Have Bretton Woods II in Bretton Woods, Too

When global leaders gather next month to redraw the world's economic system at a meeting described as "Bretton Woods II," the summit will differ from the first Bretton Woods conference in one key way. It won't be held in Bretton Woods.

President Bush decided that the "new Bretton Woods" would take place in Washington. Bretton Woods is not taking this lying down.

The small New Hampshire resort -- actually a village within the town of Carroll -- has long taken pride in its association with the 1944 International Monetary Conference, which was held in the Mount Washington Resort.

Both the town and the resort hotel are there, and the hotel's current president, Patrick Corso, is personally appealing to his peers in the White House and the Elysee Palace -- that would be Bush and French president Nicolas Sarkozy -- to think about holding "Bretton Woods II" in Bretton Woods, too.

"Almost 65 years later, the Resort is once again seeking to serve world leaders as they discuss and plan for a top-to-bottom overhaul of the world financial system," Corso said.

After all, he notes, his hotel already planned to commemorate the anniversary of the original Bretton Woods agreement next July by offering a "Gold Standard" weekend package. The offer, a joking reference to the decision to take currencies off the gold standard, will vary in cost depending on the price of gold.

Corso isn't stopping with an open letter to Bush and Sarkozy, however. He has also enlisted Senator Judd Gregg, Republican of New Hampshire, to weigh in as well. In a letter to the president, Gregg said Bretton Woods was recommended not only for its "unique historical significance" but also because it would offer "a secure, suitable, and stately backdrop" for the meeting.

by Mark Stein

Photograph of some of the people at the first Bretton Woods conference by Bettmann/Corbis

• Market Darwinism: Which Retailers Will Survive the Recession?
• Microsoft Unit Is the Target of a Criminal Probe
• Job of the Week: Master Liquor Distiller
• Credit Crunched: A Special Report on Wall Street Chaos