The Markham Hotel building is located in downtown Gulfport, about one city block from the Mississippi Sound. The 8-story hotel was designed by the architectural firm Marshall and Fox. It opened in January 1927 and was named for Charles Markham, a former president of the Illinois Central Railroad. The Markham contained 180 guest rooms and catered mainly to business clientele. Amenities included a formal dining room, swimming pool, and rooftop garden. As with other grand hotels of the period, the Markham lost business to newer, more modern hotels with the passage of time. In the 1970s, the Markham was renovated into an office complex, and the swimming pool was converted into a parking lot. A second renovation in 1987 retained its use as an office building. In 2005, Hurricane Katrina’s tidal surge flooded the ground floor and hurricane-force winds damaged the roof of the structure. The property was then sold to a private investor, with no effort to repair or preserve the building. The Markham building is a contributing resource in the Gulfport Harbor Square Commercial Historic District, as listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In 2011, the Markham was named one of the ten most endangered historic places in Mississippi by the Mississippi Heritage Trust.

In July 2016, the Markham building was purchased with plans to renovate the structure and convert the office building back into a hotel. In September 2018, renovation work began to transform the Markham building into a glamorous 124-room all suites hotel. The Markham Hotel will host a restaurant, lounge, fitness center, a beautiful 2400 sq. ft. ballroom, and swimming pool.