Starbucks Ohio mug: Discovery Series

By The Starbucks Cups team · Last checked 2026-09-30 · How we make these pages

Starbucks Discovery Series Ohio mug with red carnations, a ladybug, a cardinal, a red barn, a football player and a bowl of pasta around the word OHIO — Front view · numbered markers match the list below Show markers

The Ohio mug from Starbucks' Discovery Series sets the state name in light blue over a dark green circle, with red carnations, a ladybug, a red-crested bird, a red barn, a football player and a bowl of pasta.

Series: Discovery Series
Place: Ohio, USA
Type: Mug
Released: Not confirmed
Capacity: 14 fl ozstandard mug size
SKU: Not confirmed

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The night the NFL began on a car showroom floor

On the night of 17 September 1920, representatives of 11 pro football teams gathered in the tiny Hupmobile showroom of Ralph Hay in Canton, Ohio, according to the Pro Football Hall of Fame ^[5]. There were not enough chairs, NFL.com reports, so some of the men sat on the running boards of the cars ^[6]. They unanimously chose Jim Thorpe, 32 and the Canton Bulldogs star, as president ^[7]. Their bylaws called for a $100 entry fee from every team, but according to History.com no one ever paid it ^[7]. Fifty years later, George Halas, one of the men in that showroom, said he was pretty sure none of them had "the remotest idea what we were starting ^[8]." The football player running at the left edge of the Ohio mug (1) is playing a game that began in that showroom.

The mug does not label its drawings, so connecting this one to the story is our reading.

What's on the mug

1
Football player
A football player in a red jersey and cleats runs at the left, partly wrapped around the edge of the mug.
2
Red carnations
Red carnations with feathery petals ring the top of the green circle, with a pale blue one at the right. Ohio's state flower is the scarlet carnation, adopted in 1904 to honour President William McKinley.^[1]
3
Ladybug
A red ladybug with white spots sits on the green circle above the lettering. The ladybug is Ohio's state insect.^[1]
4
Red-crested bird
A bird with a red crest and red wings perches on the barn roof at the right. The mug doesn't name it, and it could also read as a rooster, but the cardinal has been Ohio's state bird since 1933.^[1]
5
Red barn
A red barn with white trim and a small cupola stands behind a white fence at the lower right.
6
Bowl of pasta
A shallow bowl of spaghetti under a mound of shredded white cheese. That is how a Cincinnati chili "three-way" is served: spaghetti, spiced meat sauce and shredded cheddar. The mug doesn't label it, so that is our reading.^[2]
7
Round hay bales
Two pale blue round hay bales lie in front of the barn.
8
Lettering
OHIO in light blue capitals over a dark green circle.
9
STARBUCKS wordmark Back view
The vertical STARBUCKS wordmark sits beside the handle on this side.
10
Candy apple Back view
A glossy red candy apple on a stick stands at the far left of the scene.
11
Jar with a label Back view
A jar with a red-and-white label, full of small red items, stands beside the skyline.
12
Sphere-topped towers Back view
Two tall poles topped with round balls, one red and one pale blue, rise above the skyline.
13
Traffic light Back view
A tall traffic light with three lamps hangs over the right side of the skyline. Cleveland installed what Wikipedia describes as the first electric traffic light, at East 105th Street and Euclid Avenue in August 1914; the mug doesn't say why it was chosen.^[3]
14
Red serpent Back view
A red snake-like ribbon coils across the top right. Ohio's Great Serpent Mound, in Adams County, is an effigy mound about 1,348 feet long; the mug doesn't name it.^[4]
15
Rower on a river Back view
One person rows a narrow boat across a turquoise river below the skyline.
16
Traffic light Side view
A teal traffic signal with red lights stands above the roofline at the left of the statehouse.
17
Red snake Side view
A red and maroon snake with a pale eye curves through the air above the dome.
18
Domed statehouse Side view
A pale building with a long row of columns and a red-trimmed dome sits in the middle of this side.
19
Arch bridge Side view
A bridge with a tall red-trimmed arch crosses the right half, with small cars on its deck.
20
Water towers Side view
Two tall towers with round red-striped tops rise beside a small city skyline at the left.

The two photos together cover the front and back. The stretch hidden behind the handle is not visible in either.

Collector notes

Our checklists list Ohio mugs in the Been There, Icon and You Are Here series, plus a Christmas edition in Been There. Read the series in the listing title before you buy.
The inside of the mug is deep red in this photo. The football player and the barn scene sit on opposite sides of the lettering, so a photo from the handle side may show the barn but not the player.

Before you buy

The football player wraps around the left edge and the barn scene sits on the other side of the lettering, so a photo taken from the handle side may show the barn but not the player. The inside of the mug is deep red in our photo. Ohio also appears in the Been There, Icon and You Are Here series, so read the series in the listing title.