Category Archives: License Plates

Feb 11

What’s with the hate for county names on plates?

Usually, when the Iowa Automobile Dealers Association has been involved in lobbying the Legislature recently, it’s about getting rid of front license plates. See this Radio Iowa story from last year. But this time, the group is out to eliminate … Continue reading

Posted in License Plates | Comments Off on What’s with the hate for county names on plates?
Nov 29

License Plate Letters — LJF

I haven’t acknowledged Iowa’s 2012 license plate series going into the L’s and we’re already getting close to halfway through. It took the 1997 series until somewhere in late 2002 to get here — six years, vs. nine years this … Continue reading

Posted in License Plates | Comments Off on License Plate Letters — LJF
May 05

License Plate Letters — KMA

KMA 960 AM is one of Iowa’s oldest radio stations. Its call letters, chosen specifically by the May Seed & Nursery Co., mean “Keep Millions Advised.” The May family owned the station from its beginning in 1925 until 2019. Here … Continue reading

Posted in Iowa Miscellaneous, License Plates | Comments Off on License Plate Letters — KMA
Mar 30

License Plate Letters — KKJ

Let’s just skip a couple notches ahead, ‘k?

Posted in License Plates | Comments Off on License Plate Letters — KKJ
Mar 03

Why does ‘Nomadland’ use old license plates?

In the embedded tweet is a poster for the streaming movie Nomadland. It should take about five seconds to see where I’m going with this post. The states are ordered by their admission to the Union, which is a neat thing … Continue reading

Posted in License Plates | Comments Off on Why does ‘Nomadland’ use old license plates?
Nov 09

License Plate Letters – KAT

August 16, 2000: Shadow had the run of the corn crib — run of the farm, really — and we threw her kibble from a big bag bought at the elevator. She purred very loudly and enjoyed climbing onto my shoulder … Continue reading

Posted in License Plates | Comments Off on License Plate Letters – KAT
Sep 08

Yup, we’re getting another license plate variety

The Daily Nonpareil in Council Bluffs, citing a state representative and Pottawattamie County treasurer, reports that the “Flying Our Colors” license plate will be available to the public starting in the middle of this month. This is one of the … Continue reading

Posted in License Plates | Comments Off on Yup, we’re getting another license plate variety
Jan 24

Legislature tries to circumvent will of the voters

OH COME ON. Of all the things that Iowans can’t find agreement on, “license plates” probably wasn’t on the list a decade ago. In 2017, the state offered voters three choices for a new license plate. A reworked version of … Continue reading

Posted in License Plates | Comments Off on Legislature tries to circumvent will of the voters
Jan 02

License Plate Letters — JAJ

Iowa entered the J series of license plates before 2019 ended. Of course, it was a blackout plate, because as this early December story from the Marshalltown Times-Republican shows, a lot of Iowans really, really, really hate the standard license … Continue reading

Posted in License Plates | Comments Off on License Plate Letters — JAJ
Sep 24

License Plate Letters — ISV

How, exactly, is the state dividing alphanumeric allocations of blackout vs. standard plates? The newest ones I’ve seen — IQ’s, IR’s, and IS’s — have all been blackout. A Register article about the popularity of the plates said the design … Continue reading

Posted in License Plates | Comments Off on License Plate Letters — ISV