Rare century-old NY license plate going on display

Posted at: 12/27/2012 10:10 AM
By: AP

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BALLSTON SPA, N.Y. (AP) - There was no long line at the DMV office when New York state license plate number 53538 was issued.

That's because the 100-year-old porcelain license plate featuring white numbers on a bright red background was made before there was a Department of Motor Vehicles. The rare automotive artifact will be going on public display soon at the Saratoga County Clerk's Office.  

The Daily Gazette of Schenectady reports that the plate has been donated to the county by Lawrence DeLong, a retired state worker who lives in Otsego County.         

The rare item was produced in 1912, three years after the state first began issuing auto license tags and the only year New York produced porcelain license plates. The state switched to steel license plates the next year because the porcelain ones cracked.





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