In 1917 South Carolina, Texas, and the U.S. Virgin Islands joined the list of states and territories providing license plates to vehicle owners, and no new states entered the prestate era. There were now 47 states and 5 territories that were issuing license plates and 1 other state requiring owners to provide their own license plates.
Passenger baseplates In the table below, a light green background indicates that the owner of the vehicle was required to provide their own license plates. These plates are called "prestate" by most collectors. In the prestate era many states only provided the license plate number on a small disc or on paper, and the owner was required to have their license plate(s) made. These early license plates were created from kits that could be purchased at a hardware store, may have been available from automobile clubs or associations, they were forged by blacksmiths or other tradesmen, or the owner may have made their own plate with whatever materials they had on hand. Prestate plates were made from a variety of materials, but most often were made of leather, steel, or wood. This was the last year for prestate plates, but note that territories, like Alaska and Hawaii, etc., did not officially issue plates until several years later.
Legend:Regular state issue plate(s)Prestate era plate(s)No plates issued by state or territory
ImageStateDesignSloganSerial formatSerials issuedNotesAlabamaAlaskaNo prestate plates. State issued plates begin in 1921.American SamoaNo prestate plates. Territory issued plates begin in 1924.ArizonaArkansasCaliforniaCanal ZoneColoradoConnecticut DelawareDistrict ofColumbiaFloridaLast year for prestate plates. State issued plates begin in 1918.GeorgiaGuamHawai'iNo prestate plates. Territory issued plates begin in 1922.IdahoIllinoisIndianaIowaEmbossed beige serial on dark olive green plate; "IA" and dash at rightnone1234561 to approximately 341000Used until 1918 due to metal conservation for World War I.KansasKentuckyLouisianaMaineMarylandMassachusettsMichiganMinnesotaMississippiMissouriMontanaNebraskaNevadaNew HampshireNew Jersey New MexicoNew YorkNorth CarolinaNorth DakotaNorthern Mariana IslandsNo prestate plates. Territory issued plates begin in 1944.OhioBlack serial on yellow porcelain plate, vertical "OHIO" and "1917" on left and right, respectively.OklahomaOregonPennsylvaniaPuerto RicoRhode IslandSouth CarolinaFirst year for state issued plates.South DakotaTennesseeTexasFirst year for state issued plates. Validated with separate round seal.U.S. Virgin IslandsFirst year for territory issued license plates.UtahVermontVirginiaWashingtonWest VirginiaWisconsinEmbossed white serial on dark green plate; vertical "WIS." and "'17." at right.none1234561 to approximately 165000Wyoming
See also
Antique vehicle registration Electronic license plate Motor vehicle registration Vehicle license
References
External links