The story
The Palmer House in Chicago's Loop was opened in 1871 by Potter Palmer as a wedding gift to his wife Bertha, burned down thirteen days later in the Great Chicago Fire, and was defiantly rebuilt, with the present building completed in the 1920s; it is described as the longest continuously operating hotel in North America, famous for its ceiling frescoes, its gilded two-storey lobby and as the birthplace of the brownie, created in its kitchens for the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition. Its haunted reputation is gentle and woven into that long history, with staff and guests over the years describing the sensed presence of Bertha Palmer, figures in period dress glimpsed in the lobby and ballrooms, and small unexplained occurrences on the upper floors. These accounts should be presented as guest reports and folklore rather than proven phenomena — the hotel's history is grand enough without embellishment. Current room, dining and booking details should be confirmed from the official site before publishing.