Why Denver Stays Lit Through Late January

The Mile High Tree has gone dark in Civic Center Park, but across Bannock Street, the Denver City and County Building will be glowing through January 21, when the National Western Stock Show ends its sixteen-day run. The tradition of keeping the holiday lights on at both public and private buildings in the Mile High City through that annual event is almost as old as the outdoor lighting tradition itself, which dates back to when Denver was proclaimed the "Christmas capital of the world" a century ago.

The Stock Show got its start in 1906, and was always a major draw for people from rural areas of not just Colorado, but the Rocky Mountain West. Denver boosters soon wanted to provide these visitors with a big-city thrill, as well as an agricultural extravaganza.

"Do you consider yourself a Colorado native?" asks the current site of the National Western Stock Show, which starts its 2024 run on January 6. "If so, you must know about the longstanding tradition between holiday lights and the National Western Stock Show. If you are new to Colorado, listen up. You’re going to want to jump on this Colorado Cowtown bandwagon." That leap? Leaving holiday lights up through the duration of the Stock Show.

Though the official start of this tradition is lost to time, it was definitely established by the middle of the last century. According to a report in the Steamboat Pilot on December 29, 1955:

"For twelve years Denver has been keeping the Christmas display on for National Western Stock Show week so that thousands of visitors from throughout the nation can view the famous scene in civic center. The only change made which differs from the regular Christmas display is the playing of Western music rather than carols over the loud speaker system. So famous Is the civic center display that convention trains have been stopped so that those aboard could view it. Special requests that the lighting be turned on have been made by airlines for persons on chartered planes. Many home, industrial and institutional lighting and window displays also will remain in place and turned on nightly; to make a trip around town a thrilling feature for those in Denver for the Stock Show."

John Malpiede, the city electrician who by then had been overseeing the Civic Center light show for three decades, noted that the display at the City and Country Building was particularly lavish that year, with "two life-size angels overlooking the center, and handpainted candles ranging to 10 feet in height," the paper pointed out. "Santa and his reindeer are prominent as always, with the traditional greeting, 'Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.'"

The message may already seem a little dated, but for the next three weeks, that's what Denver will proclaim to not just this city's residents, but the rest of the world. Fair warning, though: The accompanying show will be turned off on Tuesday, January 2, during the Denver City County meeting, as well as during the meetings on the two subsequent Mondays.

The messy business of governing can get loud enough without Santa chiming in.