INDIANA PLATE TYPES - SUMMARY CHRONOLOGICALLY BY INTRODUCTION DATE
(Types researched through 1980)
PLATE TYPE EARLIEST SEEN BEGAN NOTES
Passenger 1905 1905 Ch. 109A P 3/6/1905
Dealer 1913 7/1/13 Ch. 130 P 3/15/1913
Motorcycle 1913 7/1/13 Ch. 130 P 3/15/1913
Truck 1920 1920 Ch. 196 P 3/15/1919
Trailer 1922 1921 Ch. 214 P 3/10/1921
Bus 1925 1924 Ch. 186 P 3/6/1923
Free 1926 1926 Ch. 213 P 3/14/1925
Sample 1926
Semi-Trailer 1931 1926 Ch. 213 P 3/14/1925
Tractor 1936 1926 Ch. 213 P 3/14/1925
Unknown type "IT" 1928 Only year seen
Elected State Official(*) 1934 1932
State Excise Police UND. 1935? Formed 1935
Duplicate 1936 Not issued 1934
Fort Harrison 1936
House Car 1937 4/1/37 Ch. 271 P 3/12/1937
National Guard UND. 1937?
Transporter 1939 4/1/37 Ch. 271 P 3/12/1937
School Bus 1941 7/8/41 Ch. 79 P 3/3/1941
General Assembly 1944 1942 SOS decision
State Owned 1942 1942
Farm Tractor 1943 1943 Ch. 81 P 3/1/1943
Medical Doctor 1948 1/1/48 Only year issued
U.S. Congressman/Senator 1954 1948
Church Bus 1951 1950 Ch. 258 P 3/10/1949
Disabled Veteran 1951 1/3/50 Ch. 12 P 2/25/1949
Motorcycle Dealer 1953 1950 Ch. 258 P 3/10/1949
Amateur Radio 1954 1954 Ch. 110 P 3/9/1953
Free Truck 1957 Only year seen
Historic Motor Vehicle UND. 11/7/57 Ch. 253 P 3/13/1957
Municipal Owned 1958 1958
Mun. Owned Farm Tractor 1958 Only year seen
Municipal Owned Truck 1958 Only year seen
(State Owned Truck Reported 1958)
Municipal Owned M/C UND. 1959 issue
General Assembly Truck 1959 1959
School Training Car 1960 1959
Mun. Owned School Bus 1962
Special Machinery 1962
State Owned University 1962 1962
Special Event UND. 1963 issue
State Represent./Senator 1964 1964
State Owned M/C 1965
Farm Truck 1970 1970
Motor Home 1971 1971
Special Event 1971
Handicapped "MAR 75" 1974 P.L. 88 P 4/9/1973
Semi-Trailer Two Year 1976 1975?
Farm Trailer 1978 1978 P.L.119 P 4/29/1977
Manufacturer 1978
Personalized "JAN 79" 1/2/78 P.L. 8 P 5/26/1977
Transfer 1978
Recreational Veh. (RV) "APR 80" 1979
State Police UND. 1979?
PERMITS:
Weight Tax 1933 8/1/33 Ch. 152 P 3/8/1933
State Parks Boat Permit 1953 1953 Law P 1953
Non-Motor Vehicle 1954 1954 Ch. 219 P 3/13/1953
(Grain Dealer Reported 1960)
Water Well Drilling 1971/72
LETTER PREFIX KEY: (All other letters/years are Passenger)
BA-BD Bus 1944-49 SCB School Bus 1945-49
FT Farm Tractor 1945-49 SO State Owned 1945-49, 1961
FTH Fort Harrison 1944-45 ST Semi-Trailer 1944-49
GA General Assembly 1942-49 T Truck 1922-49
HC House Car 1945-49 TL Trailer 1944-49
M Dealer 1913-38 TN Transporter 1945
MD Medical Doctor 1948 TR Tractor 1944-49
MO Municipal Owned 1961
PLATES ORDERED:
1920 1923 1924 1927 1935 1938
Passenger 250,000 P 425,000 P 550,000 P 680,000 P 725,000 P 860,000 P
Truck 10,000 P 58,000 P 80,000 P 110,000 P 125,000 P 160,000 P
M/C 10,000 S 7,000 S 6,000 S 3,800 S
Trailer - 3,000 S 4,000 S 28,000 S 3,000 S
Dealer 2,500 P 2,500 P 2,000 P
Bus - - - 1,000 P 1,000 P 1,400 P
Semi-Trailer - - - 3,000 S
Tractor - - - 2,500 ?
House Car - - - - - 5,000 P
Transporter - - - - - 320 P
Weight Tax - - - - - 200,000 S
TAB YEARS:
1943: Tab - Passenger, Dealer, FT, FT.H, M, ScB, ST, TR, TL, T.
Plate - M/C
1952: Tab - Passenger, DN, FT, ST, TR, TL, T.
Plate - Disabled Vet., Elected State Official, Gen. Assembly, M/C, State Owned.
1953: Tab - Passenger, DAV, FT, HC, SB, ST, TR, TL, T.
Plate - Dealer, Gen. Assembly, M/C, M/C Dealer
1955: Tab - Passenger, FT, HC, SB, TL, T.
Plate - Dealer, Gen. Assembly, M/C, M/C Dealer, Trans., U.S. Senate
DETAILED NOTES ALPHABETICALLY BY TYPE:
Passenger colors 1913-69, Truck colors 1970-80 unless noted.
All types start at #1 unless noted.
[ ] = Plates ordered.
1943 Tabs in Truck design.
1956-65 extra-long plates are 6" x 13 3/4".
1967-80 have Truck state/year legends unless noted.
PASSENGER (See Home page)
AMATEUR RADIO
Ch. 110 P 3/9/1953, E 1/1/1954. Began 1954.
1954 W9AA - W9ZZZ
1955 K9AAA - K9ZZZ
1966 WA9AAA - WA9ZZZ (Verify 1963-65)
1978 WB9AAA - WB9ZZZ (Verify 1973-77)
BUS
Ch. 186 P 3/6/1923, E 1/1/1924. Began 1924. Earliest seen 1925.
On 4/1/1937, split into categories A,B,C,D, replacing plain 1937s:
A = Commercial (For Hire) C = Private Owned
B = ? (Discontinued by 1964) D = Restricted Area (City)
LEGENDS: Vertical "BUS" left 1926, 1931-32, 1938, 1942, 1954, 1957, 1959, 1964,
small letter prefix 1942, 1951, 1954, "BA" to "BD" prefix 1944-49,
small letter prefix, large letter suffix 1957, 1959, 1964, 1969, 1975, 1979,
large letter prefix, small letter suffix 1977-78, 1980,
weight class in box bottom 1959, top 1964, "IND-64" bottom 1964,
"BUS" followed by weight class bottom 1969, 1974-75, 1978-80.
1950-56: Weight tags "1" to "11" required for categories A,B,D.
1957-69: Weight classes for categories A,B,D:
A 14,000 E 30,000 J 48,000
B 18,000 F 36,000 K 52,000
C 22,000 G 40,000 L 52,001+
D 26,000 H 44,000
1970-80: Weight classes for categories A,D:
A 7,000 D G 36,000
B E 30,000 H
C F J
1925 2-214 1945 [BA 0000] 1967 D 1 J
1927 [1-000] 1948 BA 187 1969 A 55 B, A 352 E, D 90 E
1931 789 1949 BD 1485 1974 A 37 E (26)
1932 732 1951 C 3 1975 A 72 A, A 89 G, D 1 J
1935 [1 000] 1954 A 405 1977 C 274
1938 D490 1957 A 29D 1978 A 13 E (26), C 766
1942 C 47 1959 A 26B 1979 A 101 A, C 554
1944 BD 52 A 185E 1980 A 66 A, C1664
1964 A 148 E
1965 A 282 E
CHURCH BUS
Ch. 258 P 3/10/1949, E 1/1/1950. Began 1950. Earliest seen 1951.
LEGENDS: Vertical "CHURCH" followed by vertical "BUS" left 1951, 1959, 1964,
"CHURCH BUS" top 1966,
"CHURCH BUS" bottom 1969, 1972-73, 1975, 1977, 1978-79.
(Verify 1950, 1952-58, 1960-63, 1965, 1967-68, 1970-71, 1974, 1976)
1950 1958 1966 1201 1974
1951 252 1959 586 1967 1975 484
1952 1960 1968 1976
1953 1961 1969 1373 1977 5150
1954 1962 1970 1978 1006
1955 1963 1971 1979 4955
1956 1964 749 1972 181 1980 6147
1957 1965 1973 2230
DEALER
Ch. 130 P 3/15/1913. Began 7/1/1913.
Split into New and Used Dealer 1947.
New Dealer began at #1M1; Used Dealer began at #2001M1 1947-81.
LEGENDS: No legend 1913-46. Full-size "M" 1913-40, small "M" 1941-81.
NEW: "INDIANA 47" top, "DEALER-NEW" bottom 1947, 1949, 1954,
"DEALER-NEW" top, "INDIANA 48" bottom 1948, 1950-51, 1953, 1955,
"ND" prefix 1952 tab, "DEALER-NEW" opposite "IND - 56" 1956-65,
no legend 1966-71, "IND - 70", "71" bottom right 1970,
"1971" top, "INDIANA" bottom 1971, "DEALER-NEW" bottom 1972-81.
USED: No legend 1947-69, "IND - 70" top, "71" bottom right 1970,
"1971" top, "INDIANA" bottom 1971, "DEALER-USED" bottom 1972-81.
1913: All plates same size.
Small "M" 1966-67, 1969-70, 1972, 1976, large "M" 1977-81.
1958: #1022M10 on extra-long base.
1960: #5231M13 on extra-long base.
1961: #5231M26 on extra-long base.
1973: #32M1 large M, 993M1, 3000M1 small M.
2 plate sets automatically issued 1935-50.
Suffix number added 1938 to denote plate set number.
Suffix numbers defaulted to "1" in tables below for simplicity.
Highest suffixes seen: 3 1938, 13 1939, 24 1941, 206 1955.
1913 M369 1925 M2-158 1937 M1 858
1914 M382 1926 M1-576 1938 M2487-1*
1915 M556 1927 [M2-500] 1939 2132M1
1916 M587 1928 M2-588 1940 522M1
1917 M799 1929 M2-457* 1941 1175M1
1918 M316 1930 M1 862 1942 962M1
1919 M722 1931 M 2002 1943 TAB 598M1
1920 M1108 1932 M1 889 1944 1945M1
1921 M719 1933 M1 628 1945 2238M1
1922 M1283 1934 M662 1946 272M1
1923 M1-241 1935 [M2 000]
1924 [M2-500] 1936 M947
DEALER NEW USED M/C M/C NEW M/C USED
1947 1896M1 3571M1 - - -
1948 1901M1 3686M1 - - -
1949 272M1 3909M1 - - -
1950 1620M1 3186M1 - -
1951 1312M1 2927M1 - -
1952 TAB ND1312M1 UD - -
1953 PLATE 1785M1 3090M1 78M1 - -
1954 1898M1 4205M1 78M1 - -
1955 PLATE 770M1,2757M1 5042M1, 2688M1 78M1 - -
1956 1329M1 4879M1 1M1 - -
1957 519M1 5376M1 - -
1958 1022M1 4777M1 34M1 - -
1959 1348M1 5760M1 23M1 - -
1960 1069M1 5847M1 - -
1961 765M1 6181M1 142M1 - -
1962 1139M1 5777M1 14M1 - -
1963 1258M1 5318M1 39M1 - -
1964 1332M1 2175M1 27M1 - -
1965 831M1 5100M1 267M1 - -
1966 1147M1 4389M1 373M1 - -
1967 141M1 4389M1 372M1 - -
1968 958M1 4389M1 157M1 - -
1969 1471M1 5941M1 334M1 - -
1970 822M1 4629M1 285M1 - -
1971 643M1 4183M1 367M1 - -
1972 831M1 4729M1 33M1 - -
1973 993M1,5441M1 4883M1 221M1 - -
1974 558M1,5421M1 4642M1 402M1 - -
1975 831M1 4151M1 - 258M1 454M1
1976 1018M1,5421M1 4872M1,1940M1 - 190M1 410M1
1977 831M1 3231M1 - 226M1
1978 670M1 2452M1 - 55M1
1979 998M1 2698M1 - 157M1 446M1
1980 998M1 3752M1 - 55X1 427X1
1981 998M1 3161M1 - 134X1 461X1
DISABLED VETERAN
Ch. 12 P 2/25/1949. Began 1/3/1950. Earliest seen 1951.
No 1973 plate issued; switched to expiration date 1974.
LEGENDS: "DISABLED VET." above small serial 1951-76,
stepped "DAV" left 1977-81. Passenger design 1970-81.
(Verify 1950, 1955, 1957)
1950 [750] 1958 191 1966 468 1974 1497
1951 318 1959 420 1967 586 1975 1487
1952 307 1960 435 1968 54 1976 1561
1953 TAB 307 DAV 1961 548 1969 723 1977 1704
1954 520 1962 373 1970 462 1978 1325
1955 1963 51 1971 1217 1979 1529
1956 706 1964 500 1972 873 1980 1483
1957 1965 566 1973 (none) 1981 1875
DUPLICATE
Earliest seen 1936. All are replacements of original number.
As of 1934, regular plates with same number still being issued.
Issued for all types. Passenger, Bus, Dealer, Farm, M/C, Tractor,
Trailer, Truck seen; State Representative reported.
Last seen 1972 (Farm Truck, Tractor); reported 1981. (1976 Used Dealer seen.)
Evansville Journal, 11/26/1935: "Every duplicate license issued
bears an identification mark...In the space separating the series of
numbers on the license is placed a small dash. For instance the
original plate 140 440 will in duplicate be 140-440."
Indianapolis Star, 2/9/1972:
"Among other bills passed by the House were measures which would...
Permit the Bureau of Motor Vehicles to issue replacements for missing
or stolen license plates out of a branch's inventory, instead of by
producing a special duplicate plate. (S.B. 282, passed, 77-2, and
returned to Senate for concurrence in or dissent with House amendements.)
Undated White/Blue "REPLACEMENT" sticker reported 1973/74, seen 1980,
also on 1974 Truck, 1977 Tractor and 1978 Semi Trailer.
LEGENDS: Normal legend, hyphen 1936 #170-804,
"IND." followed by blank box 1936 #310 025, 411 748,
"IND." followed by blank box (instead of "INDIANA") 1937-39,
"IND." followed by "DUPLICATE" in box 1940-42,
"IND/1944" instead of "IND" over "1944" right 1944 #710694,
"IND" followed by blank box 1945 #300 619,
"DUP-45" opposite "INDIANA" 1945 #594 693,
"DUP-47" opposite "INDIANA" 1947-48, 1951, 1954,
"DUP" inside box left 1952 Tab,
"DUP" inside box in place of "IND" 1955 Tab,
"DUP" inside box between "IND" and "56" bottom 1956, 1958, 1962, 1966,
"DUP" inside box between "IND" and "57" top 1957, 1961,
"DUP" inside box between "19" and "63" top 1963, 1965,
"DUP" between "19" and "67" top 1967, 1969, bottom 1968,
"DUP" between "IND" and "70" top 1970,
"DUP" between "71" and "IND" top 1971.
(Verify 1943 Tab, 1946, 1949-50, 1953 tab, 1959-60, 1964, 1972-on)
(1960 New Dealer, 1964 Trailer seen)
ELECTED STATE OFFICIAL
Began 1932. Earliest seen 1934. (Governor assigned #1 since at least
1916.) Only *1 issued in 1932. *1 to *14 and a "double star" 1
issued 1933. Issued up to *51 in 1935. 1942 *1 returned to prison
for scrap in May 1943. New plates issued 1952. Star plates increased
significantly in 1942 when plain low numbers weren't issued. 800
issued 1948; reduced to 22 in 1949. Only 20 assigned in 1950-51,
22 in 1954. In 1954, Governor assigned #AR 1001 and AA 3289 instead.
In 1964, listed as being issued to "Governor, Lt. Governor,
Secretary of State, Auditor, Treasurer, Superintendent Public
Instruction, Judges and Reporter of Supreme and Appelate Courts."
Solid star prefix all years. 1971-72 have "1971" top, "INDIANA"
bottom. Passenger design, screened star and serial 1977-81.
1932 1945 *700 1958 1971 *20
1933 1946 *601 1959 *15 1972 *20
1934 *87 1947 *322 1960 *24 1973 (none)
1935 1948 *700 1961 1974 *19
1936 1949 1962 *20 1975 *19
1937 1950 1963 *2 1976 *8
1938 *1 1951 *1 1964 *15 1977 *1
1939 *17 1952 TAB 1965 1978 *1
1940 *131 1953 TAB 1966 *16 1979 *126
1941 *69 1954 1967 *3 1980 *12
1942 *657 1955 TAB 1968 1981 *4
1943 TAB 1956 1969 *18
1944 *593 1957 1970 *17
FARM TRACTOR
Ch. 81 P 3/1/1943. Began 1943, but 1943 tab probably issued with
1942 base. Issued singly.
LEGENDS: "FT" prefix 1943-49,
vertical "FARM" followed by vertical "TRACT" left 1950-65,
"FT" suffix 1952-55 tabs,
"FARM TRACT" opposite state/year legend 1966-80.
(Verify 1942, 1944, 1979)
1948-63: Extra-long size for #10000+.
1942 1955 TAB 19879FT 1968 5953*
1943 TAB FT 445 1956 18120 1969 1642
1944 1957 13402 1970 4799*
1945 FT 252 1958 12288 1971 4798*
1946 FT 2684 1959 11961* 1972 2750*
1947 FT 9312 1960 10398* 1973 4237*
1948 FT18603 1961 8916* 1974 5049*
1949 FT17484 1962 9955* 1975 12
1950 17215 1963 10308* 1976 709
1951 35699 1964 9626* 1977 1166
1952 TAB 12090 FT 1965 9309* 1978 1348*
1953 TAB 25619 FT 1966 9707* 1979
1954 16908 1967 9132* 1980 3
FARM TRAILER
P.L. 119 P 4/29/1977, E 1/1/1978, reducing the fee for farm
trailers by half. Began 1978.
LEGENDS: "TR" bottom left, vertical "FARM" right 1978,
"TRAIL" bottom left, vertical "FARM" right 1979-80.
1978 1417
1979 3169
1980 666
FARM TRUCK
Began 1970.
LEGENDS: "TK" bottom left, vertical "FARM" right 1970-80, "IND - 70" top 1970.
White/Black weight sticker FT11, 16, 20, 26, 30.
1970 52441* 1974 59984* 1978 53298*
1971 55170* 1975 62417* 1979 41394
1972 60028* 1976 49773* 1980 49915*
1973 58798* 1977 43595
FORT HARRISON
Earliest seen 1936. Pairs 1936. Last seen 1945 blueprint.
LEGENDS: "FORT HARRISON" top, "IND/1936" left 1936, 1940-42, right 1939,
"FT.H" prefix 1943-45.
1936 11 1940 151 1944 FT.H 715
1937 1941 314 1945 [FT.H 000]
1938 1942 698
1939 66 1943 TAB FT.H 523
FREE
Ch. 213 P 3/14/1925, E 1/1/1926. Began 1926.
Issued to State, County and Municipal owned vehicles.
Discontinued by Ch. 119 P 3/10/1931, E 1/1/1932.
All vehicles now had to purchase regular plates at full price.
Free plates reinstated by Ch. 188 P 3/9/1935; registration figures
listed again 1936-40. Plates seem to have been contracted for by
individual cities and counties. (1935-38 Marshall Co. Highway
Department plates #9, 1937 Fulton Co. Highway Dept. #7 seen.)
LEGENDS: Vertical "FREE" left 1926, outlined star left 1927,
solid star left 1928-31.
1926 2-808 1929 2-357
1927 4-046 1930 5 293
1928 907 1931 4 700
FREE TRUCK
Only seen 1957 #648 - 2204.
Vertical "TRUCK" left, "FREE" in box at bottom instead of weight.
GENERAL ASSEMBLY
Began 1942. Earliest seen 1944. New plates 1952-53, 1955.
Issued to 100 State Representatives and 50 State Senators.
Created by decision of Secretary of State.
1949 is reflectorized. Discontinued 1964; replaced by State
Representative and State Senator.
LEGENDS: "GA" prefix 1942-49,
"GEN. ASSEMBLY" above small serial 1951, 1954-63.
(Verify 1942-43, 1945-46, 1950, 1952)
1942 [GA 150] 1948 GA 78 1954 68 1960 98
1943 TAB 1949 GA 20 1955 89 1961 106
1944 GA 108 1950 1956 127 1962 85
1945 [GA 0000] 1951 41 1957 90 1963 114
1946 1952 1958 142
1947 GA 142 1953 68 1959 149
GENERAL ASSEMBLY TRUCK
Began 1959. Same design as General Assembly, but "7 000" bottom
instead of "LINCOLN YEAR", #92.
Indianapolis News, February 28, 1959: "Bully for Buxton"
"State Representative Leland Buxton (D., Blocher) displays the
special General Assembly license plate made for his pickup truck...
Buxton told the House he'd been refused a General Assembly plate
because he didn't have a car. He said he was a humble man and had
only a pickup truck. Democratic Speaker Birch Bayh made a special
case of Buxton's predicament and got him a plate with the truck's
gross weight imprinted at the bottom."
The Tribune (Seymour), March 9, 1960:
"Buxton Issued Special Assembly Truck Plate"
"Leland C. Buxton, of Blocher, a member of the Indiana House of
Representatives who is a candidate for state senator...in the
primary election to be held May 3, Tuesday obtained his 1960
special General Assembly license plate for his truck. The plate
is the only General Assembly truck plate issued in the state and
he said it was obtained for him this year through the cooperation
of the Indiana attorney general. Last year, special action by
the state legislature was taken in order for Buxton to be issued
the plate. He maintained he was entitled to it since he only had
a truck and the other legislators were issued special General
Assembly license plates for their automobiles. Buxton...was
exhibiting his new truck plate, General Assembly No. 92, which he
said was made especially for him at the Indiana state prison at
Michigan City."
Mr. Buxton lost the Senate election, and didn't seek reelection
to the House for 1961, ending this type in 1960.
HANDICAPPED
P.L. 88 P 4/9/1973. Began 1974, expire "MAR 75".
LEGENDS: No legend, wheelchair right 1975-76, left 1977-80.
Passenger design 1975-81.
1975 H 595 1978 719 1981 2395
1976 H 471 1979 684
1977 603 1980 1151
HISTORIC MOTOR VEHICLE
Ch. 253 P 3/13/1957. Began 11/7/1957, when drawing for lowest
numbers was held. Issued to vehicles at least 25 years old for
$15.50 fee. Undated permanent base 1957-76.
6 1/4" x 12" 1957-80, 6" x 12" 1981. Red/Yellow 1977-81.
P.L. 67 P 4/22/1975, E 1/1/1976, changed to annual registration
and plates for $12 fee. It is believed the embossed date is the
year of expiration; some seen with month stickers, most often "FEB".
LEGENDS: "HISTORIC/MOTOR VEHICLE" top above small serial, car graphic left all years,
"INDIANA" bottom 1957-76, "IND 1977" bottom 1977-81.
Undated (1957) Base Dated Bases
Type 1 - Long slots, cream 10 - 1556 (1,547) 1977 2966
Type 2 - Inset holes, cream 1651 - 2165 (515) 1978 2940
Type 3 - Corner holes, cream 2382 - 1979 2213
Type 4 - Corner holes, yellow 3132 - 3889 (758) 1980 2476
Type 5 - Inset holes, yellow 4762 - 5283 (522) 1981 2405
HOUSE CAR
Ch. 271 P 3/12/1937. Began 4/1/1937. Issued singly.
(Previously issued Trailer plates.)
Monthly staggered registration began 1976, with month stickers
"FEB" to "JUN" applied to 1976 and later plates. Unlike most
passenger plates, the month sticker expired in the next year;
i.e. a 1976 plate with a "FEB" sticker expired in Feb. 1977.
Discontinued 1979; replaced by Recreational Vehicle.
LEGENDS: "IND/1937" left, "HOUSE CAR" bottom 1937-38,
"HOUSE CAR" top, "IND/1941" left 1941, "HC" prefix 1945-49,
vertical "HOUSE" followed by vertical "CAR" left 1950-65,
"HC" suffix 1953-55 tabs,
"HOUSE CAR" opposite state/year legend 1966-78.
(Verify 1940, 1943-45, 1952)
1948, 1951-64: Extra-long size for #10000+.
1937 1 710 1951 17849 1965 18103*
1938 4 016* 1952 TAB 1966 21985*
1939 3 046 1953 TAB 11075 HC 1967 19021
1940 1954 9474 1968 27095*
1941 4277 1955 TAB 9252 HC 1969 32505*
1942 9697 1956 6061 1970 36179*
1943 TAB 1957 3076 1971 38484*
1944 1958 4220 1972 45401*
1945 [HC 0000] 1959 8773* 1973 57762*
1946 HC 9301 1960 7634* 1974 59171*
1947 HC 666 1961 9348* 1975 60864*
1948 HC 10629 1962 10624* 1976 68287*
1949 HC 9348 1963 11837* 1977 64479*
1950 7505 1964 12417 1978 73667
MANUFACTURER
Earliest seen 1978. All have "MFG DLR" bottom.
1978 1234M8
1979 1171M18
MEDICAL DOCTOR
Began 1/1/1948. Only issued 1948, "MD" prefix, [MD 1 - MD 4000].
MOTORCYCLE (See Motorcycle page)
Ch. 130 P 3/15/1913. Began 7/1/1913.
MOTORCYCLE DEALER (See Dealer Table)
Ch. 258 P 3/10/1949, E 1/1/1950. Began 1950. Earliest seen
1953. Split into New Dealer and Used Dealer 1975.
Dated 1981 issued, unlike Motorcycle.
LEGENDS: No legend 1953-74, "DLR.-NEW" 1975-76, 1978-79,
"DEALER NEW" 1977, 1980-81, "DLR.-USED" 1975-76,
"DEALER USED" 1979-81.
(Verify 1950-52, 1957, 1960, 1977-78 USED)
Numbers began at #1M1 1950-74.
New Dealer began at #1M1, Used Dealer began at #401M1 1976-81.
2 plates automatically issued 1950. Suffix number denotes
plate set number.
Suffix numbers defaulted to "1" in table for simplicity.
Highest suffix seen: 10 1954.
MOTOR HOME
Began 1971. Only seen 1971-72.
LEGENDS: "MOTOR HOME" opposite state/year legend 1971-72.
1971 3918
1972 4074
MUNICIPAL OWNED
Began 1958.
Undated base was 1959 5-year issue, abandoned in mid-1960.
Issued to vehicles owned by a County, City, Town, Township or
other municipality. Previously issued BX passenger plates
1956-57, AR 1954-55.
LEGENDS: "C-T/OWNED" left 1958,
"C-T/OWNED", "DRIVE SAFELY" in box bottom UND. (1959), 1960,
no legend, "MO" prefix 1961,
"M-O/OWNED" left 1962-64, "MUN./OWNED" left 1965,
"MUN.OWNED" opposite state/year legend 1966-70,
"MUN. OWNED" top, "INDIANA" bottom UND. (1972-79).
COLORS: White/Maroon UND. (1959), Dark Blue/Gold UND. (1972-79).
Extra-long for #10000+ UND. (1959), 1961-65.
MUN. OWNED MUN. M/C MUN. SCHOOL BUS
1958 3984
UND. (1959) 12967 MO 262
1960 9569
1961 MO 11319
1962 11364 2188
1963 10108
1964 10316 1730
1965 13042 MO 1 2528
1966 12543 MO 295 2953
1967 10790 MO 277 2090
1968 6004 2097
1969 12122 MO360 4345
1970-71 1573
UND. (1972-79) 53084 638 8292
MUNICIPAL OWNED FARM TRACTOR
Only seen 1958, vertical "FARM" followed by vertical "TRACT" and
vertical "CT" left, #16.
MUNICIPAL OWNED MOTORCYCLE (See Municipal Owned)
Earliest seen 1959 undated.
Undated base was 1959 5-year issue, abandoned mid-1960.
Assumed to have begun 1958 since other Municipal types seen 1958.
LEGENDS: "MO" prefix, line at bottom UND. (1959), "MO" prefix 1965-69,
"MUN. OWNED" top,"INDIANA" bottom UND. (1972-79).
COLORS: White/Maroon UND. (1959), Dark Blue/Gold UND. (1972-79).
MUNICIPAL OWNED SCHOOL BUS (See Municipal Owned)
Earliest seen 1962.
LEGENDS: "M-O/OWNED" left, "SCHOOL BUS" in box top, "IND - 62" bottom 1962, 1964,
"MUN./OWNED" left, "IND - 65" top, "SCHOOL BUS" in box bottom 1965,
"SCHOOL BUS" top, "MUN./OWNED" left 1966,
"IND - 67/SCHOOL BUS" top above small serial, "MUN.OWNED" bottom 1967, 1969,
"MUN.OWNED/SCHOOL BUS" top, "IND - 68" bottom 1968,
"MUN.OWNED/SCHOOL BUS" top, "INDIANA" bottom UND.
(1972-79).
COLORS: Dark Blue/Gold UND. (1972-79).
MUNICIPAL OWNED TRUCK
Only seen 1958, vertical "TRUCK" followed by vertical "CT" left,
"DRIVE SAFELY" in box at top instead of weight, #4253 - 6178.
NATIONAL GUARD
A. Undated (1937?), vertical "N.G." left, vertical "U.S." right, #3.
B. Undated (1939-42?), vertical "IND" left, vertical "USNG" right,
serial top, winged design center, "OBS. SQD." bottom (= Observation Squad), #113.
PERSONALIZED
P.L. 8 P 5/26/1977. Began 1/2/1978, expire "JAN 79".
Passenger design 1979-81.
RECREATIONAL VEHICLE
Began 1979, expire "FEB 80". Passenger design 1980-81.
Previously issued House Car plates.
"FEB 80" 65205 R/V
"MAR 81" 68026 R/V*
SAMPLE
Earliest seen 1926. (Verify 1929)
(1923 Red/Gray #098-765 prototype seen.)
LEGENDS: Vertical "SAMPLE" right 1963-76 except 1964 #13K0000.
1926-28 000-000 1956 AA 0000, CC 0000
1928 00-000 1957 AA 0000
1930-42, 1945-49 000 000 1958 CC 0000
1933 000000 1959 CC 0000, 00000
1936 0 000 1960-62 CC 0000
1936-37 0000 1963 CC 0000, 41A000
1943 TAB 000 000 196 13K0000
1944 0000000 1964-76 99A000
1950-51, 1954 CC 0000 1977-78 99A0000
1952-53 TABS AK0000 1979 99A0000, 00H0000
1955 TAB 000000, 0000000 1980-81 00A0000
SCHOOL BUS
Ch. 79 P 3/3/1941. Began 7/8/1941. Previously issued truck plates.
Attorney General ruled on 9/17/1941 that the $10 registration fee
was payable one time only, so 1941 plates became semipermanent.
Therefore, no 1942 plates issued until new 1943 law (Ch. 57)
providing for annual $10 registration and a $5 half-year rate took
effect 8/1/1943.
LEGENDS: "INDIANA-41" top, "SCHOOL BUS" bottom. small serial on short plate 1941,
"ScB" prefix 1943-49, "SCH'L/BUS" left 1950-54, "SB" suffix 1953-55 tabs,
vertical "SCHOOL" followed by vertical "BUS" left 1957-65,
"SCHOOL BUS" opposite state/year legend 1966-80.
(Verify 1942, 1944, 1952)
1941 6011 1955 TAB 5920 SB 1969 5360*
1942 1956 5747 1970 5361*
1943 TAB ScB 7017 1957 6600 1971 2095
1944 1958 5021 1972 4278*
1945 ScB3257 1959 6084 1973 5439*
1946 ScB3417 1960 5377* 1974 7045*
1947 ScB5808 1961 3602 1975 3696
1948 ScB6858 1962 6026* 1976 4740*
1949 ScB5116 1963 6286* 1977 3717*
1950 9704 1964 5700* 1978 4545*
1951 9513 1965 5816* 1979 4579*
1952 TAB 1966 6795* 1980 4533*
1953 TAB 3224SB 1967 5689*
1954 9342 1968 5190*
SCHOOL TRAINING CAR
Began 1959. Earliest seen 1960.
Issued to schools for drivers' education cars.
LEGENDS: Vertical "SCHOOL" followed by vertical "TC" left 1960-65,
"SCHOOL T.C." top, "IND - 66" bottom 1966, 1968, 1970,
"IND - 67" top, "SCHOOL T.C." bottom 1967, 1969,
"SCHOOL T.C." top, "INDIANA" bottom UND. (1972-79).
(Verify 1959)
COLORS: Dark Blue/Gold UND. (1972-79).
1959 1964 112 1969 855
1960 1016 1965 1002 1970-71 527
1961 1137 1966 687 UND. (1972-79) 1
1962 178 1967 1147
1963 141 1968 136
SEMI-TRAILER
Ch. 213 P 3/14/1925, E 1/1/1926. Began 1926. Earliest seen 1931.
LEGENDS: Vertical "SEMI" followed by vertical "TRAIL" left 1931, 1936-42, 1950-65,
"ST" prefix 1943-49, "ST" suffix 1952-53 tabs,
"SEMI TR." opposite state/year legend 1966-80.
(Verify 1926-30, 1932-35, 1940, 1947)
1941-42, 1950-65: Extra-long size for #10000+.
1945-49: "ST" in thin dies, so no extra-long size needed.
1934: Weight tabs "1" to "6" issued.
1951-56: Weight tags "1" to "11" required.
1957-80: No weight classes on plates but 1958 weight tag seen.
1926 1945 ST 6499 1964 58110*
1927 1946 ST15177 1965 70440*
1928 1947 1966 69899*
1929 1948 ST12042 1967 72860*
1930 1949 ST 8124 1968 36327
1931 1 001 1950 23745 1969 12269
1932 1951 24806 1970 52465*
1933 1952 TAB 18529 ST 1971 69171*
1934 1953 TAB 37199 ST 1972 62759*
1935 [3 000] 1954 22246 1973 26196
1936 6 509* 1955 TAB 3929 ST 1974 55411
1937 7 308* 1956 34186 1975 79641*
1938 8 1957 29700 1976 60704
1939 2 807 1958 26157 1977 42363
1940 1959 33330 1978 47367
1941 10 057 1960 19679 1979 54385
1942 12 002 1961 51005* 1980 55945
1943 TAB ST 5258 1962 58585*
1944 ST 8993 1963 29440
SEMI-TRAILER TWO YEAR
Reportedly began 1975, dated "76". Earliest seen "76".
LEGENDS: "IND-SEMI" top, "76" bottom right 1976-82.
COLORS: All match previous year's truck plates 1976-81,
truck plates 1982. (Verify 1977)
1976 90501 - 100006 (9,506) 1980 93237 - 99432 (6,196)
1977 1981 94300 - 97880 (3,581)
1978 94732 - 97841 (3,110) 1982 93081 - 98016 (4,936)
1979 92836 - 93865 (1,030)
SPECIAL EVENT
The (Elwood) Call-Leader, 6/7/1971: "The Governor has the authority
under a special law passed some time ago to authorize plates for a
specified ceremonial event for a designated period of time."
A. Indianapolis 500 Festival first held 1956. Plates reported in 1960.
Assigned: 1962 34, 1963 40, 1964 37, 1965 43, 1969 43, 1970 38, 1973 62.
No state-made plates produced for 1967, but resumed 1968.
Indianapolis Star, 3/17/1963: "500" FESTIVAL PLATES...The special
plates were put on 40 official festival Chrysler convertibles that
were distributed to "500" Festival Committee members Thursday.
The festival cars are duplicates of the Chrysler 300 convertible
that will pace the 500-Mile Race Memorial Day." Includes photo
of undated light/dark plates, no state name, "OFFICIAL CAR" above
"INDIANAPOLIS" above "500 FESTIVAL" left, small serial right.
Indianapolis News, 4/9/1969: Q - "How about the 33 pace cars which
are operating with "Official Pace Car" plates? Is it legal to
operate these cars on our city streets during the months of April
and May without proper tags?" A - "These plates do serve as proper
tags. There are two types - 500 Mile Race plates and "500" Festival
plates, and there are only about 150 of them in use. The plates
were purchased, and are only good until the 500 activities are over,
at which time owners must replace them with standard plates."
Earliest dated plate seen 1975.
1975 PACE CAR 98
1976 PACE CAR 84
1977 PACE CAR 132
1978 PACE CAR 144, WRECKER 3
1979 PACE CAR 156, 500, WRECKER 7
1980 PACE CAR 130
1981 PACE CAR 103
B. 1971 Nato Conference, valid 5/25/1971 to 6/1/1971.
250 Blue/White plates issued with multicolored logo.
C. 1971 Republican Governors' Conference #29.
SPECIAL MACHINERY
Earliest seen 1962. Ch. 81 P 3/1/1943 for Farm Tractor plates. Issued singly.
Alexandria Times-Tribune, 8/3/1943:
"The new tractor law provides that a farm tractor plate must be obtained for
all tractors which are used in transportation...The same type of plate will
also be required for each unit of special farm machinery..."
Lafayette Journal and Courier, 8/4/1948:
"All plates with the exception of farm tractor plates and special farm
machinery plates will sell at half price for the remainder of the year."
LEGENDS: "SPECIAL" in box above "MACHINERY" top above small serial, "IND - 62" bottom 1962-66,
"1967/SPECIAL MACHINERY" top above small serial, "INDIANA" bottom 1967, 1969, 1971-72,
"INDIANA/SPECIAL MACHINERY" top above small serial, "1968" bottom 1968, 1970, 1973-79,
"IND - 80" top, "SPEC MACH" bottom 1980.
1962 2498 1967 13133 1972 17074 1977 19912
1963 3656 1968 13873 1973 18756 1978 21194
1964 6348 1969 14420 1974 20141 1979 22563
1965 6323 1970 14549 1975 21928 1980 21083
1966 10524 1971 16296 1976 19370
STATE EXCISE POLICE
State Excise Commission, Alcoholic Beverage Division, was formed
in 1935. Undated, White/Blue, 1932-38 dies, "INDIANA" top,
"EXCISE" center, "STATE POLICE" bottom, #5 - 122 at upper right.
STATE OWNED
Began 1942. New plate 1952.
Undated base was 1959 5-year issue, abandoned in mid-1960.
LEGENDS: "STATE OWNED CAR" top, "INDIANA-42" bottom, small serial on short plate 1942,
"SO" prefix 1945-49, 1961, "STATE OWNED" reported for 1950,
"STATE/OWNED" left 1952, 1954, 1956, 1958, UND. (1959), 1960, 1962-65,
"ST.OWNED" opposite state/year legend 1966-70,
"ST.OWNED" top, "INDIANA" bottom UND. (1972-79).
"DRIVE SAFELY" bottom UND. (1959)
(Verify 1943-48, 1950-51, 1953, 1955, 1957, 1960)
COLORS: White/Maroon UND. (1959), Dark Blue/Gold UND. (1972-79).
"OFFICIAL USE ONLY" sticker issued 1971.
1942 342 1952 124 1962 4909
1943 TAB 1953 1963 2776
1944 1954 1459 1964 5145
1945 [SO 0000] 1955 1965 4425
1946 1956 835 1966 4994
1947 (SO 300 rep.) 1957 1967 1803
1948 1958 1986 1968 1453
1949 SO 58 UND. (1959) 6130 1969 4056
1950 1960 1970-71 6310
1951 1961 SO 678 UND. (1972-79) 68060
STATE OWNED MOTORCYCLE
Earliest seen 1965.
LEGENDS: "SO" prefix 1965, 1969.
1965 SO 4
1969 SO 10
(STATE OWNED TRUCK
Reported 1958 with "TRUCK S/O" legend.)
STATE OWNED UNIVERSITY
Began 1962. Issued to vehicles owned by Ball State, Indiana,
Indiana State and Purdue Universities. Ivy Tech added later.
Dark Blue/Gold UND. (1972-79).
1962: "PURDUE UNIV." above small serial, "STATE/OWNED" left, "IND - 62" bottom, #268.
1964: "INDIANA/INDIANA STATE" top above small serial, "STATE/OWNED" left, "1964" bottom, #5.
1965: "INDIANA/INDIANA UNIV." top above small serial, "STATE/OWNED" left, "1965" bottom, #7019 - 7238.
1966: "150th YEAR/INDIANA UNIV." top above small serial, "STATE/OWNED" left, "IND - 66" bottom, #7380 - 7392.
Same but "BALL STATE", #7511 - 7528.
Same but "INDIANA STATE", #7586.
1968: "ST.OWNED/PURDUE UNIV." top above small serial, "IND - 68" bottom, #6957.
1970-71: "1970/INDIANA UNIV." above small serial, "INDIANA" bottom, #7480;
same but "BALL STATE UNIV.", #7780.
UND. (1972-79): "ST.OWNED/INDIANA STATE UNIV." top, "INDIANA" bottom, #7226 - 7763, IVY TECH #34.
STATE POLICE
Believed to have begun 1979. Undated, Blue/White, "INDIANA"
screened top, "State Police" screened bottom, blue map outlined
in yellow, containing a yellow torch with stars, left, #4238.
STATE REPRESENTATIVE/SENATOR
Began 1964. Previously issued General Assembly plates.
Issued to 100 State Representatives and 50 State Senators; unsure
why there are plate numbers as high as #200 and #100, respectively.
Perhaps members were allowed two cars each, as 1975 #38 and 138
found together.
LEGENDS: "STATE REPRESENTATIVE" or "STATE SENATOR" above small serial 1964-75,
"STATE/REP." or "STATE/SENATOR" screened left, screened serial 1977-81.
Passenger design 1964, 1966-70, 1977-81,
"INDIANA" top, "1965" bottom 1965, 1973, 1975,
"1971" top, "INDIANA" bottom 1971, 1972, 1974.
1970/71 and 1977-79 have month expiration stickers.
REP. SEN. REP. SEN. EXP. REP. SEN.
1964 64 39 1970/71 3 26 1977 176 100
1965 79 23 1971 199 1978 165 82
1966 61 32 1972 58 53 1979 180 54
1967 168 96 1973 151 1980 200 79
1968 79 54 1974 111 1981 200 96
1969 3 79 1975 138 21
TRACTOR
Ch. 213 P 3/14/1925, E 1/1/1926. Began 1926.
Reported 1932, listed 1935. Earliest seen 1936.
LEGENDS: Vertical "TRACT" left 1936-42, 1951-65,
"TR" prefix 1943-49, "TR" suffix 1952-53 tabs,
"TRACT 14" (etc.) opposite state/year legend 1966-80.
(Verify 1926-35, 1938, 1950, 1955, 1958)
1953 TAB: 11836 TR has 3rd hole inside "D".
1951-56: Weight tags "1" to "11" required.
Weight classes same as 1957-69.
1926 1937 6 699* 1948 TR10849
1927 1938 1949 TR19392
1928 1939 8 524* 1950
1929 1940 9 399 1951 32038
1930 1941 989 1952 TAB 12081 TR
1931 1942 13 540 1953 TAB 26045 TR
1932 1943 TAB TR13 150 1954 26626
1933 1944 TR 9863 1955 TAB
1934 1945 TR 9919 1956 13395
1935 [2 500] 1946 TR13818
1936 1 859 1947 TR12802
14000 18000 22000 26000 30000 36000 40000 44000 48000 52000 52000+ TOTAL
1957 727A 205B 668C 10981L (12,581)
1958
1959 1495H 1053J (2,548)
1960 312D 1177F 1284H 363K 12687L (15,823)
1961 1009E 11666L (12,675)
1962 720B (720)
1963 333A 20724L (21,057)
1964 460B 479C 956D 1930E 2703G 3251H 38J 1050K 12430L (23,297)
1965 895A 860B 1126D 1214E 2143F 2060G 2065H 1449J 1917K 15003L (28,732)
1966 1325A 1625B 985C 2188D 1165E 4137F 3876G 4284H 3241J 3894K 22554L (49,274*)
1967 680D 6E 52G 2782K 30671L (34,191*)
1968 75B 9C 1238E 25G 1976H 56J 1745K 26736L (31,860)
1969 78C 61D 1457G 2996H 52J 1742K 30247L (36,633*)
20000 26000 30000 36000 42000 48000 54000 60000 66000 72000 72000+ TOTAL
1970 1D 186F 5547G 1340H 1599J 18620K (27,293)
1971 939A 526B 2464F 2929H (6,858)
1972 1571A 1864B 1410C 1533D 2563E 109F 470G 6587H 2265J 10655K 13612N (42,639*)
1973 1809A 80F 4799G 6954H 398J 20621K 18544N (53,205*)
1974 1926A 1487B 1343D 3367F 3549G 5556H 10247K 11135N (38,610)
1975 1714C 1774D 1339E 48F 7196H 16438K 11456N (39,965*)
1976 1125A 146C 1382D 2482E 1363F 2591G 4950H 5262K 25839N (45,140*)
1977 506B 963C 825D 2053F 5771H 922J 3031K 29642N (43,713*)
1978 436B 2000F 31830N (34,266)
1979 1963E 28F 2812G 3827H 4882K 21583N (35,095)
1980 49A 128B 143D 621E 1748F 899G 1924H 241J 3921K 35967N (45,641)
TRAILER
Ch. 214 P 3/10/1921. Began 1921. Earliest seen 1922.
LEGENDS: Vertical "TRAIL" left 1922-26, 1928-33, 1935-42, 1950-65,
vertical "T A L" before vertical "R I" left 1927,
vertical "TR" above weight tab 1934,
"TL" prefix 1943-49, "TL" suffix 1952-55 tabs,
"TRAIL 3" (etc.) opposite state/year legend 1966-80.
(Verify 1921, 1923)
1945-49: "TL" in thin dies, so no extra-long size needed except 1946-49 TL100000+.
1952 TAB: 26458 TL - 86756 TL have 3rd hole inside "D"; 110122 TL has no 3rd hole.
1953 TAB: 26662 TL - 111474 TL have 3rd hole inside "D".
1957-65: Extra-long size for #10000A+.
1934: Weight tabs "1" to "6" issued.
1951-56: Weight tags "1" to "7" required.
Weight classes same as 1957-80.
1921 1933 15 264 1945 TL73912
1922 1885 1934 27 585 1946 TL103003
1923 1935 34 485 1947 TL92754
1924 [3-000] 1936 29 183 1948 TL114250
1925 668 1937 57 438* 1949 TL117336
1926 5-261 1938 59 593* 1950 121257
1927 [4-000] 1939 62 000* 1951 166552
1928 2-598 1940 66 492 1952 TAB 110122TL
1929 8-977 1941 54 071 1953 TAB 111474TL
1930 8 500 1942 96 354 1954 140939
1931 18 627* 1943 TAB TL72 288 1955 TAB 106272TL
1932 22 005 1944 TL81113 1956 120222
3000 5000 7000 12000 16000 22000 22000+ TOTAL
1957 A, 5548Z 3124B 1691C (110,362)
1958 A, 10821Z (110,820)
1959 A, 11848Z 4121B 1926C 2098D (119,992*)
1960 A, 10102Z 2817B 459C (113,377)
1961 A, 19427Z 3674B 681C 929D 634E 527F 723G (126,594*)
1962 A, 18770Z 4387B 989D 667E 811G (125,623*)
1963 A, 23903Z 7902B 2499C (134,303*)
1964 A, 26252Z 3403B 3514C 1060E 85G (134,313*)
1965 A, 38035Z 4345B 1096C 2920D 1155E 874F 968G (149,392*)
1966 A, 49278Z 9264B 5425C 1230D 1330E 1066F 1510G (169,102*)
1967 A, 31021Z 7325B 5556C 557D (144,458*)
1968 A, 28471Z 4539C 3095D 32G (136,136)
1969 A, 38028Z 11068B 5983C 2194D (157,272*)
1970 A, 27003Z 56E 1460G (128,518)
1971 A, 40822Z 1907B 1231C (143,959)
1972 A, 49676Z 11604B 7516C 763E 430F 975G (170,963)
1973 A, 76838Z (176,837)
1974 A, 58644Z 15058B 1745E 1842F 2260G (179,548)
1975 A, 95823Z 632B 1985E (198,439)
1976 A, 92699Z 13823B 10325C 5140D 3244E 1550F 549G (227,329*)
1977 A,Z, 47L 11007B 8005C 2043E 517G (221,617)
1978 A,Z, 6460L 99B 12524C 5998D 20F 1934G (227,033)
1979 A,Z, 6398L 13937B 855C 6548D 3465E 2000F (233,201)
1980 A,Z, 20717L 12507B 7118C 1692F 564G (242,596*)
TRANSFER
Earliest seen 1978.
LEGENDS: "IND - 78" top, "TRANSFER" bottom 1978-80.
1978 8795M1
1979 8669M1
1980 8452M1
TRANSPORTER
Ch. 271 P 3/12/1937. Began 4/1/1937. Earliest seen 1939.
Two pairs automatically issued 1937-50. White/Red plate 1955.
Issued in pairs 1964, 1966, 1968, 1975.
LEGENDS: "IND/1941" left, "TRANSPORT" bottom 1939, 1941,
"TN" prefix 1945, vertical "TRANS" left 1955-65,
"TRANS" opposite state/year legend 1966-78,
"TRANS DLR" bottom 1980.
1939 14-4 1963 5-65 1973 3-1785
1941 5-26 1964 3-862, 13-40 1974 3-804
1945 [TN00-00] 1965 3-65 1975 3-681, 5-10
1955 13-30 1966 5-189 1976 5-92
1956 18-53 1968 3-1266 1977 3-177
1960 1969 3-794 1978 3-496
1961 5-145 1970 3-3 1980 3-772
TRUCK (See Truck page)
Ch. 196 P 3/15/1919. Began 1920.
U.S. CONGRESSMAN/SENATOR
Began 1948. Earliest seen 1954.
Indiana had 11 U.S. Representatives in 1943-82, 10 in 1983-2002
and 9 since 2003. Indiana has always had 2 U.S. Senators.
LEGENDS: "CONGRESSMAN" above small serial 1954, 1956, 1959, 1962, 1964, 1966, 1971,
"U.S. CONGRESSMAN" above small serial 1967, 1970,
"U.S./CONGRESSMAN" screened left, serial screened 1978.
"U.S. SENATOR" above small serial 1955, 1966-67, 1971, 1975,
"U.S. SENATE" above small serial 1960,
"US SENATOR" above small serial 1964,
"U.S./SENATOR" screened left, serial screened 1977.
UNKNOWN TYPE "IT"
Only seen 1928 #IT09-086, with letters "IT" slightly shorter than
numbers. Possible In-Transit series, as Kentucky's In-Transit
began 1927.
1934 WEIGHT CLASS TABS
CLASS TRUCK/TRAILER SEMI-TRAILER
1 1/2 Ton or less 1 Ton or less
2 >1/2 Ton to 1 Ton >1 Ton to
3 >1 Ton to
4 2 Tons to
5 3 1/2 Tons to
6 5 Tons to
7 7 1/2+ Tons (No Trailer)
1950-56 GROSS WEIGHT CLASS TAGS
Began 1950 for Bus, 1951 for Truck, Trailer, Tractor and
Semi-Trailer. Truck, Tractor and Bus tags to be attached to
front license plate 1950-55, rear license plate 1956.
Colors established from period newspaper articles.
Serial number added 1955 only on classes 6 - 11; seen on all
1956 tags.
1958 "G 3 W" seen - perhaps for Semi-Trailers?
LEGENDS: "G/R 1 W/T" 1951-55, "G/19 1 W/56" 1956.
UND. (1950) UND. (1954) Black/White
UND. (1951) White/Red UND. (1955) White/Black
UND. (1952) White/Green 1956 Black/Yellow
UND. (1953) Black/Yellow
SEMI-TRAILER,
CLASS TRUCK TRAILER TRACTOR AND BUS 1955 1956
1 4,000 3,000 14,000 (none) 174961
2 7,000 5,000 18,000 (none) 122661
3 11,000 7,000 22,000 (none)
4 16,000 12,000 26,000 (none) 44264
5 20,000 16,000 30,000 (none) 19390
6 26,000 22,000 36,000 20431
7 30,000 22,001+ 40,000
8 34,000 44,000
9 34,001+ 48,000
10 52,000
11 52,001+ 18900
PERMITS:
(GRAIN DEALER
1960 reported with "VOID AFTER 1960" legend.)
NON-MOTOR VEHICLE
Ch. 219 P 3/13/1953, E 1/1/1954. Began 1954. Issued to
horse-drawn carriages mostly in Amish communities.
Small size 1954-76, full size 1977-81.
Counties known: Adams, Allen, Daviess, DeKalb, Elkhart, Jay,
Kosciusko, LaGrange, Noble, Steuben, Whitley.
Cities known: Goshen. (This may be the Elkhart plate for 1977 since none seen.)
LEGENDS: (Vary by county and year)
"BUGGIES AND WAGONS" Adams 1955-56, 1961-63, 1965 (Verify 1954, 1957-60, 1964, 1966-70)
"HORSE DRAWN VEHICLE" Adams 1971-79, 1981 (Verify 1980)
Allen 1955-76, 1978-81 (Verify 1977)
Daviess 1962-66, 1968, 1970-74 (Verify 1954-61, 1967, 1969, 1975-81)
Jay 1973 (Verify 1954-72, 1974-81)
Noble 1965, 1968, 1971-74, 1976-80 (Verify 1954-64, 1966-67, 1969-70, 1975, 1981)
Kosciusko 1969
LaGrange 1969
"HORSE DRAWN WAGONS/BUGGIES/AND DRAYS" DeKalb 1956-57, 1959-60 (Verify 1954-55, 1958, 1961-69)
"NON-MOTOR VEHICLE" DeKalb 1970-71, 1973, 1976-77 (Verify 1972, 1974-75, 1978-81)
Elkhart 1956-78, 1980 (Verify 1979, 1981)
Kosciusko 1956-57, 1961, 1963, 1967, 1970-72, 1976-79, 1981 (Verify 1954-55,
LaGrange 1954-68, 1970-81 (1958-60, 1962, 1964-66, 1968, 1973-75, 1980)
Steuben 1971
ADAMS ALLEN DAVIESS DEKALB ELKHART JAY KOSC. LAGRA. NOBLE STEUBEN WHITLEY
1954 2405
1955 202 1075 2953
1956 83 949 18 958 255 1028
1957 278 25 442 385 1955
1958 1075 391 1329
1959 635 15 649 312 1043
1960 873 7 999 1909
1961 166 986 1090 314 1885
1962 230 829 48 844 270 1756
1963 337 1044 119 1042 396 1924 2
1964 1072 338 509 2116
1965 290 1050 63 1112 1960 104
1966 867 290 1126 368 2032 70
1967 900 943 43 2157 60
1968 1024 359 3 969 2426 23
1969 1041 160 1121 194 2500
1970 967 335 17 925 434 2470 54
1971 393 1129 327 43 885 1 313 1752 68 70
1972 69 1121 127 1258 446 2170 29
1973 6 1119 350 24 1204 3 2647 39
1974 227 1072 504 1038 489 2513 75
1975 665 1074 1037 297 2235
1976 753 1073 47 899 17 33 2970 105
1977 688 1091 46 (Goshen?) 68 2509 106
1978 988 524 1279 383 3288 46
1979 105 582 502 45 107 1504 64
1980 805 1046 210 3985 63
1981 914 810 887 75 3900 89 13
GOSHEN (City, but this is probably the Elkhart plate for 1977)
1977 1338
STATE PARKS BOAT PERMIT
S.B. 116 passed in Senate 2/7/1951 but failed in House 2/26/1951.
Reintroduced in the 1953 session and passed the House 2/4/1953.
Began 1953. Issued by State Department of Conservation.
Last seen 1964.
2/9/1951: "Provides for licensing and registration by the State
Department of Conservation of all boats and watercraft used for
the carrying of passengers for hire or offered for rent.
Registration fees would be $2 for rental boats, $5 for "taxi"
boats. License fee would be $1 for each."
LEGENDS: "BOAT PERMIT" top, "1953/INDIANA" left, "STATE PARKS" bottom 1953-54, 1956,
same but "PERMIT" top 1959,
"BOAT" above smaller "EXP.12-31-64" top, "IND. DEPT. CONS." bottom 1964.
COLORS: Dark Green/Yellow 1953, 1959,
Yellow/Dark Green 1954, 1956, 1964.
1953 99 1956 16 1959 215 1962
1954 139 1957 1960 1963
1955 1958 1961 1964 556
WATER WELL DRILLING
Earliest seen 1971/72. Issued by Department of Natural Resources.
Size approximately 4 3/4" x 7 3/4" all years.
Discontinued by 1985/86; replaced by decal.
LEGENDS: "STATE OF INDIANA/WATER WELL DRILLING/CONTRACTOR'S LICENSE" top,
"VALID JULY 1, 1971 JUNE 30, 1972/DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES/
605 STATE OFFICE BLDG. INDPLS." bottom all years.
1971/72 17 - 18 White/Blue 1978/79 132 - 142 Black/Light Blue
1972/73 247 - White/Dark Green 1979/80 69 - 167 White/Brown
1973/74 347 - 678 White/Black 1980/81 66 - 511 White/Red
1974/75 43 - 336 White/Dark Blue 1981/82 35 - 50 Brown/White
1975/76 91 - 153 Red/White 1982/83 220 - 221 Black/White
1976/77 104 - 188 White/Light Green 1983/84 202 - 203 Red/White
1977/78 78 - 192 White/Gold 1984/85?
WEIGHT TAX
Ch. 152 P 3/8/1933, E 8/1/1933. Began 1933.
Small supplemental plate issued by Public Service Commission to
buses, house cars, semi-trailers, tractors, trailers and trucks.
This law was challenged in 1933 but ultimately upheld in 1934;
however, a court injunction prevented the state from collecting
the tax so no plates were issued in 1934 or early 1935.
Ch. 304 P 3/13/1935, E 7/1/1935. Plates went on sale 6/17/1935.
Law expanded E 1/1/1938 to apply to almost all commercial vehicles.
Repealed by Ch. 181 P 3/10/1941, E 1/1/1942. Discontinued 1942.
LEGENDS: "WEIGHT TAX/TRAILER" (etc.) top, "INDIANA 1933" bottom 1933, 1936-37,
"IND. 1938/WEIGHT TAX" top 1938-41.
COLORS: Passenger colors 1933, 1936-37, 1939-41, Gold/Black 1938.
1933 TRAILER 4 1938 28093 - 147092
1936 SEMI-TRAIL 1065 - 1072, 10373 1939 21170 - 157658
TRACTOR 1009 - 1071 1940 20768 - 138897
TRAILER 217 - 218 1941 9428 - 159630
TRUCK 1884
1937 TRAILER 1082
TRUCK 3757
