Nevada License Plate County Codes History

ShopLicensePlates is your source for real vintage and antique old Nevada license plates for sale. Nevada required that vehicles use license plates in 1913 which the owner provided, and officially started issuing pairs of license plates in 1916. In 1943 a single tab was issued to place on the rear 1942 base license plate; from 1944 to 1960 a single license plate was issued; and then Nevada went back to issuing pairs of license plates in 1961, which continues to the present day. Nevada license plates were made of steel from 1916 until 1961, when the State made the changeover to use aluminum. The first vinyl license plate expiration tab was used in 1962.

Our handy Nevada License Plates County Numbers code key will help you to quickly and easily decipher the history behind which County your license plate(s) was issued in. We also provide some common codes which may apply in the type of vehicle the license plate was used on. Nevada started to use County Codes in 1950. From 1916 to 1950, Nevada issued numbers in order without the designation of a County. There are 16 Counties and 1 Independent City (Carson City) in Nevada. Esmeralda County has the smallest population, which has only 743 people according to the 2020 US Census Bureau data. This also makes it the one of the least populated Counties in the United States. In 1969, Ormsby became part of Carson City.

Because laws vary by State with respect to the use of our real and authentic vintage license plates on an old vehicle, we always recommend that you contact your DMV or your local DMV office to confirm that you can use these on your vehicle prior to your purchase. As of the date of this writing, vehicles that were manufactured in 1942 or before may be eligible to display YOM license plates with DMV approval. Don't miss the old Nevada license plates for sale now at ShopLicensePlates!