The 1976 McDonald's Milk Glass Collectible Mugs Worth Checking Your Thrift Store For

Hey, you wanna know a cool little piece of McDonald's trivia? Way back in 1976, as a way to help introduce their new breakfast menu, McDonald's offered free coffee mugs to anyone who ordered a coffee, juice, and a breakfast entree.

These weren't just any cheap, promotional mugs, though. They were serious, heavyweight, Fire-King brand mugs done in the milk glass style by American glass and bakeware manufacturer Anchor Hocking. Back in the day, McDonald's pitch on breakfast was an easy, leisurely meal eaten at the table, with coffee served in actual mugs and Egg McMuffins for everyone. So these mugs were the ideal giveaway. With their milky-white color, squared-off D-shaped handle, and smiling-sun-over-Golden-Arches logo, they were both pretty and memorable.

All of which means that McDonald's gave away a lot of these mugs, during both the original 1976 promotion, and again two years later. And because they were durable, beloved, and timeless in their utilitarian design, a fair number of these McDonald's collectibles survived for decades in peoples' cabinets, eventually making their way into thrift stores and consignment shops. Today, they can fetch some pretty good prices on the re-sale market.

That's a nice mug right there. Thick-walled, with that vibrant "Good Morning" logo and slightly stepped base (which made them stackable). There are entire Facebook groups and Reddit threads dedicated to people remembering how much their moms or grandfathers loved these mugs, and how they're still in use today. Something about them triggers a hit of nostalgia, and that translates directly into dollar signs for anyone scouring the thrift stores and looking to sell.

Right now, there are individual mugs on eBay and Etsy selling for anywhere between $20 and $99. Sets of four are going for hundreds of dollars. Want to know whether or not you've found the real thing? Check the bottom of the mug for the Fire-King label embossed onto the glass and the Anchor Hocking logo.

And while these milk glass Fire-King mugs are certainly among the most saught-after fast food collectibles, they're not the only ones worth some money. A 1983 set of Camp Snoopy glasses will bring you a few bucks. Same with the glasses from their first movie tie-in, "The Great Muppet Caper". And a full set of 6 Action Series glasses from 1977 featuring the original McDonaldland characters might net you a couple hundred dollars — though that's mostly because they're rare. Concerns about lead levels in the manufacturing process prompted McDonald's to suspend sales early, leaving them sitting on something like 10 million unused glasses.