IOWA

Iowa is a surprisingly early state, both in terms of considering a state automobile law, and actually passing one.  A Cedar Rapids Evening Gazette news article on February 7, 1902, reported that a legislative sub-committee was formed to consider a bill that had been submitted to the state legislature.  The bill would have required registration with the Secretary of State, a $1 fee, and an owner-provided rear plate with 3-inch-tall numbers, all features which eventually became components of the 1904 law.  Automobile registration was first enacted by cities, with Iowa City being the earliest known in 1903, closely followed by Des Moines later that same year.  Both were superceded by the relatively early state law of 1904.  Iowa tied with Maryland for being the ninth state (not including the District of Columbia) to pass a state registration law.

Iowa's first state automobile registration law was 1904 Chapter 53, passed on April 12, 1904, (the same day Maryland's first law passed, and one day before Rhode Island's) and effective July 1, 1904.  The law required automobile owners to register with the Secretary of State, pay a one-time $1 fee, and display both a state-issued disc and an owner-provided rear plate with 3-inch-tall numbers and the letters "IA" in 2-inch-tall letters.  Non-residents were exempted as long as their vehicles were identified by their home plates.  Local ordinances were prohibited except in the case of motor vehicles for hire.  Motorcycles were included and merely issued passenger numbers, but there was no provision for dealers whatsoever.  According to the Waterloo Daily Courier of September 2, 1904, "Under the law, a dealer in autos must have a registered number for each one..."

The first registration was issued on June 21, 1904.  #1000 was reached on April 4, 1905, and #10000 was issued on June 16, 1909.  The Des Moines Register of June 15, 1911, listed the owners of new registrations #28463 to 28472, issued on June 14.  The highest known 1904-11 pre-state plate is #27870, and the highest known disc is #27220.

The 1904 law, particularly the glaring omission of any provision for the general registration of dealers, was amended by 1907 Chapter 68, passed on March 19, 1907 (the same day as Missouri's first statewide registration law).  The regular fee, though still not annual, was raised to $5. (Although not specified by law until 1909, the fee for motorcycles was reduced to $2 in 1907 to allay the protests of motorcycle owners.)  In contrast, the Dealer permit was to be annual, at a fee of $10, with the registration year running from July 1 to June 30.  There was no provision for duplicate plates for additional cars being demonstrated nor any mention of a disc being issued, but the dealer-provided rear plate was to have its number "preceded by the capital letter 'D'" and the same number could be renewed annually.  663 dealers were licensed during 1910.  The highest known pre-state Dealer plate is #D295.  Finally, 1909 Chapter 103, passed February 26, 1909, and effective upon publication in the Des Moines newspapers, officially reduced the fee for motorcycles to $2.

Numbers issued by calendar year, based on registration statistics provided by the secretary of state and published in various newspapers at the time, are as follows, with yearly quantities in ():

      1904       1 -   931      (931)   (Starting July 4, 1904)

      1905     932 -  1730      (799)

      1906    1731 -  2752    (1,022)

      1907    2753 -  4699    (1,947)

      1908    4700 -  7865    (3,166)

      1909    7866 - 13376    (5,511)

      1910   13377 - 23788   (10,412)

      1911   23789 - 29314    (5,526)   (Ending June 30, 1911)

The next law, 1911 Chapter 72, passed on April 17, 1911, and effective July 1, 1911, repealed the 1904 and 1907 laws.  This law required owners to register annually with the Secretary of State, pay an annual registration fee and display a pair of annual state-issued plates.  Fees were $8 or higher depending upon horsepower, which could be reduced by half after four years of continual registration, $15 for steam and electric vehicles, and $3 for motorcycles.  Dealers were charged $15 for one pair of plates, plus $1 for each additional plate needed.  The registration year was now January 1 to December 31.  Half fees were in effect for 1911 only, since the registration term was only six months that year.  Non-residents were exempted if from a reciprocal state.

The state ordered 31,000 pairs of passenger plates, 1,000 pairs of motorcycle plates, and 900 pairs of Dealer plates from an Eastern company, but many plates were delayed due to a fire at that company's factory.  No plates had arrived when the law took effect on July 4, 1911, but some did two days later.  The Evening Nonpareil (Council Bluffs) reported that "Beginning Wednesday, the new automobile law is in effect and none of the new number tags for autos have arrived."  According to the Des Moines Register on July 6, 1911, "Up to date we have received but a few over 900 of the plates..."  The first 2,000 numbers were reserved for motorcycles, while passenger plates started at #2001.  Four-digit passenger plates had a dash following the number.  Several newspaper articles reported at the end of 1911 that the highest number issued was #29994.  It is not certain at what number Dealer plates started, but the highest known number is over #D-900, the highest that should have been produced.  The lowest and highest known 1911 plates are as follows:  Passenger #2045 to #29870, Motorcycle #757, Dealer #D-130 to #D-979.

Iowa issued undated 3-year plates for use in 1916, 1917 and 1918, but the registration fees were still due annually as before.   Because they are undated, we mention them merely to avoid any confusion with plates that might typically be thought of as pre-states or first issues.