Rick Kretschmer's License Plate Archives

A Pictorial History of Maryland License Plates
General Information About Maryland License Plates

Maryland Index
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My "Pictorial History" pages are intended to be a supplement to the information found in the ALPCA Archives. I am providing additional details and additional photos not found in the archives, and clarifying information when appropriate. When the ALPCA archives cover a subject in great detail, I do not repeat that detail here. I sincerely hope that you find this information useful. If you find an error or have additional information, or can provide a plate or a photo of a plate that I'm missing, please send me an e-mail. There's a link to my e-mail address at the bottom of every page.

On this page - General information about Maryland license plates
Introdution
Maryland sticker colors
Maryland vehicle classes
Maryland sample plates
Maryland license plate errors and other oddities
Related links

Introduction

I created this page as a place for information that didn't clearly belong on any single Maryland plate history page. I expect that I will occasionally add new topics to this page.

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Maryland sticker colors

Maryland non-passenger plates and renewal stickers, with few exceptions, have closely resembled or been indistinguishable from their passenger equivalents from the same time period. For this reason, I shall not re-hash information avaialable in the Passenger Vehicle section that is applicable to all plate types - things like plate dimensions, plate colors, location of "Maryland" and the expiration date on the plate, etc. Deviations from passenger plates or stickers, whether small or large, are noted where applicable.

2005 through 2008 expiration year stickers come in multiple colors. The vast majority of vehicle types get standard passenger color stickers. However, for these expiration years, 5 year fleet registration stickers were issued in different colors than were the standard 1 or 2 year registration stickers. Note, however, that five year fleet vehicles may be passenger cars, trucks, or presumably other types of vehicles. For 2009 expirations, both 5 year and standard stickers are again the same color. Apportioned vehicles were issued yet a third color of expiration sticker for 2005 expirations only.

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Maryland vehicle classes

Understanding Maryland's sometimes arcane systems for assigning serial numbers to non-passenger plates can be aided by being aware of the state's registration class codes. Frequently these class codes appear in the serial numbers and can be used to identify the vehicle type. For alphabetic classes, the license plate is assigned to a specific vehicle. For numeric classes, the license plate is not assigned to a specific vehicle.

Class A	Private passenger vehicles: cars, station wagons, passenger vans, SUVs, motor homes, and private buses until 1980; passenger cars and station wagons only since 1980
Class B	Passenger vehicles for hire: taxis and non-funeral limousines until late 1980s or 1990s; taxis only since then
Class C	Commercial ambulances, and funeral and cemetery vehicles, including hearses and limousines used exclusively for funerals
Class D	Motorcycles, including three-wheeled motor vehicles until 1980
Class E	Trucks; this broad class includes several sub-classes as indicated below
Class ED	Dump trucks and cement mixer trucks
Class EFT	Farm trucks not restricted geographically
Class EH	Trucks for hire; obsolete class, merged with Class E regular trucks in 1970
Class F	Truck tractors (the front part of a tractor-trailer)
Class G	Trailers and semi-trailers
Class H	School buses and similar vehicles used to transport school children, not for hire
Class HC	School charter buses and similar vehicles; that is, school buses for hire
Class I	Charter buses; obsolete class, merged with Class P commercial buses approximately 1988
Class J	Passenger vans used for van pools
Class K	Farm vehicles with limited on-road privileges in the immediate vicinity of the farm
Class L	Antique or historic vehicles driven occasionally on roads
Class M	Multi-purpose vehicles, since 1979; this catch-all class includes all passenger vans and mini-vans (except van pool vehicles), SUVs, motor homes, private buses (such as church buses), and three-wheeled motor vehicles
Class N	Street rods driven occasionally on roads
Class P	Commercial buses
Class Q	Commercial limousines not used exclusively for funerals, since late 1980s or 1990s
Class R	Low speed vehicles, otherwise known as neighborhood electric vehicles; new class introduced approximately January 2006
Class T	Tow trucks, including the new kind where the disabled vehicle sits on the bed of the truck
Class 1	Dealers, manufacturers, and distributors; this class includes several sub-classes as indicated
Class 1A	Dealers, manufacturers, and distributors of motor vehicles excluding motorcycles
Class 1B	Dealers, manufacturers, and distributors of motorcycles
Class 1C	Dealers, manufacturers, and distributors of trailers
Class 2	Automotive dismantlers, recyclers, and scrap processors (junkyard operators); used to drive unregistered vehicles
Class 3	Automotive finance companies; used to drive unregistered vehicles (this class may be obsolete)
Class 4	Special mobile equipment, either self-propelled or pulled
Class 5	Transporters; used to drive unregistered vehicles being delivered, repaired, inspected, painted, etc.

Other types of "non-passenger" plates are assigned regardless of vehicle class. Examples include: plates for state government-owned vehicles, local government-owned vehicles, amateur radio operators, and vehicles operated by or used to transport handicapped persons.

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Maryland sample plates

Like most states, the Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration produces sample license plates to provide examples of what real plates look like. Mostly these are used internally by the MVA and by law enforcement agencies. However, in Maryland, some types of sample plates are given out to anyone who requests them, free of charge. Obviously these are not valid plates for use on a vehicle.

However, most MVA employees don't seem to know about sample plates. When I tried to get a set of these in the spring and summer of 2004, my e-mail and hard copy written requests for these were ignored, and when I called their main phone number, I was flat-out told that the MVA did not give out sample plates, period. I knew this information was incorrect, so I didn't give up. In August 2004, I went in person to the MVA headquarters in Glen Burnie, where I was then given the runaround by several well-meaning but clueless employees, until I finally ended up at the Customer Relations office. There, they knew all about sample plates and even had a whole filing cabinet full of them ready to give out to anyone who walked in.

The most common sample plates through about 1990 were made to represent passenger car plates, and had serial numbers in a passenger car format, but usually with the numeric digits all zeroes, and the serial letters, if any, all "A". Since about 1990, the common, freely-issued sample plates have been made more generic, so that they don't just represent passenger car plates. Since then, the serial characters on these plates have spelled the word SAMPLE. Motorcycle sample plates were made in a regular motorcycle serial format containing zeroes in the numeric positions until about 2000; now these are also made with the serial SAMPLE.

In the past at least, samples were also made for various non-passenger plate types, and today they are made for various organizational plate types. However, these were and are made in very small quantities, are not given out to the general public by the MVA, and are not normally used by law enforcement, and so they're nearly impossible to obtain. These samples typically have the serial formats, legends, and graphics appropriate for the plate type, but with all numeric serial digits zeroes.

Maryland sample plates through 1953

Sample plates from the 1910s with all zero serial numbers differed from real plates and were probably prototypes or samples used by salesmen trying to win a contract from the state to manufacture license plates.

Sample passenger plates in styles actually issued have been observed as early as 1923. The serial number was always 00-000 through 1953. Likely non-passenger samples were also created, but I've never actually seen any.

Maryland sample plates 1954-1970

Sample passenger plates are known on 1954-1964 plates with the serial AA-00-00, and occasionally also AB-00-00. On the 1965-1969 plates, sample passenger plates are known only with the serial AA-0000, and on the 1970 plates, only AA 0000.

Maryland sample plates 1971-1975

Sample passenger plates on the 1971 base are known only with the serial AA 0000. Both metal and paper samples exist; metal plates may be stamped with either the 1957-1974 serial dies or the 1974-present serial dies.

Maryland sample plates 1976-1986

Metal sample plates: 1976 standard passenger sample (Sells photo / plate); 1979 Bicentennial passenger sample (Sells photo / plate); 1981 standard passenger sample

Paper sample plates: 1976 standard passenger sample (Sells photo / plate); 1976 Bicentennial passenger sample (Sells photo / plate)

Sample passenger plates on the standard red on white and black on white metal bases have serial AAA 000. Sample passenger plates on the optional-issue Bicentennial and 350th Anniversary bases have serials 000 AAA and 000*AAA, respectively.

Paper versions of the red on white, black on white, and Bicentennial passenger plates were also produced. The paper red on white plate was made with both serials AAA 000 and AAA 101. Only serial AAA 000 is known on the black on white paper sample, and only 000 AAA is known on the Bicentennial paper sample.

A generic sample plate with the serial SAMPLE was also produced on the red on white base.

Maryland sample plates 1987-present

Standard passenger sample in serial format issued 1986-2004 (O'Connor photo / plate)

• Sample passenger plates: When the current standard base came out in 1986, sample plates were initially made with serials NAA*000 and NAA*001, with the asterisk indicating the location of the shield. Both metal and paper versions are known to exist.

Why the "NAA" prefix, and not "AAA" or "ABC" or "SAM"? Because real passenger car plates on this base were first issued beginning in the N series, to not conflict with the serial numbers of the previous base that were still on the road. Apparently NAA*001 was not actually issued as a real plate.

• Generic sample plates: In recent years, Maryland has only distributed generic sample plates with the serials SAM*PLE or SAMPLE. So now, the use of all letters on the sample plate doesn't necessarily indicate where letters would go versus numbers on real plates. That way, the sample plates "work" for the old passenger serial format, the new passenger serial format, vanity plates, truck plates, taxi plates, etc., etc.

One other known generic sample variation is the first-generation "Treasure the Chesapeake" plate with the bird graphic in the center of the plate, where the serial letter M was stamped using an upside-down W die. This would rightfully be considered an error plate rather than a legitimate sample plate.

Some of the generic sample plates shown above were what they were giving out when I went to the MVA in August 2004, and some I've obtained through other sources. As of March 2007, the MVA was giving out generic samples of the standard base with the shield emblem, the "Our Farms" and second generartion "Treasure the Chesapeake" special interest plates, and the motorcycle base.

• Sample motorcycle plates: Samples of standard-issue motorcycle plates were originally made with serials 00000D, 0000D0, and 000D00, as the real plates progressed through these formats. Subsequently, generic sample motorcycle plates are being issued with serial SAMPLE. Similar to the full-sized generic sample plates, the generic motorcycle sample doesn't show where letters versus numbers go, and so can be used as a sample for standard-issue motorcycle plates regardless of the serial format used, and also as a sample of a vanity motorcycle plate.

• Sample organizational plates: I've been told that for each of the 700+ types of organizational plate types, the MVA makes only two sample plates, with all the numeric digits zeroes. The MVA keeps one for internal use, and gives the other to the person in that organization who coordinates the promotion and distribution of the organizational plates to its members. This enables the coordinator to use an image of the sample plate in promotional materials. Only a small number of these organizational sample plates have found their way into the hands of plate collectors.

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Maryland license plate errors and other oddities

Error plates

Like every other jurisdiction that produces license plates, Maryland produces its share of error plates. Probably most of these never see the light of day. Some, however, have been issued and used, and others, although intercepted before being actually issued, were not destroyed and have found their way into the hands of collectors.

Here are some of the more commonly seen errors that I'm aware of:

• Red on white 1976-1980 passenger plates with the letter M made from an upside-down W die. The legs of the M die are vertical and parallel. If the M was made from an upside-down W, the legs are at an angle, with the bottoms of the legs further apart than the tops. Every one of these I've seen was in the AMx series or in one of several AxM series. However, I know that not all AxM series plates were made this way.

• First-generation Treasure the Chesapeake sample plates, with the bird graphic, on which the letter M was made using an upside-down W die. They sure made a bunch of these before they realized their mistake.

Other oddities

Two passenger plates and one multi-purpose vehicle plate made with square New Jersey dies (plates in actual use)

• Current plates with strange looking, squared-off serial characters were issued over the course of a few months in the fall of 2006 and into January 2007. Passenger plates with serials in the range 1CN*A01 to 9CN*Z99, and multi-purpose vehicle plates with serials between about 895M001 and 909M999 were made this way. The Maryland license plate facility at the state prison in Jessup was shut down for about three weeks due to inmate unrest, and Maryland arranged for New Jersey to stamp out plates for them in the interim. New Jersey could not or would not use Maryland's serial dies, and instead made the plates using their own dies.

MPV plate with two different number "2" dies (Ellis photo of plate in use)

• The state seems to have one number "2" die that doesn't quite match the others. It's not so different as to really stand out on a plate with a single number "2", but it can be seen on plate number 852M293 above by closely comparing the two number "2"s in the serial. The first "2" was stamped with the odd die, while the second "2" was stamped using the normal die. (Click the photo to see a larger version.) According to Maryland plate spotter Jeff Ellis, this odd die has shown up on MPV plates in the 852M000, 862M000, and 872M000 ranges, and also on state government plates in the S/G*24000 series, the A172000 series of "Our Farms, Our Future" special interest plates, as well as some occasional "Treasure the Chesapeake" special interest plates and vanities.

Related links

Other Maryland sample license plates on the web
Poochi's Home Page by Paul Bagnarol - sample as well as prototype plates
Nick's License PL8S Page - Maryland page by Nick Kanaya - sample plates

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