Starbucks Alabama (#2) mug: Been There Series
This second Alabama Been There mug writes Alabama in green script over a waterfall under a bridge, with camellias (the state flower), a yellow songbird, shrimp, peanuts and a football; the side has a rocket and the Alabama State Capitol, and the back a black bear.
- Series
- Been There Series
- Place
- Alabama, USA
- Type
- Mug
- Released
- Not confirmed
- Capacity
- 14 fl ozstandard mug size
- SKU
- Not confirmed
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The landfill a lumberman gave Montgomery, and the first night game
Fred J. Cramton, a Montgomery lumberman, gave the city a plot he owned, the site of a former landfill, for a multi-use park [1]. City officials could not find the money to build it, and they returned the land [1]. Cramton led a $33,000 fundraising drive [1]. The stadium was finished in May 1922, and that November the University of Alabama beat Georgia there, 10-6, in front of a crowd news reports put at almost 10,000 [1]. Then came the night. On 23 September 1927, Cloverdale High School played Pike Road High School under lights shipped in from California [1]. More than 7,000 people came [1]. According to the Encyclopedia of Alabama, it was the first football game played under artificial lights in the South [1]. The helmet at the lower left of the Alabama mug (5) may be from the football played there.
The mug does not label its drawings, so connecting this one to the story is our reading.
What's on the mug
- 1Alabama lettering
Alabama is written in dark green script with a dotted texture across the upper front. It is the only place name printed on the mug.
- 2Yellow songbird, possibly meant as the yellowhammer
A plump yellow songbird with a short bill and dark wing lines perches at the upper right, above the camellia blossoms. Alabama's state bird is the yellowhammer, and the bird may be meant as that; but the real yellowhammer is the northern flicker, a woodpecker, and the drawing shows none of its spots or long bill. The mug doesn't name it.[6]
- 3Waterfall below a bridge
A tall waterfall drops into a round pool beneath an arched bridge, with a cliff of vertical rock at the right, yellow and green hillsides and a box-shaped vehicle on the road along the top. We could not match the scene to one named Alabama falls with confidence. The mug doesn't name it.
- 4Camellias, the Alabama state flower
Two round, many-petalled blossoms in pale green and yellow, with dark green leaves, sit at the right of the front. Their layered petals and glossy leaves are drawn like camellias, Alabama's official state flower.[2]
- 5Football and helmet
A large green football with white stitching lies across the lower front, and a pale green football helmet with a face guard sits at the lower left. The mug doesn't name a team or a stadium.
- 6Sailboat
A sailboat with two yellow sails floats on wavy water at the lower right of the front, next to the handle.
- 7Rocket, possibly one of the Huntsville rockets Side view
A tall white rocket with a needle tip, dark bands and three fins, two green and the middle one pale yellow-green, stands in the middle of the side view. It may stand for the rockets displayed upright at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, which include a full-scale Saturn V replica; the drawing is simplified, so we do not name the model. The mug doesn't name it.[8]
- 8Golf bag, perhaps for Alabama's golf trail Side view
A green golf bag with a strap pocket and several clubs leans on its stand at the upper left of the side view. Together with the 18th-hole flag beside the rocket, it may refer to golf in Alabama such as the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail, a series of public courses across the state. The mug doesn't name a course.[10]
- 9Butterflies, possibly Eastern tiger swallowtails Side view
Two yellow butterflies with green borders and dark green veins sit at the left edge of the side view, with small white five-petalled flowers below them; the same pair shows at the upper right of the back. They may be meant as the Eastern tiger swallowtail, Alabama's official butterfly, though the drawing gives no clear tails. The mug doesn't name them.[4]
- 10Alabama State Capitol Side view
A white building with a columned portico, a small clock face over the portico, a dome with a flag on top and a two-storey wing with rows of windows on each side stands at the lower left of the side view; its edge also shows at the right of the back. The dome, the clock over the portico and the side wings match the Alabama State Capitol in Montgomery. The mug doesn't name it.[7]
- 11Black bear, the Alabama state mammal Back view
A large bear, drawn in green with a pale yellow-green muzzle, stands in profile in the middle of the back and looks out at the viewer, below a winding stream. The black bear is Alabama's official state mammal.[3]
- 12Beach umbrella and beach ball Back view
A striped green and yellow beach umbrella stands in the sand above small waves at the left of the back, with a striped beach ball below it. The mug doesn't name a beach.
- 13Shrimp, possibly the state's brown shrimp
Two green shrimp with long feelers sit at the upper left of the front, one curled and one stretched out; they also show at the right edge of the side view. They may stand for the brown shrimp, Alabama's official state crustacean and a catch of its Gulf coast. The mug doesn't name them.[5]
- 14Peanuts
Two yellow peanuts in the shell, with a criss-cross pattern on the hulls, sit at the left edge of the front and show fully on the side view.
- 15Football goalpost
A green goalpost with a small football flying between the uprights stands behind the helmet at the left of the front.
- 16Sunscreen bottle marked SPF
A small yellow-green bottle printed SPF stands between the football and the sailboat at the lower front.
- 17Golf flag marked 18 and golf ball Side view
A yellow-green pin flag printed 18 flies on a tall pole beside the rocket on the side view, with a dimpled golf ball near the foot of the pole.
- 18Starbucks cup Side view
A small paper coffee cup with a lid and a round logo stands at the left edge of the side view, next to the Capitol dome; it shows again at the right of the back.
- 19Winding stream through green fields Back view
At the top of the back, a white stream winds through green and yellow fields under a sun and two clouds. The mug doesn't name it.
- 20Rock arch, possibly Natural Bridge Back view
A yellow rock arch spans a green hollow at the bottom of the back. It may be Natural Bridge in Winston County, a sandstone arch said to be the longest natural bridge east of the Rockies, but the drawing is too simple to be sure. The mug doesn't name it.[9]
The three photos (front, the side opposite the handle, and the back) overlap and cover the wrap except the narrow strip under the handle; the underside is out of view, and small details are described only where legible.
Collector notes
- Our checklist lists two Been There Alabama mugs. This one has no THE COTTON STATE line and no plane, and it has a black bear on the back and butterflies and camellia blossoms around the sides.
- The inside is green. The rocket, the 18 flag, the golf bag and the Alabama State Capitol sit on the side opposite the handle, so a photo from the front alone shows the shrimp, the helmet and the football but not the rocket or the bear.
Before you buy
The inside of this mug is green. It is the Alabama Been There mug with a black bear on the back and no THE COTTON STATE line; the rocket, the 18 flag and the golf bag are on the side, so a photo from the front alone will not show them.
Sources
- Cramton Bowl, Encyclopedia of Alabama
- Code of Alabama, Section 1-2-11, State flower (via law.onecle.com)
- Code of Alabama, Section 1-2-36, State mammal (via law.onecle.com)
- Code of Alabama, Section 1-2-23, State butterfly (via law.onecle.com)
- Code of Alabama, Section 1-2-39, State crustacean (via law.onecle.com)
- Northern Flicker (Encyclopedia of Alabama)
- Alabama State Capitol (Wikipedia)
- U.S. Space & Rocket Center (Wikipedia)
- Natural Bridge, Alabama (Wikipedia)
- Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail (Encyclopedia of Alabama)
