Happy Thanksgiving, Denver! The first references to Thanksgiving celebrations in Denver appeared in newspapers in 1859. Those early Rocky Mountain Thanksgivings were often celebrated communally, often in the large dining rooms of hotels that could accommodate a feast. And feast they did. An invitation from Denver’s Tremont House in 1863—the year Abraham Lincoln designated Thanksgiving as a national holiday—advertised a menu featuring a plated menagerie of boiled and roasted meats including buffalo tongue, oyster pie, and “venison a la Pike’s Peak” (but no turkey). Oyster soup, a colorful array of cooked vegetables, four types of pickled relishes, a tempting selection of pies, cakes, and pudding, and a variety of wines rounded out the meal.