Marriott goes to DC
Everybody knows of the two beautiful, masterfully designed Randall Duell jewels Marriott opened in 1976. But those were small fry—the hotel giant had a much bigger dream in mind. Their flagship 850-acre property roughly halfway between Baltimore and Washington was announced on January 26, 1972. This $70 million endeavor was to feature not only a theme park, but also a wildlife park, marine life park, hotel (naturally), and other entertainment options. The concept was a “mini-vacation,” in their words.
Now, the idea of building a destination with multiple things to do was actually pretty common at the time. Judge Hofheinz’s grandiose Astroworld plans originally included much of the same elements. Opryland was designed around the notion of including a hotel, retail & dining, and eventually a new Opry entertainment facility (most of which came to pass over time). Carowinds was supposed to include a fancy hotel with its own monorail stop, along with various retail and so on (most of which did not come to pass over time).
Anyway, Marriott bought 850 acres in Howard County, MD, near I-95 and Route 32. The theme park, similar to the other two parks, was themed on American history. Concept art depicted a mighty sailing schooner docked in a Cape Cod New England harbor, a classic Midwestern county fair with rides, slides, and games, the Gold Rusher runaway mine train coaster in the Klondike, as well as a visit through the old Southwest, New Orleans, and the pre-Civil War South. The 200-acre animal park took you on safari amongst the usual assortment of creatures you’d expect in such a place; the marine life park would also offer the standard whales, seals, dolphins, and other swimmy things
The mighty Marriott Corporation, accustomed to getting its way at pretty much anything it set its mind on, confidently plowed ahead with planning for all three locations. What could go wrong? Lots, as we shall see.
