By Ann St. Martin Stout
Leaves Are Free
License plates throughout the US provide an opportunity for each state to say something about itself and possibly entice others to visit. Some plates contain a philosophical statement, others a bit of a brag. Not long ago, I noticed the Washington DC license plate proclaims “Taxation Without Representation.” I thought that it as much of a revolutionary cry as “Live Free or Die.”
DC’s statement echoes a 1765 protest of the Stamp Act, the British law which taxed American colonists. “No taxation without representation” was the original cry. The DC plate sometimes reads “End Taxation without Representation.”
Politically and governmentally DC is a district, representing the whole nation. Consequently, it does not have elected representatives in either house of Congress, though residents still pay federal taxes.
When I entered the proverbial rabbit hole of license plates by comparing DC and NH and then other states, I found a maze of 8,331 possible plates (or tags) available to vehicle owners in the 50 states and DC.
New Hampshire is on the low end of the options with 48 choices. Each choice — state park, conservation, handicap, veteran, antique — also comes with the option of a vanity plate so you can see how the choices multiply exponentially. Our own family car carries the state park plate, which at one time made budgetary sense for us. The extra $85 for the plate saved us more than that amount in Lake Sunapee State Beach entrance fees.
According to the website BeautifulPublicData.com, the state of Maryland has 989 possible plate options, recognizing teams, causes, organizations, professions and other groups. Hawaii has fewest with 14. The website data was collected in June/July 2023 and author Jon Keegan feels certain it is an ever-changing count.
Prior to 1971, NH’s plate had the word “Scenic” above the numbers. The current statement of freedom contrasts much milder state mottos, such as “Home Means Nevada”, “Garden State” (New Jersey), “Sportsman’s Paradise” (Louisiana), or “Virginia is for Lovers.”
In 1977, a three-year court battle ended in the U.S. Supreme Court, allowing the individual who brought a case against NH (Wooley v. Maynard) to claim his religious right to cover the motto on his plate. The case was decided in his favor 6-3. Approximately 12 states have had lawsuits brought against their plates.
The phrase on NH’s plate was offered as a toast at the end of a letter from NH Revolutionary War General John Stark in 1809, regretting his non-attendance at a reunion of soldiers at Ft. Ticonderoga. It was adopted as the state motto around the end of World War II. The full toast was “Live free or die — Death is not the worst of evils.”
Nationwide, I find Land of Enchantment worthy of note. New Mexico USA is the only state plate to include the country – USA—likely because of its close proximity, geographically and historically, to old Mexico.
Many state plate mottos are self-explanatory –Grand Canyon State (Arizona), Land of 10,000 Lakes (Minnesota) and America’s Dairyland (Wisconsin). There are, however, are a few mottos or state nicknames that may cause some curiosity.
The Volunteer State was so named as Tennesseans were forthcoming as war volunteers. Teasure State comes from Montana being the foremost producer of metallic treasure — gold, silver, copper.
North Dakota claims status as the Peace Garden State. According to NDTourism.com, “The International Peace Garden is a unique and beautiful 2,300-acre park in North Dakota situated on the border between the United States and Canada. Established in 1932, it is on the world’s longest international border and is a symbol of peace and friendship between the two countries.”
Of the foods noted on license plates, be sure to give a nod to Florida oranges, Georgia peaches, and of course, Idaho’s “Famous Potatoes.”
— Ann St. Martin Stout is a Newport native and, with her husband Greg, has raised seven children there. She has written two books and can be reached at [email protected].
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