Sale of the Century: Texas Introduces 100th Anniversary License Plate

Texas Department of Motor Vehicles sent this bulletin at 08/17/2017 12:02 PM CDT
Sale of the Century:
Texas Introduces 100th Anniversary License Plate



 100 year plate


AUSTIN – It’s a celebration one century in the making as the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles introduces a specialty license plate commemorating the 100th anniversary of license plates in the state.

The new 100-Year Plate will be available to order for only one year beginning Sept. 1, 2017. Texans who order this historic plate will pay $30 per year and be able to renew it annually. But no new orders will be accepted after Aug. 31, 2018. As a bonus, the first 100 customers will receive a special plate pattern with “100” as the first three characters followed by three letters starting with “AAA.”

“Texans enjoy their license plates,” said TxDMV Board Chairman Raymond Palacios Jr. “The primary purpose of a license plate is public safety, but the specialty license plate program allows drivers to give their plates a more personal touch. Plate enthusiasts, collectors, historians and everyday Texans can commemorate this 100-year milestone by displaying a piece of plate history.”

To honor the 100-year milestone, the anniversary plate includes features from the past and present:

  • The seal in the center of the plate is reminiscent of the 1917 radiator seal.
  • The top corners of the plate include “19” and “17.”
  • The plate includes security threads and the word “TEXAS” on a white background just as it is on the current general-issue plate.

License plate technology has significantly improved since the early days of Texas license plates. Plates were originally produced through a die stamping process on sheet iron. The first 300,000 plates were so heavy they had to be shipped by train and filled 20 rail cars.

Today, Texas plates are produced on aluminum and without die stamping allowing for a more efficient production process for all plates, including specialty plates. TxDMV currently offers 420 plate designs with several new plates being added as a result of bills passed during the 85th Legislative Session.

To learn more about Texas license plate history and see the design of every general-issue plate for the past 100 years, visit 100Plates.TxDMV.gov.