The Willard Hotel and the debated origin of 'lobbyist'

The Willard Hotel on Pennsylvania Avenue has hosted U.S. presidents, foreign dignitaries, and political figures since the 19th century and long promoted itself as a site where politicians and businesspeople 'lobbied' for access to power. The hotel and contemporaneous accounts link the modern term 'lobbyist' to people waiting in its lobby to petition President Ulysses S. Grant, but scholars debate the exact etymology and whether the Willard is the true origin of the word. The Willard remains a documented historic hotel closely tied to Washington's political life.