History of California License Plates
by Robert L. Harrison
California first required automobile owners to register their vehicles in 1905. That year owners were required to supply their own license plate and to hang it onto the rear of the vehicle as evidence of registration. The state issued a number but owners would create a plate usually with metal but often with wood or leather. Around 1909 yet another material for an auto license plate was introduced when the Automobile Club of Southern California offered members an “Auto Club Hanger,” a license plate made of porcelain.
The State of California porcelain plates were first issued in 1914 and replaced all 1905 to 1913 plates. The 1914 plates used white numerals on a red background. They were 5 1/2" high by 16" wide. Their design included an abbreviated state identification “CAL” and the year “1914” in vertical lettering on the left and right edges of plate respectively. The 1915 plates repeated this design except for the colors which were changed to black letters on a yellow background. The public found the yellow plates particularly attractive, so much so that owners were putting them on their autos before the due date.
The California porcelain plate was radically changed for 1916. Its height was reduced to just 4 1/2" and the width was reduced to 13". The color scheme for the years 1916 through 1919 was blue numbers on white porcelain. These plates no longer included the year of registration. Each year was identified by a metal tab attached to the plate with three state supplied rivets. California was the first state to use a multi-year baseplate validated annually with tabs.
In 1920 California switched from porcelain to embossed metal plates, the first of which was a black plate with white numbers with the year and state abbreviated as “20” and “CAL”. The design and coloring of the plate changed each year but the size remained the same from 1920 through 1928. A letter was added in 1929 to the former all numerical registration and the size of the plate was greatly increased. The new plate was 6 1/8" high and 13 7/8" wide, expanding the face by nearly 50%.
B. A. Travis, Assistant Chief Clerk of the Division of Motor Vehicles, described the new plate, “The rather crude black letters stand out boldly against a background of deep yellow, giving a lasting impression, but rather lacking in artistic appeal. They are not meant to be pretty. Their function is not to ornament the car displaying them, but to identify it….Actual tests made on the roads show the numbers can be read nearly three times as far away as the old ones.” The state’s intention was to reduce crime by improving the ability of the police to identify vehicles.
These large letter plates changed color schemes each year and from 1932 on “CALIFORNIA” was spelled out. The design remained unchanged through the 1930s. In the 1940s and early 1950s the size of the plate was slightly reduced. With World War II underway, new plates were not issued but yearly validation tabs were reintroduced in 1942.
In 1956 the size of the license plate was standardized for the United States, Canada and Mexico at 6" high by 12" wide. California’s plate that year was black letters and numbers on a yellow background. “CALIFORNIA” and the year were printed on each plate. These plates began the pattern of three letters and three numbers in use until 1980 when this combination had reached its limit. From that year a number was added resulting in a seven digit registration. Validation stickers were issued annually from 1957, a practice that continues today.
A plate with gold letters on a black background was issued from 1963 through 1969. There was no year identified but name “CALIFORNIA” was embossed into the metal plate. The design of these iconic plates remains popular and prompted the state to take orders for the “gold on black legacy” plates beginning in 2015.
In the 1970s California’s plate was a plain blue with gold lettering. Beginning in 1982 through 1987 the state issued a plate with a more elaborate design. It was white with blue numbers and included a sun graphic and “CALIFORNIA” and “The Golden State” printed in an art deco font. The design was awarded the 1983 “Plate of the Year” by the Automobile License Plate Collectors Association. The only time a California plate has been so honored.
From 1987 to the present California has returned to a basic design: no special graphics with blue numbers embossed and red “CALIFORNIA” printed on a plain white background. “California” appeared in red script lettering beginning in 1994.
For California’s 150th birthday as a state “CALIFORNIA SESQUISENTINIAL — 150 YEARS” was added at the bottom of the plates in the years 1998 through 2000. Since 2011 the bottom row of California plates has included the much more prosaic DMV web address: “dmv.ca.gov”.
Like the automobile itself, license plates continue to evolve. Early in the 20th century, plates of metal, leather or wood were supplied by vehicle owners. Following the brief use of porcelain, metal has been a standard plate material. Now California seems ready for another step in the story of the license plate. It has introduced the R-plate, a digital device that functions much like a computer screen. Owners can display more than just the usual numbers and state identification. They can show advertisements, Amber Alerts, pay tolls or report their vehicle as stolen. There will no doubt be further innovations as we enter the era of artificial intelligence and driverless vehicles.
Originally published at https://annetkent.kontribune.com.
