Conrad Hilton

Conrad Nicholson Hilton was born in Socorro, Socorro County, New Mexico Territory (now New Mexico) to Augustus Halvorson "Gus" Hilton , a Norwegian, and wife Mary Genevieve Laufersweiler, a German-American.

Conrad was educated at the New Mexico Military Institute, at St. Michael's College (now the College of Santa Fe), and at the New Mexico School of Mines (now New Mexico Tech). In his early twenties, he was a Republican representative in the first legislature of the newly-formed State of New Mexico.

Shortly after the United States entered World War I in 1917, Conrad Hilton enlisted in the U.S. Army and was sent to Officers' Training Command, Presidio of San Francisco. Second Lieutenant Hilton arrived in France, February 14, 1918. His unit the 304th Labor Battalion, saw limited combat. February 11, 1919, Conrad Hilton was discharged at Camp Dix, New Jersey (now Fort Dix). While Conrad was in the army, his father Gus was killed in a car accident.

Conrad Hilton built a store in Socorro County, New Mexico, but he later moved to Texas. He entered the hotel business by buying the Mobley Hotel in Cisco, Texas, in 1919. The first high rise hotel he built was the El Paso Hilton, now the Plaza Hotel, which opened on November 20, 1930. He formed the Hilton Hotels Corporation in 1946. The company expanded into credit cards, car rentals, and other travel services.

During the Great Depression Hilton was nearly forced into bankruptcy and lost several of his hotels. He was retained as a manager and eventually bought them back.

Conrad Hilton died on January 3, 1979, in Santa Monica, California, at age 91 from natural causes. He is interred at Calvary Hill Cemetery, in Dallas, Texas. Calvary Hill is a Catholic cemetery.

His estate founded the Conrad N. Hilton Humanitarian Prize. He left $250,000 to each of his surviving siblings and $10,000 to each of his nieces and nephews. Most of his assets were willed to the Roman Catholic Church and charities. However, Conrad's son, Barron, contested the will and won in 1988. The net worth of Barron and his descendants then jumped to over $335 million.