Santa brought a "NEW" Indiana tag for the S'lite

[50starlite]

http://www.livingintheozarks.com/studebaker.htm

[556063]

Prefixes GG through GK were used in Elkhart County, the county immediately east of St. Joseph County and South Bend.

Kevin Wolford
Plymouth, IN

55 Champion
60 Lark VI Conv.
63 Avanti R1

[556063]

Prefixes GG through GK were used in Elkhart County, the county immediately east of St. Joseph County and South Bend.

Kevin Wolford
Plymouth, IN

55 Champion
60 Lark VI Conv.
63 Avanti R1

[556063]

Since Indiana will have a Year of Manufacture plate law next year which will allow us to use a plate from the same year as our cars if it's condition is approved by the BMV, I thought it might be handy to post this guide. Indiana used two letter prefixes before 1963. 1963 and after, we switched to the number prefixes which are for the most part derived from a list of the 93 counties and their alphabetical ranking. Most Hoosiers know their county's number prefix. But if your Studebaker is older than a '63, these letter prefixes have been long forgotten by most of us! I asked, and the plate you use did not have to originally come from the county you have the car registered in today. But talking with plate vendors this summer, most people want a plate originally from their county, and usable examples are bringing good prices.



Kevin Wolford
Plymouth, IN

55 Champion
60 Lark VI Conv.
63 Avanti R1

[556063]

Since Indiana will have a Year of Manufacture plate law next year which will allow us to use a plate from the same year as our cars if it's condition is approved by the BMV, I thought it might be handy to post this guide. Indiana used two letter prefixes before 1963. 1963 and after, we switched to the number prefixes which are for the most part derived from a list of the 93 counties and their alphabetical ranking. Most Hoosiers know their county's number prefix. But if your Studebaker is older than a '63, these letter prefixes have been long forgotten by most of us! I asked, and the plate you use did not have to originally come from the county you have the car registered in today. But talking with plate vendors this summer, most people want a plate originally from their county, and usable examples are bringing good prices.



Kevin Wolford
Plymouth, IN

55 Champion
60 Lark VI Conv.
63 Avanti R1

[BobPalma]

Thanks for that post, Kevin. Having moved to Indiana in July 1962 when 16 years old, I only remember 2-digit number prefixes. The history lesson and chart was much appreciated. [^][:I][8D] BP

[BobPalma]

Thanks for that post, Kevin. Having moved to Indiana in July 1962 when 16 years old, I only remember 2-digit number prefixes. The history lesson and chart was much appreciated. [^][:I][8D] BP

[50starlite]

Kevin,

This plate was $26.05, including shipping. Fair enough, I think.

Dick
Mountain Home, AR

http://www.livingintheozarks.com/studebaker.htm

[50starlite]

Kevin,

This plate was $26.05, including shipping. Fair enough, I think.

Dick
Mountain Home, AR

http://www.livingintheozarks.com/studebaker.htm

[jnewkirk77]

If any of you are so fortunate to run across a plate with the "SQ" prefix, that is Spencer County, as well, and you may want to snap 'em up, because they are quite rare. I have two, a '61 and a '62, both with the same number, SQ 126.

And this is for Bob, Kevin and our other Hoosier friends: Have you seen the new regular-issue plate yet? The county prefix is moving to the top on a sticker with the county name, and the plates will have the same 123-ABC numbering format as a lot of other states, such as Kentucky. Personally, I'm disappointed, but not surprised. Guess I'll just have to squint harder to see where a certain Indiana plate is from ...

Jacob Newkirk - Owensboro, KY

Currently driving an '87 Ford F-150, but I dream of having a Hawk one day. Don't we all?

[jnewkirk77]

If any of you are so fortunate to run across a plate with the "SQ" prefix, that is Spencer County, as well, and you may want to snap 'em up, because they are quite rare. I have two, a '61 and a '62, both with the same number, SQ 126.

And this is for Bob, Kevin and our other Hoosier friends: Have you seen the new regular-issue plate yet? The county prefix is moving to the top on a sticker with the county name, and the plates will have the same 123-ABC numbering format as a lot of other states, such as Kentucky. Personally, I'm disappointed, but not surprised. Guess I'll just have to squint harder to see where a certain Indiana plate is from ...

Jacob Newkirk - Owensboro, KY

Currently driving an '87 Ford F-150, but I dream of having a Hawk one day. Don't we all?

[556063]

Our county prefixes are another "Hoosierism" that most of our out of state friends just don't understand. One of my favorite things to do when I get a new factory rep is to pull up on a jobsite, and tell him where all the workers are driving from to get to the jobsite before we speak to anyone. The smartest one I ever had asked me if we had the prefixes to help police identify out of town speeders? Good question!

It does look like the county prefixes are going the way of Single Class High School Basketball and Indiana having it's own time zone. Oh well. With all the personalized plates you can buy today, it's almost impossible to tell instantly nowdays where the guy next to you comes from at a car show anyway.



Kevin Wolford
Plymouth, IN

55 Champion
60 Lark VI Conv.
63 Avanti R1

[556063]

Our county prefixes are another "Hoosierism" that most of our out of state friends just don't understand. One of my favorite things to do when I get a new factory rep is to pull up on a jobsite, and tell him where all the workers are driving from to get to the jobsite before we speak to anyone. The smartest one I ever had asked me if we had the prefixes to help police identify out of town speeders? Good question!

It does look like the county prefixes are going the way of Single Class High School Basketball and Indiana having it's own time zone. Oh well. With all the personalized plates you can buy today, it's almost impossible to tell instantly nowdays where the guy next to you comes from at a car show anyway.



Kevin Wolford
Plymouth, IN

55 Champion
60 Lark VI Conv.
63 Avanti R1

[jnewkirk77]

Kevin, I guess the song was right: "The times, they are a-changin'."

Seems like most of my family switched to the In God We Trust plate this year. My parents, grandparents and my youngest brother all have them on their cars and trucks. My middle brother and his wife, both Purdue grads, have Purdue plates.

Here in Kentucky, we're starting to rival Indiana for the sheer number of extra-cost plates that are available. If you're promoting anything at all, it seems you can get a plate made! I've had a couple of different types myself, but as I'm now in the grip of a degenerative spinal disease (spinal stenosis) that limits my ability to walk great distances, I gave up and got a handicap-parking plate.

One more thing: Before he succumbed to Alzheimer's, I asked Grandpa the same question your factory rep asked you. The answer? "Yep. Had to have some way of trackin' them 'city boys.'" Evidently, the '63 change to numbering the counties in alphabetical order was the result.

Jacob Newkirk - Owensboro, KY

Currently driving an '87 Ford F-150, but I dream of having a Hawk one day. Don't we all?

[jnewkirk77]

Kevin, I guess the song was right: "The times, they are a-changin'."

Seems like most of my family switched to the In God We Trust plate this year. My parents, grandparents and my youngest brother all have them on their cars and trucks. My middle brother and his wife, both Purdue grads, have Purdue plates.

Here in Kentucky, we're starting to rival Indiana for the sheer number of extra-cost plates that are available. If you're promoting anything at all, it seems you can get a plate made! I've had a couple of different types myself, but as I'm now in the grip of a degenerative spinal disease (spinal stenosis) that limits my ability to walk great distances, I gave up and got a handicap-parking plate.

One more thing: Before he succumbed to Alzheimer's, I asked Grandpa the same question your factory rep asked you. The answer? "Yep. Had to have some way of trackin' them 'city boys.'" Evidently, the '63 change to numbering the counties in alphabetical order was the result.

Jacob Newkirk - Owensboro, KY

Currently driving an '87 Ford F-150, but I dream of having a Hawk one day. Don't we all?