- In 1901, New York became the first state to require license plates, which were made by the owners and only required to have the owner’s initials clearly visible on the back of the vehicle
- In Alaska, Arizona, Hawaii, and New Mexico, license plates were required before they were even states
- Inmate labor to manufacture license plates began in the 1920s
- During the early days, drivers in some locales were required to have both a city and a state plate
- The size of license plates was not standardized in the U.S. until 1957
- In 1928, a potato became the first graphic on a US license plate, issued by the state of Iowa
