Vehicle registration plates of Oklahoma

The U.S. state of Oklahoma first required its residents to register their motor vehicles and display license plates in 1915. Plates are currently issued by the Oklahoma Tax Commission. Only rear plates have been required since 1944.

Oklahoma

Current series
Name	Explore
Slogan	Explore Oklahoma TravelOK.com
Size	12 in × 6 in 30 cm × 15 cm
Material	Aluminum
Serial format	ABC-123
Introduced	January 1, 2017
Availability
Issued by	Oklahoma Tax Commission
History
First issued	July 1, 1915

Passenger baseplates

1915 to 1978

In 1956, the United States, Canada, and Mexico came to an agreement with the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators, the Automobile Manufacturers Association and the National Safety Council that standardized the size for license plates for vehicles (except those for motorcycles) at 6 inches (15 cm) in height by 12 inches (30 cm) in width, with standardized mounting holes.[1] The 1955 (dated 1956) issue was the first Oklahoma license plate that complied with these standards.

Image	Dates issued	Design	Slogan	Serial format	Serials issued	Notes
	1915	Embossed blue serial on white plate; vertical "OKLA" and "1915" at left and right respectively	none	12345	4001 to approximately 33500, with gaps	Single series of serials used for all classes of vehicles, with blocks reserved for non-passenger classes. This practice continued in one form or another through 1938.[2]
	1916	Embossed white serial on blue plate; vertical "OKLA" and "1916" at left and right respectively	none	12345	2501 to approximately 60500, with gaps
	1917	Embossed white serial on brown plate; vertical "OKLA" and "1917" at left and right respectively	none	123456	6501 to approximately 118500, with gaps
	1918	Embossed yellow serial on green plate; vertical "OKLA" and "1918" at left and right respectively	none	123456	18001 to approximately 131500
	1919	Embossed green serial on yellow plate with border line; vertical "OKLA" and "1919" at left and right respectively	none	123456	8001 to approximately 156500
	1920	Embossed white serial on blue plate with border line; vertical "OKLA" and "1920" at left and right respectively	none	123456	8001 to approximately 212000
	1921	Embossed white serial on brown plate with border line; vertical "OKLA" and "1921" at left and right respectively	none	123456	10001 to approximately 231500, with gaps
	1922	Embossed black serial on turquoise plate with border line; vertical "OKLA" and "1922" at left and right respectively	none	123-456	11-001 to approximately 261-000, with gaps
	1923	Embossed white serial on maroon plate with border line; vertical "OKLA" and "1923" at left and right respectively	none	123-456	18-001 to approximately 313-000
	1924	Embossed white serial on olive green plate with border line; vertical "OKLA" and "1924" at left and right respectively	none	123F456 123.456		Plates with an 'F' in the serial were issued on Fords. This practice continued through 1928.
	1925	Embossed silver serial on black plate; silver lines at top and bottom borders; "1925 OKLA" at right	none	123F456 123.456
	1926	Embossed black serial on yellow plate; black lines at top and bottom borders; "OKLA 1926" at bottom	none	123F456 123-456
	1927	Embossed yellow serial on black plate with border line; "OKLA 1927" at bottom	none	123F456	30F001 to approximately 375F000
				123-456	495-001 to approximately 674-000
	1928	Embossed black serial on yellow plate with border line; vertical "OKLA" and "1928" at left and right respectively	none	123F456	35F001 to approximately 370F000
				123-456	480-001 to approximately 727-000
	1929	Embossed yellow serial on black plate with border line; "OK–29" centered at top	none	123-456	50-001 to approximately 571-000
	1930	Embossed black serial on yellow plate with border line; "OKLA–1930" centered at bottom	none	123-456	60-001 to approximately 597-000
	1931	Embossed yellow serial on black plate with border line; "OKLA–1931" centered at bottom	none	123-456	60-001 to approximately 564-000
	1932	Embossed black serial on yellow plate with border line; "OKLAHOMA-1932" at top	none	123-456	60-001 to approximately 464-000	First use of the full state name.
	1933	Embossed yellow serial on black plate with border line; "OKLAHOMA-1933" at bottom	none	123-456	60-001 to approximately 481-000
	1934	Embossed black serial on yellow plate with border line; "OKLAHOMA-1934" at top	none	123A456	60A001 to approximately 507A000
	1935	Embossed black serial on white plate with border line; "1935-OKLAHOMA" at bottom	none	123A456	60A001 to approximately 510A000
	1936	Embossed black serial on yellow plate with border line; "1936-OKLAHOMA" at top	none	123-456	60-001 to approximately 516-000	Front and rear plates required; rear plates used an 'R' as the separator in the serial.
	1937	Embossed yellow serial on black plate with border line; "1937-OKLAHOMA" at bottom	none	123-456	60-001 to approximately 528-000	Front plates used an 'F' as the separator in the serial, while rear plates used an 'R'.
	1938	Embossed black serial on yellow plate with border line; "OKLAHOMA-1938" at top	none	123-456	60-001 to approximately 546-000
	1939	Embossed black serial on silver plate with border line; "OK–39" at bottom, offset to right	none	A/B123	County-coded (A/B)
	1940	Embossed black serial on yellow plate with border line; "OKLA–1940" at top	none	1-12345 10-1234	County-coded (1 or 10)
	1941	Embossed white serial on black plate with border line; "OKLA—1941" at bottom	none	1-12345 10-1234	County-coded (1 or 10)
	1942–43	Embossed dark blue serial on white plate with border line; "OKLA-1942" at top	none	1-12345 10-1234	County-coded (1 or 10)	Revalidated for 1943 with windshield stickers, due to metal conservation for World War II.
	1944	Embossed black serial on yellow plate with border line; "OKLAHOMA–44" at top	none	1-12345 10-1234	County-coded (1 or 10)	Only rear plates issued; this practice continues today.
	1945	Embossed orange serial on black plate with border line; "OKLAHOMA–45" at bottom	none	1-12345 10-1234	County-coded (1 or 10)
	1946–47	Embossed white serial on black plate with border line; "OKLAHOMA–46" at top	none	1-12345 10-1234	County-coded (1 or 10)	Revalidated for 1947 with yellow tabs.
	1948	Embossed black serial on yellow plate with border line; "OKLAHOMA–48" at bottom	none	1-12345 10-1234	County-coded (1 or 10)
	1949	Embossed white serial on black plate with border line; "49–OKLAHOMA" at top	none	1-12345 10-1234	County-coded (1 or 10)
	1950	Embossed black serial on white plate with border line; "50–OKLAHOMA" at bottom	none	1-12345 1-A1234 10-1234 10-A123	County-coded (1 or 10)
	1951	Embossed black serial on yellow plate with border line; "51–OKLAHOMA" at top	none	1-12345 1-A1234 10-1234 10-A123	County-coded (1 or 10)
	1952	Embossed white serial on black plate with border line; "52–OKLAHOMA" at bottom	none	1-12345 1-A1234 10-1234 10-A123	County-coded (1 or 10)
	1953	Embossed black serial on yellow plate with border line; "OKLAHOMA–53" at top	none	1-12345 1-A1234 10-1234 10-A123	County-coded (1 or 10)
	1954	Embossed yellow serial on black plate with border line; "54-OKLAHOMA" at bottom	none	1-12345 1-A1234 10-1234 10-A123	County-coded (1 or 10)
	1955	Embossed white serial on black plate with border line; "55" at top right	"VISIT OKLAHOMA" at top, offset to left	1-12345 1-A1234 10-1234 10-A123	County-coded (1 or 10)
	1956	Embossed black serial on white plate with border line; "56" at bottom right	"VISIT OKLAHOMA" at bottom, offset to left	1-123456 10-12345	County-coded (1 or 10)
	1957	Embossed white serial on black plate with border line; "57" at top right	"VISIT OKLAHOMA" at top, offset to left	1-123456 10-12345	County-coded (1 or 10)
	1958	Embossed black serial on white plate with border line; "58" at top right	"VISIT OKLAHOMA" at top, offset to left	1-123456 10-12345	County-coded (1 or 10)
	1959	Embossed white serial on black plate with border line; "59" at top right	"VISIT OKLAHOMA" at top, offset to left	1-123456 10-12345	County-coded (1 or 10)
	1960	Embossed black serial on white plate; "19" at top left and "60" at top right	"VISIT OKLAHOMA" centered at top	1-123456 10-12345	County-coded (1 or 10)
	1961	Embossed white serial on black plate; "19" at top left and "61" at top right	"VISIT OKLAHOMA" centered at top	1-123456 10-12345	County-coded (1 or 10)
	1962	Embossed black serial on white plate; "19" at top left and "62" at top right	"VISIT OKLAHOMA" centered at top	1-123456 10-12345	County-coded (1 or 10)
	1963	Embossed white serial on black plate with border line; "19 OKLAHOMA 63" at top	none	AB-1234	County-coded	Two-letter county codes introduced. Serials with numbers below 1000 used leading zeros; this happened again in 1964.
	1964	Embossed black serial on white plate; "19 OKLAHOMA 64" at top	none	AB-1234	County-coded
	1965	Embossed white serial on black plate; "19 OKLAHOMA 65" at top	none	AB-1234	County-coded
	1966	Embossed black serial on white plate; "19 OKLAHOMA 66" at top	none	AB-1234	County-coded
	1967	Embossed red serial on reflective white plate; "67" at top left	"OKLAHOMA IS OK" at top, offset to right	AB-1234	County-coded	Issued in the colors of the University of Oklahoma.[3]
	1968	Embossed black serial on reflective orange plate; "68" at top left	"OKLAHOMA IS OK" at top, offset to right	AB-1234	County-coded	Issued in the colors of Oklahoma State University.[3]
	1969	Embossed red serial on reflective white plate; "69" at top left	"OKLAHOMA IS OK" at top, offset to right	AB-1234	County-coded	Issued in the colors of the University of Oklahoma.[3]
	1970	Embossed green serial on reflective white plate; "70" at top left	"OKLAHOMA IS OK" at top, offset to right	AB-1234	County-coded
	1971	Embossed red serial on reflective white plate; "71" at top left	"OKLAHOMA IS OK" at top, offset to right	AB-1234 ABC-1234	County-coded	Three-letter county codes introduced in some counties that had exhausted their two-letter allocations.
	1972	Embossed green serial on reflective white plate; "72" at top left	"OKLAHOMA IS OK" at top, offset to right	AB-1234 ABC-1234	County-coded
	1973	Embossed red serial on reflective white plate; "73" at top left	"OKLAHOMA IS OK" at top, offset to right	AB-1234 ABC-1234	County-coded	Carried over into 1974 after the plate shop at Oklahoma State Penitentiary was hit by fire during a riot in July 1973, destroying the supply of 1974 plates (below).
	1973–74	As above, but with border line				Supplemental plates manufactured by Polyvend Inc. of Arkansas while the prison plate shop was being repaired.
	(1974)	Embossed green serial on reflective white plate; "74" at top left	"OKLAHOMA IS OK" at top, offset to right	AB-1234 ABC-1234	County-coded	Most of these plates were destroyed in the prison plate shop fire of July 1973 (above); salvaged plates were not issued.
	1975	Embossed green serial on reflective white plate with border line; "75" at top left	"OKLAHOMA IS OK" at top, offset to right	AB-1234 ABC-1234	County-coded	Manufactured by Polyvend Inc. while the prison plate shop was being repaired.
	1976	Embossed red serial on reflective white plate with border line; "19 OKLAHOMA 76" at top	"1776 BICENTENNIAL 1976" at bottom	AB-1234 ABC-1234	County-coded
	1977	Embossed green serial on reflective white plate with border line; "77" at top left	"OKLAHOMA IS OK" at top, offset to right	AB-1234 ABC-1234	County-coded
	1978	Embossed red serial on reflective white plate with border line; "78" at top left	"OKLAHOMA IS OK" at top, offset to right	AB-1234 ABC-1234	County-coded

1979 to present

Image	Dates issued	Design	Slogan	Serial format	Serials issued	Notes
	1979–80	Embossed blue serial on reflective white plate; "OKLAHOMA" centered at top; debossed sticker boxes in top corners with "79" further debossed in right box	none	AB-1234 ABC-1234	County-coded	Monthly staggered registration introduced.
	1981–82	Embossed green serial with state-shaped separator on reflective white plate; debossed sticker boxes in top corners with "81" further debossed in right box	"OKLAHOMA IS OK" centered at top	AB-1234 ABC-1234	County-coded	Revalidated with stickers until 2009.
	1983–88	Embossed green serial with state-shaped separator on reflective white plate; yellow band screened at bottom with a yellow sun and "Oklahoma" in black in the middle; sticker boxes debossed in bottom corners	"is OK!" screened in black centered below state name, giving "Oklahoma is OK!"	ABC-123	County-coded	Commonly known as the "sunbelt" plate. Revalidated with stickers until 2009.
	1989–94	Embossed green serial on reflective white plate; battle shield of the Osage Nation screened in the center; "OKLAHOMA" screened in black centered at top	"OK!" screened in tan centered between state name and battle shield	ABC 123	County-coded	Awarded "Plate of the Year" for best new license plate of 1989 by the Automobile License Plate Collectors Association, the first time Oklahoma was so honored. Co-recipient with Nova Scotia. Serials in each county continued from where the 1983–88 plates left off, with leading zeros added in numbers below 100. Revalidated with stickers until 2009.
	1994–2008	Similar to 1989–94 base, but with larger state name and debossed area in center containing redrawn battle shield graphic	"NATIVE AMERICA" screened in red centered at bottom	ABC 123	County-coded	Serials in each county continued from where the 1989–94 plates left off, with the 123 ABC format introduced in counties that had exhausted their ABC 123 allocations. Revalidated with stickers until 2009.
				123 ABC
	January 2009 – December 2016	Screened red serial on reflective white plate; Allan Houser's "Sacred Rain Arrow" sculpture (outside the Gilcrease Museum in Tulsa) screened against cloudy blue sky at left and blue bar screened at bottom; "OKLAHOMA" screened in dark blue centered at top	"NATIVE AMERICA" screened in white in center of blue bar, with white Osage Nation battle shield at right	123ABC	001AAA to approximately 999QJX	Replaced all 1981–2008 plates. Awarded "Plate of the Year" for best new license plate of 2009 by the Automobile License Plate Collectors Association, the third time Oklahoma was so honored. County coding discontinued; the county of issuance has been printed on the month revalidation sticker since 2010. 'C' series of serials not issued; some serials carried over from 1994–2008 plates.
	January 2017 – present	Screened black serial with state-shaped separator on reflective graphic plate with white scissor-tailed flycatcher against blue landscape featuring mountains, badlands and water	"EXPLORE OKLAHOMA" screened in black centered at top; "TRAVELOK.COM" screened in red centered at bottom	ABC-123	AAA-001 to KPS-246 (as of October 20, 2020)

County coding

The order of the numeric county codes used from 1952–61 was based on the populations of each county according to the 1950 United States Census, and the order of the codes used in 1962 was based on the populations of each county according to the 1960 Census.[2]

County	Numeric codes, 1952–61	Numeric codes, 1962	2-letter codes, 1963–82	3-letter codes, 1971–82
Adair	46	46	AD, AR
Alfalfa	62	62	AL
Atoka	51	57	AT
Beaver	73	69	BV
Beckham	29	35	BK, BE
Blaine	45	49	BL
Bryan	25	27	BR, BY
Caddo	16	20	CA, CD
Canadian	26	26	CN, CX	CNN, CXX, CCN
Carter	14	12	CR, CE	CRR
Cherokee	37	36	CZ	CZZ
Choctaw	32	39	CW
Cimarron	77	77	CI
Cleveland	11	7	CL, CV, CY, CF	CLL, CVV, CFF, CYY, CLE, CLV, CLY
Coal	71	74	CO
Comanche	4	3	CC, CH, CM, CB, CP	CCC, CCB, CCH, CMH
Cotton	66	65	CT
Craig	39	37	CG	CGG
Creek	10	11	CK, CJ, CU	CKK
Custer	30	28	CS	CSS
Delaware	47	45	DL, DE
Dewey	68	70	DW
Ellis	75	75	EL
Garfield	5	5	GA, GR, GF, GB, GL
Garvin	24	22	GV, GN
Grady	17	18	GD, GY	GDD
Grant	64	64	GT
Greer	59	60	GE
Harmon	70	73	HM
Harper	76	71	HP
Haskell	54	58	HK
Hughes	31	40	HG
Jackson	33	17	JA, JK, JS, JX
Jefferson	60	63	JE
Johnston	63	61	JN
Kay	6	6	KA, KY, KK	KAY
Kingfisher	55	54	KF
Kiowa	38	41	KW
Latimer	67	67	LA
Le Flore	15	19	LE, LF, LR
Lincoln	28	31	LN, LL
Logan	27	32	LG, LO
Love	72	72	LV
Major	65	66	MA
Marshall	69	68	MR
Mayes	35	30	ME, MY
McClain	48	47	ML, MN
McCurtain	22	25	MC, MT
McIntosh	40	48	MO
Murray	61	55	MU
Muskogee	3	4	MK, MG, MS, MB	MKK
Noble	57	56	NB
Nowata	56	53	NW
Okfuskee	43	51	OK
Oklahoma	1	1	XA-YZ	XXA, XXY-XXZ
Okmulgee	8	14	OM, OL	OML
Osage	19	16	OS, OA, OE, OG	OSG
Ottawa	21	21	OT, OW	OTT
Pawnee	53	52	PW
Payne	7	8	PA, PY, PF	PYY
Pittsburg	12	15	PB, PS	PPB
Pontotoc	23	23	PN, PC
Pottawatomie	9	10	PT, PE, PD	PTT
Pushmataha	58	59	PM
Roger Mills	74	76	RM
Rogers	36	29	RG, RE, RO, RR
Seminole	13	24	SM, SE
Sequoyah	34	34	SY, SH
Stephens	18	13	ST, SP, SN	STE
Texas	52	43	TX, TS
Tillman	42	42	TL
Tulsa	2	2	ZA-ZZ	ZZA-ZZP
Wagoner	44	38	WG, WN
Washington	20	9	WA, WH, WS, WI
Washita	41	33	WT
Woods	49	50	WD
Woodward	50	44	WW, WE, WB

Optional plates

Image	Type	Dates issued	Design	Serial format	Serials issued	Notes
	"State Parks" – Pavilion	2004–present	Black on multicolored background.	O/P 1234	O/P 1 to present	Awarded "Plate of the Year" for best new license plate of 2004 by the Automobile License Plate Collectors Association, the second time Oklahoma was so honored.

References

1. Garrish, Christopher (October 2016). "Reconsidering the Standard Plate Size". Plates. Vol. 62 no. 5. Automobile License Plate Collectors Association.
2. Tanner, Eric N. "Oklahoma Passenger License Plates". allaboutlicenseplates.com. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
3. Mai, Chuck (July 31, 2016). "Chuck Mai: The colorful history of Oklahoma license plates". Tulsa World. Retrieved November 12, 2020.

External links

• Oklahoma license plates, 1969–present