MARRIOTT COMMUNITY NEWS OCTOBER 18, 1996 EARLY BUSINESSES Standing in the parking lot of Country Cuzzins, an individual can take a sweeping glance east and west along Twelfth Street and see a bustling business corridor However, even when Twelfth Street was a narrow country lane, business was prospering in Marriott. In fact, since the early settlement days, the resourcefulness of the people has made business an integral part of their lives. Out of necessity, farming was the first industry in Marriott. The settlers farmed for survival but they were able to sell their excess crops, thus starting the area's strong agricultural heritage. As soon as the land was properly cleared and irrigated, it proved to be a fertile region, becoming part of Weber County's green belt. Wheat was abundant, and with the addition of orchards, row crops, and feed crops, farming became a family business to be handed down from generation to generation. As a natural result of wheat cultivation, a fanning mill was opened by Moses Tracy in 1852: This mill processed wheat by separating the chaff from the grain. The distribution of Marriott produce was one of the business hurdles cleared by early pioneers. In the 1860's even before the railroads had crossed the nation, William Butler freighted Marriott goods to Idaho and Montana. When the railroad did arrive, it only served to increase the freight business for Butler. Later, in the 1870's, the Stanger family would be found freighting Marriott fruit to Evanston. During the 1890's, Walter Ziemer ran a fruit packing plant near his home on what is now the defense depot Mr. Ziemer was a German immigrant and Marriott pioneer who built the home which now houses the commander of the depot. The Ziemer packing house provided a dual function for the community. First, it was a source of fruit distribution for orchard growers: Next, Mr. Ziemer offered the packing shed for recreation such as country dances and holiday festivities. Sugar beets were another crop which accumulated a demand. Marriott farms provided beets for the Amalgamated Sugar Company in Wilson Lane The long hours spent in the weeding and cultivating of sugar beets has been left unappreciated in the years since the sugar beet demand dropped. The back breaking work was many times a family affair, with every member in the field. Pea vineries were located in several communities in Weber County, Marriott's vinery was at the current site of Les Syme's log home on 700 South. The vines would sometimes be stacked in great mounds, which were given to odorous decay. As strong as the farming industry was, there were still other businesses which flourished from their roots in Marriott. In 469