MISSOURI

The earliest automobile registration in Missouri was by the city of St. Louis in 1902.  Other cities gradually joined in the automobile taxation game, with many issuing license plates from about 1904 on.  City taxes continue to this day;  the only major effect of state licensing being that city plates shrank in size shortly after 1911, then eventually disappeared altogether in favor of windshield stickers.

The first state law providing for automobile licensing was a complicated one.  1903 Senate Bill 43, passed on March 23, 1903, required automobile owners to obtain an operator's license from the license commissioner of the city the automobile was to be operated in (if the city had such an office), and/or from the county clerk of the county being operated in should the owner desire to travel beyond city limits.  The owner was to pay an annual fee of $2 for each license.  The license year was not specified, most likely because different cities and counties would have had differing license periods.  Motorcycles were not included in the law.  Owners were also required to display an owner-provided plate of unspecified characteristics and location, and 3-inch-tall numbers on both headlights.  This was by far the largest headlight number height specified in any ordinance or law anywhere, before or since!  The Horseless Age reported on July 1, 1903, that the state law went into effect on June 23, 1903.

The County Clerk of Jackson County (Kansas City) issued 112 auto licenses from June 20, 1903, to September 1, 1904.  Before long, a legal case developed which reached a very surprising conclusion.  State v. Cobb describes how Mr. Cobb drove his automobile in Ralls County and the city of New London on October 11, 1903, without procuring a license from Ralls County.  Because Cobb had licenses from both Marion County and the city of Hannibal, and displayed a Hannibal license number, he argued that these licenses should be sufficient in any county of the state.  The state's argument was that to follow the letter of the law, every owner would technically need to get a license in each and every city or county he entered.  Despite the fact that the original drafters of the law could not have had this intent in mind, the St. Louis Court of Appeals affirmed the judgement in favor of the state on May 16, 1905, meaning that, incredulously, 115 county licenses and innumerable city licenses would be required to travel unrestricted throughout the state of Missouri!  The law continued in effect until repealed in 1907.

A much more comprehensive state law, 1907 House Bill 251, was passed on March 19, 1907, and effective April 19, 1907;  the first true automobile registration law.  This bill, repealing the 1903 law, required all motor vehicles including motorcycles to register with the Secretary of State, pay a one-time $5 fee, and display their license number in three forms:  A state-issued disc, an owner-provided rear plate with 3-inch-tall numbers and 1 1/2-inch-tall letters "MO" in white on black, and two headlights with numbers and letters in the same sizes as on the plate.  Again, like 1903, this resulted in unusually large headlight number sizes.  Non-residents were allowed 20 days before having to register.  Dealers were to register each class of vehicle (electric, gasoline, steam) as they would a passenger car.  The Horseless Age reports on June 10, 1908, that "Up to June 1 the Secretary of State of Missouri had issued 2,981 automobile licenses..."  At the end of 1910, 13,203 registrations were in force.  5,453 were issued in 1910, in addition to 256 issued to dealers.  The highest number known on a 1907-11 pre-state plate is #28153.  Dealer pre-states #D15 to D127 are also known.

The next law, 1911 House Bill 174, was passed on March 9, 1911, and effective August 1, 1911, although issuance of application forms and license plates could begin anytime prior to August 1.  Repealing the 1907 law, this bill required motor vehicles to register annually with the Secretary of State, pay an annual fee of $2, $3, $5, $7, $8, $10 or $12 depending upon horsepower, and display an annual state-issued rear plate.  No other plates were allowed on the rear of the vehicle.  Discs and headlight numbers were discontinued.  The registration year was established as February 1 to January 31, although half rates were allowed for 1911 only, since that year's term began on August 1. 

Non-residents were allowed 20 days before registering, as before.  Dealers were charged $16 for four identical plates, and $5 for each additional plate, all to have a "D" prefix.  Motorcycles were merely issued passenger plates in 1911 and 1912, but a new law in early 1913 provided for special-sized plates for motorcycles.  Throughout all periods, cities were allowed to levy a city tax on motor vehicles, so city plates continued despite the passage of successive new state laws.  The 1911 law only stipulated that cities not charge a higher fee than the state fee.

1911 registration figures by county are listed in the separate table.  In this table, the grand total is stated as 13,203, but we assume that the statistics were tabulated as of a certain date well before the end of the year, such as October 31, 1911, instead of January 31, 1912.  According to The News Scimitar (Memphis, TN) on December 18, 1911, "Up to Wednesday morning (presumably Dec. 13) the department had issued 16,323 tags since the law became effective, Aug. 1 last."  License numbers began at #1.  The highest 1911 plates known are as follows:  Passenger #16148, Dealer #D ?