by Lesley Drayton, Curator, Local History Archives
I’m a big fan of the Tedmon House Hotel, which once stood at the northwest corner of Linden and Jefferson Streets in Fort Collins, Colorado. Featured in previous posts, the Tedmon House was an icon in Fort Collins from its grand opening in 1880 until it was demolished in 1910. Luckily, many unique items remain in the collections at the Fort Collins Museum & Discovery Science Center.
One such item is this menu for Sunday dinner from October 29, 1883.
The menu also has an extensive wine list on the back; there are more than just wines featured.
Sign me up for the haunch of elk with cranberry sauce, and just some Apollinaris mineral water, please! I’ll pass on absinthe.
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It is not surprising that mineral water was on the menu, as drinking mineral water and soaking in them at spas were activities all the rage in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Apollinaris originated in Germany. A quick and dirty search on Google indicated it is still on the market today, although the brand is owned by Coca-Cola.
The other two mineral waters on the menu are also of interest. “Hawthorn (Saratoga)” presumably originated in Saratoga, New York, perhaps the most famous of the spas. “Hunyadi Janos” is a curious name. Janos Hunyadi was a famous Hungarian king who fought the Turks in the 15th century. Maybe his name was attached to the drink to suggest it came from Hungary.
I notices the oyster soup. Our 19th century western ancestors loved oysters!
Are we talking marine oysters or prairie oysters?