beach and their rooms without passing through the main lobby. Dining and entertainment spaces included the Ritz restaurant, the Trellis Room, the Ritz Grill outdoor terrace, a carousel-shaped bar, and the Maude Earl Room, a writing room containing rare and antique art. Although the hotel's dedication emphasized service to ordinary Americans without regard to race, religion, or politics, the Ritz-Carlton quickly developed a reputation as an address for affluent visitors and public figures. Its guests and performers included U.S. presidents Warren G. Harding, Calvin Coolidge, and Herbert Hoover; entertainers such as Eddie Cantor, Sophie Tucker, Paul Whiteman, Bing Crosby, Red Nichols, and Milton Berle; and prominent figures from New York political and entertainment circles. During Prohibition, Atlantic City political boss Enoch "Nucky" Johnson used suites at the Ritz and the nearby Ambassador Hotel for his activities. The hotel was also associated with the 1929 Atlantic City Conference, a meeting of organized-crime leaders hosted in the city. The property experienced financial and ownership changes during the twentieth century. Its owners defaulted on the mortgage during the Depression, and the hotel was reorganized through bankruptcy in 1937. During World War II, it was among Atlantic City hotels used as military barracks for soldiers in training and recuperation. It reopened after the war and changed hands several times, including purchases by J. Myer Schine, Harry L. Katz and Edward Margolin, and Sheraton Hotels. Sheraton briefly operated it as the Sheraton Ritz-Carlton after acquiring the building in 1958, investing in renovations before selling it approximately thirteen months later. The hotel became an apartment hotel in June 1969. In 1978, an investor group bought the building with the intention of restoring it as a hotel and adding a casino. That plan collapsed amid unfavorable publicity connecting the project to the Abscam investigation. In 1982, the building was converted into The Ritz Condominiums, containing 322 residences and six commercial suites. The re-established Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company paid the owners to discontinue use of the Ritz-Carlton name so that the property would not be confused with its contemporary hotel operations. The building has since functioned as a condominium property rather than as a Ritz-Carlton hotel. The building's historical profile was renewed by its association with the HBO series Boardwalk Empire, whose fictionalized depiction of Atlantic City's Nucky Thompson drew on local history and used a version of the Ritz-Carlton as a setting. In February 2011, the New Jersey State Historic Preservation Office awarded the building a certificate of eligibility for listing on the state and federal registers of historic places. The property is therefore best understood today as a historic Atlantic City building and former hotel, not as an operating Ritz-Carlton-branded hotel.
History
The Ritz-Carlton Atlantic City was developed during Atlantic City's early twentieth-century expansion as a major American seaside resort. The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company announced plans for an Atlantic City hotel in 1911. New York architect Charles D. Wetmore designed the building, and the Thompson-Starrett Company carried out construction. The completed structure opened on June 21, 1921, at the end of Iowa Avenue on the Boardwalk. It contained 18 stories, stood approximately 222 feet tall, and presented 131 feet of frontage to the Boardwalk. Construction cost $6.25 million, below the initial estimate of $8 million. The hotel was marketed and designed as a technically advanced luxury property. Guest rooms had hot and cold water from both fresh-water and salt-water systems. An artesian well supplied spring water, pantries were placed on each landing to make room service faster, and specially designed elevators had rubber-covered walls and cork floors so guests returning from the beach could avoid the public lobby. Its public areas included several restaurants, an outdoor ocean-facing dining terrace, a carousel-shaped bar, and the Maude Earl Room, a writing room furnished with rare and antique art. The property's social importance grew during the 1920s and 1930s. Its guests included presidents, entertainers, authors, political figures, and organized-crime figures. President Warren G. Harding addressed guests there in January 1922 using wireless radiophone technology. The hotel was also connected with Enoch "Nucky" Johnson, the Atlantic County treasurer and political power whose Prohibition-era activities later inspired the fictional Nucky Thompson in Boardwalk Empire. Johnson used suites at the Ritz-Carlton and the Ambassador Hotel for his business, and the 1929 Atlantic City Conference involving organized-crime leaders was hosted at the two hotels. The Great Depression brought severe financial pressure. The owners defaulted on the mortgage, and the hotel was reorganized in bankruptcy in 1937. During World War II, the building was used as military barracks, as were a number of other Atlantic City hotels. After the war, it returned to hospitality use and was purchased by J. Myer Schine in 1946. In 1952, Schine Hotels sold it to Harry L. Katz and Edward Margolin, owners of the nearby Ambassador Hotel. Sheraton Hotels acquired the property in January 1958 for $4 million, spent an additional $800,000 on renovations, and briefly used the name The Sheraton Ritz-Carlton. Sheraton sold it in February 1959 to The Ritz of Atlantic City Corporation. The building became an apartment hotel in June 1969. In 1978, a new investor group purchased it with plans for a hotel and casino redevelopment. The proposal became entangled in the Abscam political-corruption investigation. Publicity concerning discussions between Senator Harrison A. Williams and an undercover FBI agent contributed to the abandonment of the casino plan. The building was not redeveloped as the proposed hotel-casino complex. A major conversion followed in 1982. Approximately $25 million was invested to create 322 residences and six commercial suites. Some residences were intended for permanent occupancy and others for seasonal or vacation use. The newly re-established Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company paid the building's owners to stop using the Ritz-Carlton name, separating the historic property from the company's modern hotel portfolio. Since that conversion, the building has operated as The Ritz Condominiums rather than as a Ritz-Carlton hotel. The building later gained renewed public attention through Boardwalk Empire, the HBO series that fictionalized Atlantic City's Prohibition-era political and criminal world. The series used a fictionalized Ritz-Carlton setting for Nucky Thompson, while the historical Enoch Johnson had in fact occupied suites at the real hotel. In February 2011, the New Jersey State Historic Preservation Office granted the building a certificate of eligibility for state and federal historic-register listing. Its legacy consequently combines luxury-hotel history, Atlantic City architecture, Prohibition-era associations, twentieth-century adaptive reuse, and the continuing separation between the historic building and the current Ritz-Carlton hotel company.
- 2011
Historic-preservation eligibility
[1]The New Jersey State Historic Preservation Office issued a certificate of eligibility for state and federal historic-register listing.
- 1982
Conversion to condominiums
[1]The building became The Ritz Condominiums with 322 residences and six commercial suites, ending its operation as a Ritz-Carlton hotel.
- 1978
Failed hotel-casino redevelopment proposal
[1]An investor group planned a hotel and casino conversion, but the proposal was abandoned after publicity related to Abscam.
- 1969
Conversion to apartment hotel
[1]The property shifted from conventional hotel operations to apartment-hotel use.
- 1958
Sheraton acquisition
[1]Sheraton Hotels acquired the property and briefly operated it as The Sheraton Ritz-Carlton.
- 1946
Postwar ownership change
[1]J. Myer Schine purchased the hotel after its postwar reopening.
- 1937
Bankruptcy reorganization
[1]The owners defaulted during the Depression and the property was reorganized through bankruptcy.
- 1929
Atlantic City Conference association
[1]The hotel and the nearby Ambassador were associated with the Atlantic City Conference of organized-crime leaders.
- 1922
Presidential wireless-radiophone address
[1]Warren G. Harding addressed hotel guests in an early demonstration of wireless radiophone communication.
- 1921
Opening of the Atlantic City hotel
[1]The 18-story Boardwalk hotel opened on June 21 after construction designed by Charles D. Wetmore and undertaken by Thompson-Starrett.
Products and positioning
Historic, high-end seaside resort hospitality with an emphasis on architectural grandeur, prominent guests, specialized guest conveniences, and proximity to Atlantic City's Boardwalk.
Hotel accommodation · 1921
Luxury guest rooms and suites
The original property offered upscale guest rooms and suites in a prominent Boardwalk setting. Its room infrastructure was unusually elaborate for the period, including separate fresh-water and salt-water faucets for hot and cold water, access to artesian spring water, and specially designed elevators intended to accommodate guests returning from the beach. The hotel accommodation product ended when the building was converted to residences in 1982.
Dining · 1921
Ritz restaurant
The Ritz was one of the hotel's principal dining venues during its operating period. It formed part of a broader food-and-beverage offer that also included the Trellis Room, the Ritz Grill, and a distinctive carousel-shaped bar. No current operation under this name is identified in the reference material.
Dining · 1921
Trellis Room
The Trellis Room was a named restaurant within the historic hotel. It contributed to the property's positioning as a full-service luxury resort with multiple food-and-beverage spaces rather than only overnight accommodation.
Outdoor dining · 1921
Ritz Grill
The Ritz Grill was an outdoor dining terrace overlooking the ocean. Its Boardwalk and seaside orientation made it part of the hotel's resort experience and helped connect the property with Atlantic City's coastal leisure environment.
Residential property · 1982
The Ritz Condominiums
The 1982 adaptive-reuse project converted the former hotel into 322 residences and six commercial suites. The units included both full-time residences and vacation homes. This residential identity replaced the Ritz-Carlton hotel operation and remains the building's documented post-1982 use.
Controversies
1978
Abscam-related collapse of proposed casino redevelopment
A group that purchased the building planned to convert it into a hotel and casino. The project attracted unfavorable publicity after its financing and redevelopment discussions became connected to the FBI's Abscam investigation. Senator Harrison A. Williams discussed possible assistance for the investors with an undercover agent; the proposed project was not completed. Williams was later convicted on unrelated charges.
Brand decisions
1982
Conversion to residential condominiums and retirement of the nameStrategyBackground
The proposed hotel-casino redevelopment did not proceed, while the re-established Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company sought to distinguish its operating hotel brand from the historic Atlantic City building.
Action taken
The building was converted into 322 residences and six commercial suites, and the owners discontinued use of the Ritz-Carlton name.
Aftermath
The property became The Ritz Condominiums and ceased to operate as a Ritz-Carlton hotel.
Conversion expenditure. $25 million (1982)
1978
Proposed hotel-and-casino redevelopmentStrategyBackground
An investor group acquired the building intending to return it to hotel use while adding casino facilities.
Action taken
The group pursued a redevelopment plan rather than maintaining the building solely as an apartment hotel.
Aftermath
The plan was abandoned after publicity associated with the Abscam investigation.
1969
Shift from hotel to apartment-hotel operationStrategyBackground
After several ownership changes and decades of hotel operation, the property no longer continued solely as a conventional transient hotel.
Action taken
The building was converted to an apartment hotel in June 1969.
Aftermath
The change preceded a later attempt to redevelop the building as a hotel and casino and ultimately its conversion into condominiums.
Recent events
- 2011
Building receives historic-preservation eligibility[1]
Regulation
New Jersey's State Historic Preservation Office issued a certificate of eligibility for listing on the state and federal registers of historic places.
- 1982
Building converted to The Ritz Condominiums[1]
Other
A roughly $25 million redevelopment created 322 residences and six commercial suites. The Ritz-Carlton name was retired at the property after the re-established Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company sought to prevent confusion with its hotel brand.
- 1969
Property changes to apartment-hotel use[1]
Other
The former hotel was converted into an apartment hotel, marking a move away from its original full-service resort model.
- 1958
Sheraton acquires and briefly renames the property[1]
M&A
Sheraton Hotels purchased the building, invested in renovations, and temporarily operated it under the name The Sheraton Ritz-Carlton.
- 1940
Ritz-Carlton building used as military barracks[1]
Other
During World War II, the hotel was used with other Atlantic City properties as barracks for military personnel in training and recuperation.
- 1937
Hotel reorganized after Depression-era mortgage default[1]
Bankruptcy
The property entered bankruptcy reorganization after its owners defaulted on the mortgage during the Great Depression.
- 1922
Warren G. Harding addresses guests at the hotel[1]
Other
President Warren G. Harding addressed guests at the property in an early use of wireless radiophone technology.
- 1921
Ritz-Carlton Atlantic City opens on the Boardwalk[1]
Other
The 18-story luxury hotel opened on June 21 after a major construction project led by architect Charles D. Wetmore and contractor Thompson-Starrett.
Sources1 sources
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