Vehicle registration plates of Ohio

Ohio

Current series
Name	Ohio Pride[1]
Slogans	Birthplace of Aviation (46 total)
Size	12 in × 6 in 30 cm × 15 cm
Material	Galvanized steel[2]
Serial format	ABC 1234
Introduced	April 15, 2013[3]
Designer	Aaron Roberts[4]
Availability
Issued by	Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles
Manufactured by	Ohio Penal Industries
History
First issued	July 11, 1908[5]

License plates are issued in the U.S. state of Ohio for several types of vehicles by the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles, part of the Department of Public Safety. Most types of plates are issued in pairs, to be displayed in the front and rear of the vehicle. They are made of galvanized steel^[2] and manufactured by inmates at Ohio Penal Industries at the Lebanon Correctional Institution.^[6][7] The Bureau of Motor Vehicles issues a new license plate design about every five years,^[8] or with each new administration in the state government.^[9]

History

On May 19, 1902, Cleveland became one of the first cities in the country to require motorists to display government-issued registration numbers on their vehicles.^[10][11] In the following years, various local governments in Ohio issued standard metal plates of varying design or numerals (to be mounted on a dark background), including:

• Canton (1905)^[10]
• Cleveland (1907–08)^[10]
• Cincinnati (initials only 1903–05; 1906–08; motorcycles in 1911, 1913^[10]), abbreviated "Cinti"^[11]
• Columbus (1907–08), abbreviated "Col's"^[11]
• Dayton (1905, 1907, 1908;^[11] motorcycles in 1912, 1913^[5])
• Delhi Township, Hamilton County (1906–08), abbreviated "Delhi"^[11]
• East Liverpool (Health Department vehicles in 1924)^[5]
• Elyria (motorcycles in 1910)^[10]
• Hamilton (1907), abbreviated "Haml"^[10]
• Lima (motorcycles in 1908, 1912–13)^[10]
• Lorain (1907)^[5]
• Mansfield (1903)^[10]
• Massillon (1906^[10]), abbreviated "M"^[11]
• Newark (motorcycles in 1912–13)^[10]
• Sandusky (1903)^[10]
• Springfield (unknown; motorcycles in 1913), abbreviated "Spfd" on motorcycles^[10]
• Toledo (1904, 1907)^[10]
• Warren (1908)^[11]

In 1906, the state attempted to take over auto registration under the Ward Automobile Law, but litigation delayed the program until the Ohio Supreme Court ruled in favor of the law. The Ohio Secretary of State's Automobile Division, precursor to the Bureau of Motor Vehicles, was established in 1907.^[12] The Ward Law went into effect on June 11, 1908, but the Automobile Division did not begin issuing plates for another 30 days due to a manufacturing defect.^[5] Locally issued and owner-provided license plates were phased out by 1909 for automobiles,^[11] but local plates continued to be used for motorcycles until 1914.^[5] One effect of the Ward Law was to eliminate a significant revenue stream for cities like Cincinnati, which took in about $5,000 a year (equivalent to $132,000 today) from auto registrations.^[13]

Various Ohio license plate designs from 1908 to 1921 used distinctive monograms instead of a fully spelled-out state name.^[14]

Passenger number plates were always issued in pairs, with the exception of 1944–1946, during World War II. In 1953, the Bureau of Motor Vehicles issued special pairs of license plates to commemorate the state's sesquicentennial. The back plate listed the years 1803 and 1953, while the front plate bore a special design instead of the license number, with the word "sesqui-centennial" [sic] below. Windshield stickers were issued along with the previous year's plates in 1943 and 1952. A sticker was used to renew the 1974 plates for 1975. Multi-year licence plates, renewable with decal stickers, replaced single-year plates beginning in 1976.^[14]

A golf cart in Put-in-Bay displaying Ohio passenger plates.

Starting in 1935, a county coding scheme involving the letters in the plate's serial number was introduced. This scheme was used throughout the state until the 1970s, when the system broke down in the most populous counties because of the number of vehicles registered in them. The coding scheme was abandoned with the issuance of the 1980 plates, and long county stickers mounted at the base of the plates were introduced in 1983.^[3] Beginning with new specialty plates in 1992 and all new plates in October 2001, the state adopted a county coding scheme on a sticker that displays the county number based on its placement in alphabetical order.^[7]

In 1956, the U.S. states and Canadian provinces came to an agreement with the Automobile Manufacturers Association that standardized the size for license plates for vehicles, except those for motorcycles, at 6 inches (150 mm) in height by 12 inches (300 mm) in width, with standardized mounting holes. The 1955 (dated 1956) issue was the first Ohio license plate that complied with these standards.

In 1967, the state began issuing special plates to DUI offenders with limited driving privileges. Judges in Ohio, however, rarely issued them until a 2004 state law made it mandatory for all DUI offenders with limited driving privileges to have them.^[15]

Passenger plates 1908 to present

Only plates issued since 1996 are currently eligible for display.

Image	Dates issued	Design	Slogan	Serial format	Serials issued	Notes
	1908	White lettering on dark blue base	none	1234	unknown	Ohio stylized logo instead of state name
	1910	White lettering on wood grain base	none	1234 12345	unknown
	1911	Black lettering on white base	none	12345	unknown
	1914	Red lettering on white base	none	12345	unknown	Ohio stylized logo instead of state name
	1915	Black lettering on ivory yellow base	none	12345	unknown	Ohio stylized logo instead of state name
	1919	White embossed lettering on red base	none	123456	unknown	Ohio stylized logo instead of state name
	1923	Red embossed lettering on gray base	none	123•456	unknown
	1925	Black embossed lettering on off-white base	none	123•456	unknown	Star included before registration denotes household of veteran killed or wounded in World War I.
	1926	White embossed lettering on brown base	none	123•456	unknown
	1927	Black embossed lettering on gray base	none	123•456	unknown
	1929	Black embossed lettering on lime green base	none	123•456	unknown
	1933	Black embossed lettering on orange base	none	123•456, A12•345	unknown
	1934	White embossed lettering on maroon base	none	123•456, A12•345	unknown
	1935	Yellow on dark blue	none	A·1234 AB·123 1234·A 123·AB A·123·B	Issued in blocks by county
	1936	Blue embossed lettering on white base	none	A·1234 AB·123 1234·A 123·AB A·123·B	Issued in blocks by county
	1937	Red embossed lettering and rims on white base	none	A·1234 AB·123 1234·A 123·AB A·123·B	Issued in blocks by county
	1938	Black on white with black covered wagon silhouette[16]	150 Anniv· N·W·Terr·[16]	A·1234 AB·123 1234·A 123·AB A·123·B	Issued in blocks by county	Commemorated the 150th anniversary of the creation of the Northwest Territory, from which the state of Ohio was formed.
	1939	Dark blue embossed lettering and rims on white base	none	A·1234 AB·123 1234·A 123·AB A·123·B	Issued in blocks by county
	1940	White embossed lettering and rims on black base	none	A·1234 AB·123 1234·A 123·AB A·123·B	Issued in blocks by county
	1941	White on maroon	none	A·1234 AB·123 1234·A 123·AB A·123·B	Issued in blocks by county
	1942–43	Green embossed lettering and rims on white base	none	A·1234 AB·123 1234·A 123·AB A·123·B	Issued in blocks by county	Revalidated for 1943 with windshield stickers, due to metal conservation for World War II.
	1944	White on dark blue	none	A·1234 AB·123 1234·A 123·AB A·123·B	Issued in blocks by county
	1945	Black embossed lettering and rims on white base	none	A·1234 AB·123 1234·A 123·AB A·123·B	Issued in blocks by county
	1946	Red embossed lettering and rims on white base	none	A·1234 AB·123 1234·A 123·AB A·123·B	Issued in blocks by county
	1947	White embossed lettering and rims on green base	none	A·1234 AB·123 1234·A 123·AB A·123·B	Issued in blocks by county
	1948	Black on pale yellow	none	A·1234 AB·123 1234·A 123·AB A·123·B	Issued in blocks by county
	1949	Yellow embossed lettering and border on black waffle-textured base	none	A·12345 AB·1234 12345·A 1234·AB A·1234·B	Issued in blocks by county
	1950	Black embossed lettering and border on yellow waffle-textured base	none	A·12345 AB·1234 12345·A 1234·AB A·1234·B	Issued in blocks by county
	1951–52	White embossed lettering and border on navy base	none	A·12345 AB·1234 12345·A 1234·AB A·1234·B	Issued in blocks by county	Revalidated for 1952 with windshield stickers, due to metal conservation for the Korean War.
	1953	Yellow embossed lettering and border on green base	1803 - 1953	A·12345 AB·1234 12345·A 1234·AB A·1234·B	Issued in blocks by county	Commemorated Ohio's 150 years of statehood.
	1954	White embossed lettering and rims on maroon base	none	A·12345 AB·1234 12345·A 1234·AB A·1234·B	Issued in blocks by county
	1955	White embossed lettering and rims on dark blue base	none	A·12345 AB·1234 12345·A 1234·AB A·1234·B	Issued in blocks by county
	1956	White embossed lettering and rims on dark green base	none	A·12345 AB·1234 12345·A 1234·AB A·1234·B	Issued in blocks by county
	1957	White embossed lettering and border on brick red base	none	A·12345 AB·1234 12345·A 1234·AB A·1234·B	Issued in blocks by county
	1958	White embossed lettering and border on navy base	none	A·12345 AB·1234 12345·A 1234·AB A·1234·B	Issued in blocks by county
	1959	Red embossed lettering and border on white base	none	A·12345 AB·1234 12345·A 1234·AB A·1234·B	Issued in blocks by county
	1960	Blue on yellow	none	A·12345 AB·1234 12345·A 1234·AB A·1234·B	Issued in blocks by county
	1961	White on bright green	none	A·12345 AB·1234 12345·A 1234·AB A·1234·B	Issued in blocks by county
	1962	White on bright red	none	12345 A·12345 AB·1234 12345·A 1234·AB A·1234·B	Issued in blocks by county
	1963	White embossed lettering and border on dark blue base	none	12345 A·12345 AB·1234 12345·A 1234·AB A·1234·B	Issued in blocks by county
	1964	White embossed lettering and border on dark green base	none	12345 A·12345 AB·1234 12345·A 1234·AB A·1234·B	Issued in blocks by county
	1965	Red on white	none	12345 A·12345 AB·1234 12345·A 1234·AB A·1234·B	Issued in blocks by county
	1966	White on maroon	none	12345 A 12345 AB 1234 12345 A 1234 AB A 1234 B	Issued in blocks by county
	1967	White on blue	none	12345 A 12345 AB 1234 12345 A 1234 AB A 1234 B	Issued in blocks by county	Over 1.4 million plates on this base were destroyed in a fire at the plate shop at the Lebanon Correctional Institution in November 1966; replacement plates were manufactured in New York, Arkansas and Nebraska using these states' number dies.[17]
	1968	Red on white	none	12345 A 12345 AB 1234 12345 A 1234 AB A 1234 B	Issued in blocks by county	Most plates manufactured in New York, using that state's dies, while the Lebanon plate shop was being repaired.
	1969	Blue on white	none	12345 A 12345 AB 1234 12345 A 1234 AB A 1234 B	Issued in blocks by county	Some plates manufactured in New York, using that state's dies. Full manufacturing capacity at the Lebanon plate shop was restored by 1970.
	1970	Scarlet on gray	none	12345 A 12345 AB 1234 12345 A 1234 AB A 1234 B	Issued in blocks by county	Issued in the colors of Ohio State University, in honor of its centennial.
	1971	Black on yellow	none	12345 A 12345 AB 1234 12345 A 1234 AB A 1234 B	Issued in blocks by county
	1972	Yellow on dark blue	none	12345 A 12345 AB 1234 12345 A 1234 AB A 1234 B	Issued in blocks by county
	1973	White on green	Seat Belts Fastened?	12345 A 12345 AB 1234 12345 A 1234 AB A 1234 B	Issued in blocks by county
	1974–75	Green on reflective white	Seat Belts Fastened?	123456 A 12345 AB 1234 12345 A 1234 AB A 1234 B	Issued in blocks by county	Revalidated for 1975 with stickers.
	1976–79	Red on reflective white	none	123456 A 12345 AB 1234 12345 A 1234 AB A 1234 B	Issued in blocks by county
	1980–84	Blue lettering and shape of Ohio on reflective white base	none	ABC•123	AAA•001 to approximately UFU•999	Shape of Ohio used as separator
	1985–90	Green embossed lettering and shape of Ohio on white base	none	123•ABC	001•AAA to approximately 999•YOZ	Shape of Ohio used as separator
	1991–95	Blue embossed lettering and shape of Ohio on white base	The Heart of it All	ABC•123	AAA•001 to approximately XEU•999	Shape of Ohio used as separator
	November 1995 – July 1996				XEV•001 to YZZ•999	Narrower dies.
	August 1996 – mid 1997	Dark blue on gold gradient fade	The Heart of it All	ABC 1234	AAA 1000 to approximately ARR 5900
	Mid 1997 – September 2001		Birthplace of Aviation		ARR 5901 to approximately BIF 9999; CAA 1000 to approximately CVV 9999
	October 2001 – February 2004	Dark blue on reflective white with Ohio Bicentennial Commission logo and red and blue bars	Ohio Bicentennial Birthplace of Aviation	AB12CD	AA01AA to approximately FC99KV
	February 2004 – early 2010	"Sunburst": Dark blue on reflective white with state seal graphic and red and blue bars	Birthplace of Aviation	ABC 1234	DAA 1000 to EQZ 9999; EUJ 1000 to FAK 9999 (This gap was caused by the "Beautiful Ohio" plates that were already manufactured.)
	November 23, 2009 – April 14, 2013	"Beautiful Ohio": Dark blue on rolling hills with farm, distant skyline, and airborne biplane	Beautiful Ohio Birthplace of Aviation	ABC 1234	ERA 1000 to EUH 9999; FAL 1000 to FVZ 9999 (This gap was caused by the state's decision to not issue the "Beautiful Ohio" plates at the time of the recession.)	Available as a no-cost alternative to the concurrent "Sunburst" design from November 23, 2009 to 2010, when it became the primary design. Originally limited to 1.5 million plates. Largely designed by Frances Strickland.
	April 15, 2013 – present	"Ohio Pride": Word cloud background and red triangle resembling an airplane wing	Birthplace of Aviation DiscoverOhio.com 46 "slogans" total, including facts and famous names[1]	ABC 1234	FWA 1000 to GTJ 9999 (as of February 23, 2016)	Current standard license plate. Remaining "Beautiful Ohio" design pictured above will be melted and recycled into the new Ohio Pride design so materials are not wasted. Designed by Aaron Roberts[4] and chosen among four concept drawings put forward by the CCAD Design Group.[9]

Alternative passenger plates

Image	Dates issued	Design	Slogan	Serial format	Serials issued	Notes
	1967 to present	Red on yellow for DUI offenders with limited driving privileges. Issued since 1967 but rarely used before the plate became mandated on all DUI offenders in 2004.	none	123456 1234567

Non-passenger plates

From 1976 until 1996, license plates for pickup trucks and other light truck-related vehicles (SUVs and conversion vans aside) were issued truck plates that said "Non Comm" (for "non-commercial truck") while semi-trucks were issued plates that said "Commercial". Since 1996, however, the more consumer-oriented truck plates now say "Truck," instead of "Non-Comm."

• 

  Church bus (1972)

• 

  House Vehicle (1973)

Temporary tags

This diagram illustrates how to fill out a 2001-series temporary tag. The plate number is preprinted, while the expiration date and vehicle details are written in permanent marker.

Vehicles purchased from a dealership are given a 30-Day Temporary Tag. The paper tag is filled out by hand. Since March 2001, it has featured a hologram.^[18][19]

County coding

Ohio uses a numerical county-coding scheme to indicate the county of registration. The county code is displayed on stickers placed on the lower left corner of both the front and rear plates.

The county number is the most visible, while the full county name is in small print below. The scheme assigns a number to each of the state's eighty-eight counties based on its position alphabetically. For example Adams County, the first alphabetically, is assigned the number 01, and Wyandot County, the last alphabetically, is assigned the number 88.

List of county numbers

1. Adams
2. Allen
3. Ashland
4. Ashtabula
5. Athens
6. Auglaize
7. Belmont
8. Brown
9. Butler
10. Carroll
11. Champaign
12. Clark
13. Clermont
14. Clinton
15. Columbiana
16. Coshocton
17. Crawford
18. Cuyahoga
19. Darke
20. Defiance
21. Delaware
22. Erie
23. Fairfield
24. Fayette
25. Franklin
26. Fulton
27. Gallia
28. Geauga
29. Greene
30. Guernsey
31. Hamilton
32. Hancock
33. Hardin
34. Harrison
35. Henry
36. Highland
37. Hocking
38. Holmes
39. Huron
40. Jackson
41. Jefferson
42. Knox
43. Lake
44. Lawrence
45. Licking
46. Logan
47. Lorain
48. Lucas
49. Madison
50. Mahoning
51. Marion
52. Medina
53. Meigs
54. Mercer
55. Miami
56. Monroe
57. Montgomery
58. Morgan
59. Morrow
60. Muskingum
61. Noble
62. Ottawa
63. Paulding
64. Perry
65. Pickaway
66. Pike
67. Portage
68. Preble
69. Putnam
70. Richland
71. Ross
72. Sandusky
73. Scioto
74. Seneca
75. Shelby
76. Stark
77. Summit
78. Trumbull
79. Tuscarawas
80. Union
81. Van Wert
82. Vinton
83. Warren
84. Washington
85. Wayne
86. Williams
87. Wood
88. Wyandot

Reserved series

On recent seven-character baseplates, the state has reserved certain letter series to be issued in coordination with specific car dealerships or leasing agencies.

Series	Assigned to
GLR	Grand Leasing and Sales
EBG	Unmarked Police Vehicles
GAN	Ganley Automotive Lease
HON	Honda
HOM	Honda of Mentor
JAY	Jay Auto Group, Bedford
JSL	Jake Sweeney Leasing, Cincinnati
LAS	Shaker Auto Leasing
LEX	Metro Lexus
LXS	Metro Lexus
MAL	Mike Albert Resale Center and Leasing, Cincinnati
MBZ	Mercedes-Benz
MCT	Motorcars Toyota, Cleveland Heights
MCH	Motorcars Honda, Cleveland Heights
MET	Metro Toyota, Cleveland
MGM	Marshall Goldman Motors
MKB	MKB Leasing, Marietta
MVP	Classic Auto Group (Cleveland area/Northeast Ohio)
NON	Nissan of North Olmsted
SUN	Sunnyside, Cleveland
SST	Sunnyside Toyota
TOB	Toyota of Bedford
TOY	Toyota
VCJ	Adventure Chrysler Jeep, Willoughby
WIN	Classic Auto Group (Cleveland area/Northeast Ohio)

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.

References

1. "New Ohio Pride License Plate". Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles. 2012. Retrieved 2012-08-15.
2. Blackwell, Brandon (January 29, 2013). "Ohio license plate recall brings more questions than answers". The Plain Dealer (Advance Publications). Retrieved September 8, 2013.
3. Nicholson, David (June 15, 2013). "Ohio License Plates, 1969-present". 15q.net. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
4. Luce, Lacey (2011-11-28). "CCAD, Governor Unveil New Ohio License Plate Design". Retrieved 2012-09-30.
5. Taylor, Eric Robert (January 20, 2013). "Ohio Archive". PorcelainPlates.net. Retrieved September 9, 2013.
6. ""Flat" License Plates Now Issued For Made-To-Order Plates" (Press release). Bureau of Motor Vehicles, Ohio Department of Public Safety. 2003-08-12. Archived from the original on 2003-12-02. Retrieved 2009-12-02.
7. Pulfer, Mike (June 3, 2002). "Ask A Stupid Question". The Cincinnati Enquirer (Gannett Company). Retrieved September 8, 2013.
8. "Beautiful Ohio ousts sunburst as state plate". The Blade (Toledo, Ohio: Block Communications). June 7, 2010. Retrieved September 5, 2013.
9. McNair, James (July 31, 2013). "Is Ohio's New License Plate the Worst or Just Bad?". Cincinnati CityBeat (SouthComm). Retrieved September 5, 2013.
10. Tanner, Eric N. "Ohio License Plates Prestate City/County". License Plate Information. Retrieved September 10, 2013.
11. Raiche, Steve. "Ohio". LeatherLicensePlates.com. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
12. "ODPS Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles History". Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
13. "Minor Mention". The Horseless Age (Horseless Age Company) 21: 617. May 20, 1908. Under the new Ward automobile law, which has recently passed into effect in Ohio, the cities cannot license automobiles, and lose thereby a substantial income, Cincinnati, for instance, about $5,000 a year.
14. Ohio BMV Chronological History 1908-2010 (PDF). Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles. 2011. Retrieved September 9, 2013.
15. Shaw, Stephen. "Ohio’s DUI Scarlet Letter Plates". ABC DUI Online. Shaw Education Development. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
16. Blundo, Joe (June 7, 2010). "LUV IT or H8 IT". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
17. "Ohio BMV Chronological History 1908-2015" (PDF). Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles. 2014. p. 14. Retrieved February 23, 2016.
18. "Issuing Requirements". Dealer Licensing Division, Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles. 2009-12-01. Retrieved 2010-09-19.
19. "ODPS Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles History". Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles. Retrieved 2010-09-19.

External links

• OPLATES.com – Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles customer website
• Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles: Registration and Titling
• Ohio BMV Chronological History 1908-2010, with a comprehensive listing of Ohio license plate designs since 1908
• Ohio license plates 1969-present