The Marriott family founded Marriott, the American hotel company launched in 1927 by J. Willard Marriott.
J. Willard Marriott and his wife, Alice, began with a nine-stool A&W root beer stand in Washington, D.C. The business expanded into restaurants and then lodging. In 1957, the company opened its first hotel, the Twin Bridges Marriott Motor Hotel in Arlington, Virginia.
The Marriott family name remains central to the company’s history, although Marriott International operates as a public corporation rather than a wholly family-owned firm. J. W. Marriott Jr. succeeded his father as chief executive and later became executive chairman.
A common mix-up is confusing Marriott with Hilton, another major American hotel group founded by a different family. Marriott International’s portfolio has included brands such as Courtyard, Ritz-Carlton and Sheraton, but the company began with the Marriott family’s small food-service business.