Things That Go Bump in the Night in NH, Part IV

My wife called me frantically. It was the middle of the day, and I was at work, which is to say I was a wee bit busy, but her call was urgent. "Tell me what happened at Bretton Woods!"

I always joke that some day, I'll be in a crowded theater and the lights will suddenly be flicked on, and someone from management will come out on the stage, wringing his/her hands, and ask aloud in an urgent tone: "Is there a historian in the house?" OK, I'm only an amateur historian, but still, ya gotta dream. Anyway, for all the wisecracks I get from my wife about "hysterians", as she calls them, I still do get the occasional frantic phone call with a historical question from her. In this case, the urgency was prompted by the fact she had her visiting father with her and they were approaching the Bretton Woods exit at about 70 mph, and needed to make a decision, quick. I informed her of Bretton Woods' grand past as a resort hotel for the rich, and of the famous post-World War II economic conference that took place there which established a global financial system that lasted until the early 1970s. Though the first part probably was the deal-maker, they decided to go for it. Afterward, she related the following to me, which she swears is true. It's actually not that big of a deal, really, but it impressed her, and it's late on Halloween night and I'm short of material otherwise, so here goes:

They took the tour of Bretton Woods, an din the midst of that tour, they discussed some of the hotel's paranormal attributes; like any good self-respecting hotel nowadays, Bretton Woods is apparently haunted. There was a time when being haunted was a bad thing for business, but nowadays, that's just part of the charm of staying in an early-20th century luxury resort. So in any event, the tour guide mentioned while they were transitting from one room to the next some of the hotel's ghost lore, when the group entered a stately conference room. One of the tour group asked the guide a question about one of the ghosts, some lady who met an untimely demise, and just as she finished her question the large, elegant chandelier over the table in the room began to sway several inches back and forth, seemingly without rhyme or reason. The entire group saw it and gasped in unison. I probably would have soiled myself had I been there. The guide apparently sputtered nervously that she had no idea what could be making the chandelier swing.

So there you have it, my wife's NH ghost story. Not very dramatic, but authentic, nonetheless. Have a good Halloween, and try not to load up too much on all the Halloween leftover candy your coworkers will be bringing into work tomorrow.