mental_floss magazine
SUBSCRIBE >
GIFT SUBSCRIPTIONS >
DIGITAL SUBSCRIPTIONS >
subscriber services >
Where Knowledge Junkies Get Their Fix
We’ve all played a version of the license plate game. It’s as common on road trips as signs for Wall Drug and South of the Border. But if you don’t live near the interstate, and your town isn’t the kind of place where out-of-staters congregate, the game can get old quick.
Today’s Lunchtime Quiz brings the fun of the family vacation indoors, sans car sickness (and sans your family). I’ve done some hack Photoshopping to obscure the state names on 15 license plates. Using your memory and subtle clues (slogans, scenery and state flags), determine which state each plate came from. Then drive back here and let us know how you did.
Comments (121)
Comment
- Follow mental_floss
Darn. I thought I was pretty good. 12/15 (80%). It’s those eastern states that I have trouble with. Grr.
posted by dawn on 2-14-2008 at 10:42 am
Would have been a bit harder if half of the plates didn’t have maps of the states on them.
posted by Mike on 2-14-2008 at 10:56 am
I got 13/15. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a West Virginia license plate and I’ve never been to Maine. Fun quiz!
posted by kevin on 2-14-2008 at 11:02 am
w00t! 100% 2 days in a row. I’m telling ya, I love these geographic quizes.
posted by Jenny on 2-14-2008 at 11:03 am
I love that the Idaho plates say “Famous Potatoes.”
Oh, and I got 12 of 15, too.
posted by sara lynn on 2-14-2008 at 11:05 am
14/15! Whoo hoo! Although, I should mention we changed our plate here in Kentucky last year… there were SOOOOO many complaints about ‘Smiley.’ One notable editorial page snippet I remember compared it to a Wal-Mart ad. Our plate now features a horse and our new ‘Unbridled Spirit’ logo.
posted by Roger on 2-14-2008 at 11:05 am
13 right. Helps that I just got back from a trip around the country in which I drove through all but 2 of those states (the only two I got incorrect).
posted by James on 2-14-2008 at 11:06 am
13/15 I missed Oklahoma and Ohio. I totally fell for the N. Carolina/Kitty Hawk “Birthplace of Aviation” thing!!
posted by Christina on 2-14-2008 at 11:06 am
I only got 6 and one of those was a gimme because I live in Ohio.
I thought a Kentucky License Place was White and blue with a horse on it? And aren’t Michigan’s plates blue and yellow?
posted by Ashley on 2-14-2008 at 11:09 am
Ashley — Some of these plates might not be the most current design, but I don’t think I picked anything that isn’t still on the road.
Georgia is license plate crazy. Check out some of these options:
motor.etax.dor.ga.gov/motor/plates/images/Plates%20Photo%20Album/platestb.asp
posted by Jason on 2-14-2008 at 11:13 am
I work in a major city near an international University. My son and I started looking for all 51 (including DC) plates and kept a log with dates we saw them. We figured we’d eventually see most of them, but weren’t sure about Alaska and Hawaii. We looked for them driving and/or parked. Mostly we found them on our commute to school/work.
In fact within a month, we saw 31 states. Within 11 months we saw 50 states, Alaska and North Dakota were 49th and 50th. Within 18 months, we saw all 51 (Hawaii was the last).
A great resource was plateshack.com.
posted by Stew on 2-14-2008 at 11:28 am
11/15 – got all of the Eastern states but missed some out West. Some states have 4 or 5 variations (Indiana, Michigan, PA). Living in NE Ohio and driving the Interstate everyday, I see many of them.
posted by KJ on 2-14-2008 at 11:35 am
100%. It wasn’t as easy as the one-hit wonders quiz, but it was pretty close. If you know anything at all about states’ nicknames, you would have done extremely well on this quiz.
The smiley face on the Kentucky plate is disturbing.
posted by Rachel on 2-14-2008 at 11:41 am
14/15 – I missed Oklahoma. I don’t know that I’ve ever seen a car with an Oklahoma plate. I’ve seen most of the rest though. Good Quiz!
posted by kary on 2-14-2008 at 11:44 am
Here’s a link to an article on Mr. Smiley’s demise.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8598104/
posted by Roger on 2-14-2008 at 11:58 am
Dear God Jason, I was almost killed from the flashback when I read South Of The Border. What a horror show of a tourist trap…
posted by Anthony on 2-14-2008 at 12:07 pm
12 out of 15. I got West Virginia and Kentucky wrong – obviously Appalachia is not my thing – and Ohio. Because I was apparently misled by my elementary school teachers into thinking North Carolina was the birthplace of aviation!
And how silly is that Kentucky plate?
posted by muffy on 2-14-2008 at 12:18 pm
13/15. I screwed up Oklahoma and Oregon.
And I live in Kentucky. Thank goodness the smiley face is gone from our plates.
posted by Alison on 2-14-2008 at 12:19 pm
Jason:
If you think Georgia is license plate crazy, check out Colorado’s choices. There’s about a bazillion. :-)
revenue.state.co.us/mv_dir/wrap.asp?incl=registrations/plateindex
Sorry, it doesn’t have the pretty graphics like the Georgia page does.
posted by nutmeag on 2-14-2008 at 12:19 pm
Seems like the URLs posted here are screwing with the comments. They get cut off on the right hand side in FF. I’ll check IE.
posted by Alison on 2-14-2008 at 12:21 pm
I only got 10/15. 67%. But I will say that with all of my incorrect answers, I was right on the line of choosing the actual correct answers…
posted by Manda on 2-14-2008 at 12:31 pm
100%! But…I live in a tourist area so I see a ton of license plates – also, I have family that live in KY (they never got that plate though – they got the “Nature” ones – thankfully)
posted by Martha on 2-14-2008 at 12:34 pm
Wow, there are a lot of Kentucky flossers! I thought I was the only one! :-)
Many Louisvillians covered the offensive smiling sun with a round gorilla sticker that was just the right size for the plate. I don’t know where people were getting them, but it was the same gorilla sticker everywhere.
posted by Jen on 2-14-2008 at 12:40 pm
14/15. That smiley Kentucky plate…and I blamed it on Tennessee. :)
Isn’t it interesting how license plate design can inspire such passionate opinions? Especially in states where there aren’t 500 designs (ie: Georgia and Florida). Nebraska’s previous plate was yellow and orange (a sunset with Sandhill cranes flying over it) and it produced an absolute uproar. I actually really liked it–better than the ugly covered wagon themed plates we have now.
And see? With that last sentence, I guess I have to count myself among those who have strong feelings on the aesthetics of plates. :)
posted by kate on 2-14-2008 at 12:40 pm
Based on my score, I guess I slept through those car trips when I was a kid. Or it means smart people come to this site…
Jim
posted by Jim on 2-14-2008 at 1:01 pm
100%- two cross-country trips in the past 8 years must have helped. Plus I lived in the First State, so my car wore one of those plates!
posted by Lebetho on 2-14-2008 at 1:22 pm
15/15… live in panama city beach… and see just about all of them… include some canadian ones (dang snowbirds) to make it a little harder….
Everybody I knew from KY hated those….
posted by Owen on 2-14-2008 at 1:27 pm
11 of 15. Not bad I guess.
posted by Fran on 2-14-2008 at 1:36 pm
13/15. I missed Wyoming and Oregon. I love New Mexico’s plates – I have one of those purses made out of one. A although isn’t that their old one? I thought the more recent ones had a hot air balloon on them.
posted by Sara on 2-14-2008 at 2:08 pm
14/15. Missed South Carolina. Knew from the motto that it was southern but guessed wrong.
posted by Ken on 2-14-2008 at 2:33 pm
14/15
I missed South Carolina’s.
I was almost misled by the birthplace of aviation, but then remembered where those aviators lived. NC may have been First in Flight, but all the ideas came from OH.
Is it true that only NM and AK have official state nicknames that don’t follow the pattern, “The {blank} State”?
posted by Caleb on 2-14-2008 at 2:40 pm
Hey, that would be a cool article–state mottos or nicknames. Maybe there already is one–guess I should do an archive search before I say such things. At any rate, maybe a future quiz?
posted by kate on 2-14-2008 at 2:53 pm
I miss the days when each state had one plate for the year (at least)
I got 80%
posted by Steve on 2-14-2008 at 4:08 pm
14 out of 15…i had to guess maine, michigan, and wyoming (the one i got wrong)…traveling the east coast you see a lot of tags…
posted by stef on 2-14-2008 at 5:58 pm
eh, I got 7/15. I figure it’s not too bad since I live in Quebec and the last time I went to the states I was in grade one, and it was in Point Roberts, which hardly counts as it is innaccessible from the mainland.
posted by marianne on 2-14-2008 at 7:18 pm
13/15…i gotta pay more attention to the road…:-)
posted by ziggy on 2-15-2008 at 8:40 am
I had 10/15… Not bad for a French Canadian who only visits New England once a year.
Many plates show a creative design, but my favorite one is still the Northwest Territories (bear-shaped).
posted by Bernard on 2-18-2008 at 10:59 am
There’s something to be said for being a military brat…I got all of them right. Woohoo!
posted by Krie on 2-21-2008 at 10:18 am
To Ashley’s question: I’m a native Michigander (although I live in Indianapolis now), and Michigan’s plates aren’t blue and yellow. They were until recently a blue background with white letters and numbers (at least the standard plates were), and now are a white background with blue letters and numbers, with a blue line across the top. That being said, there are of course lots of variations to plates, but I can’t think of any that are blue and yellow. Also, Indiana, I have noticed, is very license plate happy, as I see about 15 different designs every day, it seems. Most of them are colleges or organizations, but here is a list of different plates you can get here: http://www.in.gov/ai/appfiles/bmv-rrs/plate_types.html
Oh, and here’s Michigan’s, in case you’re wondering. There are links to every kind of plate you can get, so you’ll have to click each individually. mi.gov/sos/0,1607,7-127-1585_1595—,00.html
posted by Krie on 2-21-2008 at 11:08 am
4 years in the Army, and this is probably the coolest thing that came from it. I can identify all kinds of license plates… *sigh*
posted by k8 on 3-3-2008 at 4:20 pm
14 outta 15. Missed the Delaware plate. Didn’t remember my history quite right!This was a fun little quiz nonetheless!
posted by metalhead2821 on 3-5-2008 at 3:26 am
14 of 15 isn’t too bad for an 80+ years!
posted by George Stager on 3-7-2008 at 11:21 pm
14/15…i haven’t really road-tripped west of ohio and kentucky, so I didn’t know Wyoming’s.
posted by Alexandra on 3-12-2008 at 11:20 am
15 out of 15, first try.
posted by AD1C on 3-21-2008 at 3:11 pm
14/15. I missed the Birthplace of Aviation one. I put North Carolina, thinking Kitty Hawk. Silly me.
posted by Potsie on 5-12-2008 at 11:06 am
Hey, you really need to update your license plates, I live in maine and I’ve never seen a license plate that looks like that!
posted by Beth-Anne Miller on 5-20-2008 at 3:34 pm
perfect score! Too many road trips. I’ve pretty much seen every US plate (including Puerto Rico, but sadly, not Guam). I’ve even seen every Canadian province, including Manitoba (except if the Northern Territories have their own plate – that I haven’t seen!)
posted by MBG on 5-22-2008 at 7:48 pm
Aw, man, I got Maine wrong – but still 14/15. It helps living near DC, I guess!
posted by liz on 6-17-2008 at 12:49 pm
i got 6 of 15 cause i did not pay attention at all. enjoy learning knowing about all states plates.
posted by barbara on 6-21-2008 at 8:38 am
Gosh, I feel kinda silly. LOL. I only got 8 out of 15. You’d think I would have done better than that. I’m always watching license plates when I am out on the road.
posted by Laura on 6-22-2008 at 12:28 am
I live in the East, and my family takes lots of road trips. My sisters and I used to play the license plate game, where we would count how many different states we could spot. :P 14/15, pretty good!
posted by Megan on 6-22-2008 at 2:39 pm
did better than i thought i would 12/15 :)
posted by Barb on 6-25-2008 at 1:55 pm
100% I love playing the game! I didn’t need the multiple choice!
posted by shaun on 6-28-2008 at 4:55 pm
I got 14/15. I have seen many of these plates due to the fact that evryone and their Grandma is moving here (Arizona). I don’t know why it is HOT! I am a native and would much rather see it the way it was. this was a great game!
posted by Catht on 7-3-2008 at 1:51 am
My wife and I have been to all 50 states, and I was able to identify 15 out of 15 plates. Yippee!
posted by Joe Barmann on 7-11-2008 at 9:03 am
I got 13/15. . .
I’m in SC; the plate gallery here doesn’t *quite* manage to exceed GA’s (117), but it’s only 15 plates shorter. At least GA doesn’t have NASCAR plates. To my mind, that’s verging on commercialization.
However, the gallery doesn’t include *any* of the government plates. There are four for run-of-the-mill government-owned vehicles: MG99999 (municipal gov’t), CG (county), RG (regional), & SG (state). Then there are the scads that agency heads are allowed for their personally owned vehicles. (At least those have a huge $ premium, since they’re basically one-offs.)
I’ll have to visit the links for the others listed above, to. . .
posted by Bruce Robb on 7-31-2008 at 11:29 pm
7/15. Sad but true. Can you tell I haven’t taken many road trips and that I also couldn’t stand my geography class? Now I see the pay off.
posted by Yuni on 8-5-2008 at 12:40 pm
80%.. I’m proud!
posted by sande on 8-8-2008 at 9:04 pm
I got 15 out of 15. I had to guess on Maine, but I knew the others. I teach Drivers Education in a county that has an Interstate (and yes, most of “us” hated that KY plate!!!)
posted by Eric on 8-10-2008 at 11:45 pm
14/15…..should’ve aced it!!
posted by 61-yr old on 8-11-2008 at 6:15 pm
my memory is not so good anymore 60%
posted by adolph h on 8-11-2008 at 10:41 pm
NAILED IT!!! 100% I aparently need a chauffer…
posted by rich acosta on 8-20-2008 at 10:03 am
14/15, missed the last one!
posted by Jeremy on 8-20-2008 at 5:34 pm
14/15 — I missed Georgia.
posted by Barbara on 8-21-2008 at 7:09 pm
I’m so proud of myself – I got 100%. I’m impressed if no one else is. Having been a military brat helped plus playing this game as a young boy while on vacation or moving. I feel sorry for those in KY who had to endure such a hideous tag. I remember the days when you got a whole new tag each year with a new number, getting it in the mail and seeing what colors they were using that year. No vanity tags or special tags back then.
posted by Bud B. in WV on 8-22-2008 at 4:10 pm
I missed Ohio (Birthplace of Aviation) and guessed South Carolina….which are actually both wrong. The real birthplace of aviation was Brown Field, San Diego, CA…..even before the Wright Brothers. Most people aren’t aware that the “Spirit of St. Louis”, the plane that made the first Atlantic flight, was actually built in San Diego.
posted by Jim Meek in El Centro, CA on 8-23-2008 at 2:28 am
I got 73% and I am quite proud. I had not seen some of those plates before. The aviation one stumped me as I thought it was N.C.
posted by Linda J. (Virginia) on 8-26-2008 at 10:14 pm
9-15 or 60%
posted by jerry on 8-28-2008 at 7:25 am
Shockingly, I got a 100%. I know I knew quite a few if them, but not all of them! Go me!!
posted by Lisa Marshall on 8-29-2008 at 10:06 am
Got 87% — missed Wyoming (I said Montana) and Oregon (I said VT). I had advantage of owning plates in NJ, DE, MD, WV, and now GA, as well as NY, TN and TX which were not included.
posted by Art Wolters on 8-31-2008 at 10:34 am
15 out of 15 100% Baby!!
I love guessing license plates on road trips =)
posted by tofu on 9-3-2008 at 8:32 pm
12/15 — who drives anymore? With the cost of gas? LOL!!! And it’s a bit hard to see those license plates from an airplane!!!! But what a fun quiz! And Jim — we were flying WAY before the Spirit of St. Louis was built in San Diego!
posted by Mary Beth Bemis on 9-10-2008 at 7:16 pm
14/15 I missed Oklahoma! Darn it! I shouldn’t have missed any!
posted by Julie Moore on 9-15-2008 at 2:59 am
14/15. missed “first state” but what do you expect from a blond fifth generation Californian. I used to flag for a living (stand on highways with a stop sign playing car target), once saw 48 of 50 state plates in one 12 hour day. Saw last two (New Hampshire and Delaware) the next day. Location: Hwy 101 just north of Sonoma/Mendocino county line in Northern California.
posted by Ila Logan on 9-18-2008 at 3:08 pm
Got 13/15. I KNEW i should have picked Oklahoma and Ohio, but i let myself think too long. I live in the part of NJ that justifies the name “Garden State” – it does exist!
posted by Melodie Donohue on 9-24-2008 at 5:11 pm
15 of 15 on first try
Of course I know what I’m looking for. Some friends at work and I (here in the LA area) have a yearly contest. How many different state plates can we find going back and forth to work. No commercial vehicles allowed. No one has ever found them all in a year, but we’ve had a few 49’s.
posted by DavidD on 9-27-2008 at 5:21 pm
93%!!! I only missed one—I thought I missed more!!
posted by Meka on 10-1-2008 at 11:43 pm
I see them all down here in SW FL… even have seen Hawaii and Alaska in the past few years(which is very strange to see considering the distance).
posted by Jim W. on 10-2-2008 at 11:09 am
i scored a 73%. I thought that was pretty good from an old hillbilly from
WV
posted by Teresa W on 10-2-2008 at 10:34 pm
15/15….first try…don’t hate. Helps when you drive a semi and see lots o’cars out there. Smell My Face!!!
posted by Carl R. on 10-3-2008 at 11:28 pm
15 of 15….there is a reason I am TrafficDan
posted by dan miller on 10-9-2008 at 9:52 pm
i should have gotten Oregon. 14 of 15.
posted by Joe Weir on 10-13-2008 at 11:11 am
I got 100%. What can I say? I’m a freak. I was obsessed with license plates as a child; I’m 41 now, and can spot and identify out-of-state plates from 100 yards to this day. It’s a gift. A retarded one, but, a gift, nonetheless.
posted by Matt W. on 10-14-2008 at 12:03 pm
This should be a history lesson and contain all the states, 15 at a time.
posted by Joan on 11-7-2008 at 12:58 pm
I got 100%
posted by Joe B on 11-14-2008 at 10:17 am
14/15, missed Maine.
posted by Michael B on 11-15-2008 at 9:22 pm
yep…100%. i am an army brat so we are like, forced to see all of the license plates. :]
posted by annabanana on 11-21-2008 at 8:16 pm
15 of 15! I travel a bunch and once collected plates, so all that helps, I guess.
posted by Gary Ellenbolt on 11-25-2008 at 12:10 pm
I got ‘em all right. Then again, I’m also a truck driver, so I see these plates regularly, save Wyoming.
posted by Kenny on 11-30-2008 at 12:18 am
7/15 baby. 47% right. I don’t pay attention to freaking license plates. :(
posted by frank on 12-3-2008 at 8:37 pm
I had 4 right, but I’m not american
posted by damasta on 12-8-2008 at 7:47 am
Oh my god, the smiley Kentucky sun… I was so glad to hear it was voted out early (special legislation and all). It’s disturbing.
(P.S. – that actually is the current Ohio plate. It came after the Bicentennial plates. For those wondering about ‘birthplace of aviation,’ the Wright brothers had a bike shop in Dayton, before they got into airplane designing.)
posted by Jill on 12-11-2008 at 2:56 am
15/15, yeah, thank god we got rid of that hideous plate in KY
posted by Aaron on 12-12-2008 at 3:32 pm
15/15 100%
posted by Richard on 12-12-2008 at 10:59 pm
15/15 although I got one or two by process of elimination. Fun quiz!
posted by Roger on 12-23-2008 at 8:48 pm
15/15….then again, I maintain things like that in my head, and love to travel, but it’s always fun to do them anyway!
posted by Ian on 12-28-2008 at 10:45 am
12 of 15 80% seems to be about average. Felt pretty good with my results
posted by Cheri on 1-3-2009 at 11:45 pm
I got one wrong, I missed Maine (I put South Carolina). My score was 93%.
posted by Cptntrips on 2-12-2009 at 6:48 pm
15 for 15. Only one I had to guess at was Maine. Probably helps that I have lived in 9 different states all over the country.
posted by grooves on 3-15-2009 at 9:31 pm
100% thanks for the fun — reminds me of vacation when we drove from MN to GA in the 60s and 70s.
posted by Kim on 3-16-2009 at 2:55 am
My husband & I always play a ‘license plate’ game when we go on vacation, checking off on our list each state as we see them. I think that really gave me an advantage; got 14/15!!
posted by Goddess1957 on 3-16-2009 at 11:52 pm
100%! Being in the military and seeing so many different plates all the time helped. Thanks!
posted by JD on 3-21-2009 at 1:08 pm
I went 15 for 15. I think I drive too much!
posted by Jeff on 3-27-2009 at 5:19 pm
100% on my first ever quiz on this site. Thank you, thank you very much.
posted by Gary Comingore on 5-21-2009 at 9:31 am
100% for the win!
posted by Tom Okinawa Anderson on 5-30-2009 at 6:25 pm
100% (on my first quiz at Mental Floss!) …I think it helps that I’ve traveled, especially last summer. I quite enjoy this website, and the quiz was fun to do {even before I knew my score}.
posted by Laura on 6-15-2009 at 6:29 pm
15/15. Oklahoma almost stumped me
posted by Richard on 6-24-2009 at 11:18 am
I got a 8/15! Not bad considering I’m a Canadian and the only state I’ve ever been in is New York, haha!
posted by Melissa on 7-7-2009 at 12:15 pm
What can I say? I’m a pro. 100%
posted by HorribleLicensePlates on 7-8-2009 at 11:49 am
14 out of 15…Building bikes in a garage in Dayton doesn’t necessarily make a state the Birthplace of Aviation…but hey, that’s just my opinion.
posted by Tom Hamann on 7-8-2009 at 9:45 pm
I got 100%
posted by Christine on 7-28-2009 at 1:05 am
100% – piece of cake (if you live in a tourist area like I do)
posted by tortillapete on 8-8-2009 at 1:34 am
13 of 15. Would’ve had 14 if I’d just looked a little further at Kentucky’s plate and seen the state slogan, “The Bluegrass State” at the top. Answered that one a little too quickly!
posted by Shawna on 8-21-2009 at 10:51 pm
100%. Us military types see a lot of plates…you can probably see all 50 on any army base.
posted by Michele on 8-25-2009 at 3:24 am
14 of 15; missed Delaware.
posted by Terry on 8-31-2009 at 11:41 pm
100% – I used to keep track on my regular drive between NJ and VT of how many different state’s plates I could spot. The colors may change but the motto or icon remains the same…
posted by Fred on 9-10-2009 at 8:53 am
100% I guess traveling all over the country helps.
posted by Chris on 9-23-2009 at 9:59 am
2 from 15.. not bad for an Australian who’s never been to the US& was guessing the whole lot :-)
posted by Tim on 9-24-2009 at 1:29 am
The difference between NC and Ohio is very simple. The Wright brothers were born in Ohio, hence “Birthplace of Aviation.” They took the plane to NC and had the “First Flight.”
posted by Emily on 10-11-2009 at 11:07 pm
I’m Canadian and still managed to get 11/15! haha
posted by Jordan on 10-19-2009 at 12:20 am
15/15. Being in a military town sure helps,,,:)
posted by MattC on 11-2-2009 at 11:52 am