VIRGINIA

Motorcycles were specifically excluded from the first state motor vehicle registration law of 1906.  We know of no examples of city registration of motorcycles prior to 1910 either.

State motorcycle registration began in mid-1910 at the same time as annual passenger plates, and 234 motorcycles were registered in 1910.  No 1910 motorcycle plates are known, and based on the fact that passenger plates are known with numbers substantially higher than the total number of automobiles registered in 1910, we believe that motorcycles were merely assigned full-size plates.  The earliest motorcycle plates date from 1911 in a curved vertical format, with #428 being the highest known.