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Iowa Archive
TOTAL KNOWN PORCELAIN VARIETIES: 1
Iowa is a very interesting state because of the fact that there is just one solitary
porcelain variety known from the entire state - a mysterious dated 1915 porcelain.
Iowa joins Alaska and Utah as the only states from which we know of only one
porcelain issue. However, Iowa's distinctiveness goes even further, for it shares
with Utah alone the fascinating reality that not only is the 1915 plate the only
known variety of porcelain from the state - but literally the only known porcelain
license plate! In other words, while there are a handful of Alaska Road
Commission porcelains, there is only one known surviving Iowa porcelain. Were
it not for this large mysterious plate, Iowa would be the sixth state from which
nothing porcelain was known.
I: PRE-STATES / CITY & COUNTY PLATES
None known.
II: STATE-ISSUED PASSENGER PLATES
None Issued.
III: STATE-ISSUED NON-PASSENGER PLATES
None Issued.
IV: ODDBALL PORCELAINS
This plate is a real mystery. From a state not known to have anything porcelain,
this dated 1915 plate baffles experts. Closely mimicking the embossed metal 1915
state issue in both color and appearance, perhaps the most logical explanation is
that it is a replacement plate created for an individual or had lost a plate. It could
theoretically be a salesman's sample designed to win a contract to produce
porcelain plates beginning in 1916, but this seems less likely considering both the
general lack of porcelain use in that region of the country, as well as the fact that
porcelain license plates were on the decline by 1915. Whatever it is, it makes for
a fascinating plate.
Iowa is a very interesting state because of the fact that there is just one solitary
porcelain variety known from the entire state - a mysterious dated 1915 porcelain.
Iowa joins Alaska and Utah as the only states from which we know of only one
porcelain issue. However, Iowa's distinctiveness goes even further, for it shares
with Utah alone the fascinating reality that not only is the 1915 plate the only
known variety of porcelain from the state - but literally the only known porcelain
license plate! In other words, while there are a handful of Alaska Road
Commission porcelains, there is only one known surviving Iowa porcelain. Were
it not for this large mysterious plate, Iowa would be the sixth state from which
nothing porcelain was known.
I: PRE-STATES / CITY & COUNTY PLATES
None known.
II: STATE-ISSUED PASSENGER PLATES
None Issued.
III: STATE-ISSUED NON-PASSENGER PLATES
None Issued.
IV: ODDBALL PORCELAINS
This plate is a real mystery. From a state not known to have anything porcelain,
this dated 1915 plate baffles experts. Closely mimicking the embossed metal 1915
state issue in both color and appearance, perhaps the most logical explanation is
that it is a replacement plate created for an individual or had lost a plate. It could
theoretically be a salesman's sample designed to win a contract to produce
porcelain plates beginning in 1916, but this seems less likely considering both the
general lack of porcelain use in that region of the country, as well as the fact that
porcelain license plates were on the decline by 1915. Whatever it is, it makes for
a fascinating plate.
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