Starbucks Oklahoma mug: Discovery Series
The Oklahoma mug from Starbucks' Discovery Series puts the state name in pale green over a dark green circle, with a windmill, an oil derrick, a hillside building, a platter of nuts and a woman in a striped top.
- Series
- Discovery Series
- Place
- Oklahoma, USA
- Type
- Mug
- Released
- Not confirmed
- Capacity
- 14 fl ozstandard mug size
- SKU
- Not confirmed
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The well that had to be shut for two years
At 3 p.m. on April 15, 1897, a crowd of about 50 onlookers stood near Bartlesville, in Indian Territory, and watched a woman drop a detonator down a well. Miss Jenni Cass, George Keeler's stepdaughter, sent the "go-devil" down the bore to set off the nitroglycerin waiting below [3]. The well was Nellie Johnstone No. 1, named for a partner's six-year-old daughter. It came in producing up to 75 barrels of oil a day [3]. Then the oil had nowhere to go. According to the American Oil & Gas Historical Society, with no storage tanks, pipelines or railroads available, the well was capped for two years [3]. The Santa Fe railroad reached Bartlesville in 1899 [3]. The first shipment sold in May 1900 at $1.25 a barrel [3]. Bartlesville's population grew from 200 to over 4,000 [3]. The derrick on the Oklahoma mug (4) may stand for Nellie Johnstone No. 1.
The mug does not label its drawings, so connecting this one to the story is our reading.
What's on the mug
- 1Woman in a striped top
A woman in a striped top and red patterned trousers stands at the left, with orange flowers near her head.
- 2Platter of nuts
A tilted platter of brown oval nuts sits above the lettering. They look like pecans, though the mug doesn't label them.
- 3Windmill
A multicoloured windmill turns on a lattice tower at the centre right.
- 4Oil derrick
A dark lattice oil derrick stands beside the windmill. Oklahoma's oil industry began with its first commercial oil well, drilled near Bartlesville in April 1897.[1]
- 5Man in yellow
A man in yellow work clothes stands near the windmill's tail at the upper right.
- 6Building on a hill
A tan building with a tower sits on an orange-red hillside at the bottom centre, ringed by small green and white trees.
- 7Lettering
OKLAHOMA in pale green capitals over a dark green circle.
- 8Route 66 shield Back view
A yellow U.S. 66 highway shield sits on a tall black pole at the upper right.
- 9Prairie dog Back view
An upright yellow animal that looks like a prairie dog stands on an orange mound at the left.
- 10Vintage black car Back view
A black vintage car with passengers heads along a pale-blue road that fans out across the back.
- 11Shopping cart Back view
A shopping cart loaded with groceries sits below the road sign.
- 12Bison Back view
A dark, star-speckled bison is cut off by the curve at the right. The buffalo is Oklahoma's state mammal, designated in 1972.[2]
- 13Yellow bird and rose Back view
A yellow bird with a long trailing tail flies in beside an orange rose. Oklahoma's state bird is the scissor-tailed flycatcher (1951) and its state flower is the Oklahoma rose (2004); the mug doesn't say whether either is meant.[2]
- 14Storm cloud Back view
A dark cloud with falling rain and orange lightning is at the top right.
- 15Bouquet of orange flowers Side view
A woman holds a large bunch of orange and yellow flowers on long stems; they reach up toward the rim.
- 16Woman in a striped top Side view
Seen from the side, the woman in a blue-and-white striped top and orange trousers stands at the right with her back turned.
- 17Yellow tower Side view
A tall yellow tower with white dots and a pale battlement-like top stands in the middle, on a teal and rocky patch of ground.
- 18Orange car and parking meter Side view
A small orange car with a yellow window sits next to a tall blue parking meter on a yellow pole.
- 19Bison Side view
A dark bison dotted with pale flecks stands at the left, with orange hooves.
- 20Rain cloud Side view
Dark and orange clouds drop rain and a yellow lightning bolt at the upper left.
Together the three photos show the whole outside of the mug except the strip behind the handle.
Collector notes
- Oklahoma appears in three of our checklists: Discovery, Been There and You Are Here. This page covers the Discovery mug, so match the series name in a listing's title.
- The inside of the mug is teal in this photo. The seller also photographed it on a black box in front of grey wood, which is not part of the mug.
Before you buy
Oklahoma also has a Been There mug and a You Are Here mug, so match the series name in a listing's title. The inside of this Discovery mug is teal in our photo, and the three photos show the whole outside except the strip behind the handle.
