First License Plates

April 22, 2008

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Profile America — Tuesday, April 22nd. Automobile license plates today herald the scenic wonders of the various states and often contain words giving a glimpse of the driver’s personality. New York was the first state to require license plates on motor vehicles this week in 1901. At the time, there were just under 15,000 automobiles in the entire country. Those early vehicles resembled horse-drawn carriages and traveled over muddy roads without a license for either the driver or the automobile. Many critics expected that they were only a rich man’s fad. Now, there are more than 241 million cars, trucks and buses zipping along the nation’s sophisticated highway system, and more than 200 million Americans have driver’s licenses. You can find these and more facts about America from the U.S. Census Bureau on the Web at <www.census.gov>.

Sources: Chase's Calendar of Events 2008, p. 234
Historical Statistics of the United States: Colonial Times to 1970, p. 716
Statistical Abstract of the United States 2008, t. 1064
http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/2008edition.html