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99% Invisible
99% Invisible

Artistic License Redux

February 10, 2026 • 33m

Summary

⏱️ 8 min read

Overview

This episode explores the surprising history and constitutional battles surrounding license plates in America, from Idaho's 1928 potato plate that started the trend of state slogans, to Supreme Court cases over compelled speech and Confederate flag imagery. The story reveals how these mundane metal rectangles became ideological battlegrounds where governments and citizens clash over identity, freedom of expression, and whose message gets displayed on millions of cars.

Idaho's Potato Plate: The Birth of License Plate Advertising

In 1928, Idaho revolutionized license plate design by creating what's considered the first advertising license plate in America, featuring a giant potato. The plates became so popular with tourists that they were being stolen off cars, leading to complaints from residents who found their plates missing. However, many Idahoans, particularly those from northern Idaho where potatoes aren't grown, resented being associated with the state's cash crop and found the design embarrassing.

  • Idaho license plates were being stolen by tourists who wanted them as souvenirs in 1928
  • Idaho created the first advertising license plate in 1928 featuring a giant potato
  • The potato on the plate was described as looking 'almost fecal in nature' due to its lumpy brown shape
  • Many Idahoans detested the potato plates, especially northern residents who don't grow potatoes
  • Idaho dropped the potato design entirely by 1929, returning to just numbers
" Before this, plates were basic with info like the state name and the registration numbers. All of this on a pretty simple, solid colored background. But in 1928, the Secretary of State in Idaho had an epiphany. He was like, we have this half square foot of open real estate just rolling around on everyone's cars. Let's do something with it. "
" I would say it looks almost fecal in nature. It does. The shape particularly, yes. "

The Rise of State Slogans and Tourism Competition

Following Idaho's innovation, states across America transformed license plates from austere government documents into colorful advertisements for tourism and industry throughout the mid-20th century. The rise of automobile road trips in the 1920s created a massive new tourist market, and states competed fiercely to attract those dollars through slogans and imagery on their plates. However, choosing one symbol to represent an entire state proved contentious from the start, with various design controversies emerging.

  • The rise of road trips in the 1920s created a huge new tourist market that states wanted to capture
  • License plates became 'miniature little ads' driving all over the state and country
  • Arizona added 'Grand Canyon State' in 1940, Minnesota used 'Land of 10,000 Lakes' in 1950
  • New Mexico claimed 'Sunshine State' in 1932 before Florida took it in 1949, despite having fewer sunny days
  • Michigan couldn't decide on a slogan, cycling through multiple variations including the never-used 'The Michigans, the almost islands of the Great Lakes'
  • Florida had to dump a design after residents complained the grapefruit looked like a bomb
" When you traveled by same ship or railroad, you pretty much brought what you needed with you, and your meals were served at a resort. But once the automobile came along, there was a lot more money that needed to be spent. "
" License plates became a different thing because of that potato. "

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