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Sophie Gally--possibly a distant relative of Louis Dupuy's from France--was
houskeeper at the Hotel de Paris for almost 25 years. She came to the
U.S. with her husband, Francois, who disappeared rather early; there is
no record of whether he died or deserted her. Sophie is reputed to have
never learned to speak English, although this concept is difficult to
believe, specifically since Sophie worked for Louis in his very public
hotel for almost 25 years.
It is said that Sophie would sit in front of the hotel on a bench, and
the local children would walk and call her Auntie or Aunt Sophie. Sophie
had no known life outside of the hotel and apparently very little contact
with any relatives left in France, much less with the local population.
When Louis took a trip shortly before he died, he wrote up a will for
himself and one for Sophie; Louis' left everything to Sophie, Sophie's
left all to Louis. Needless to say, Louis really didn't expect to die--he
was only in his mid 50's. However, in the early fall of 1900, Louis contracted
a fever and died of pneumonia. Everything went to Sophie, but she died
4 months later, in February of 1901. At this point, everything she had
was left to distant relatives in France, who eventually sold it all to
the Burkholders in Georgetown for a fraction of the hotel's true worth.
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