Antique NJ License Plate 1917 4 Digit

Description

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Antique NJ Solid Tire License Plate Porcelain Enamel 1913
Condition is "Used". See pictures.
For informational purposes.....
When the state of New Jersey first took
on the task of issuing standardized license
plates in 1908, they selected an unusual
type of plate - a metal base with crimped
edges into which individual numbered flat
metal tiles would be fitted.  The state seal
was pressed into the metal.  Later in the
year, the state decided to make a change,
and by October, they were ready to solicit
bids to produce an initial order of 20,000
pairs of porcelain plates with the state
seals now riveted onto them.  The contract
was awarded to the Horace E. Fine
Company of Trenton – the same company
that was well known for manufacturing
aluminum pre-state plates for residents of numerous states, and who either
made, or help make, the 1908 New Jersey plates.  It’s hard to say exactly what role
Horace E. Fine had in producing the 1909 plates.  After all, the company was
known as a metal stamp works and made such items as dog tags for the city of
Trenton.  They were not an enameling company and may have simply
manufactured the metal state emblems that were attached to the plates.  The
explanation can be found on the reverse of the Fine-produced porcelains, which
bear a stamp reading: "Horace E. Fine 'Ing-Rich' Auto Tags, Trenton, NJ."  Clearly,
Fine sub-contacted with the Beaver Falls-based enameling giant, Ingram-
Richardson to produce the actual plates.  This partnership remained intact
through 1912, and the resulting products were heavy, well-made porcelains that
are considered some of the finest issued in the country.
In August of 1912, "The Trenton Evening
Times" printed a list of at least some of the
companies vying to win the contract to
produce the 1913 New Jersey plates.  Bids
ranged from ,665 by the Quayle Enamel
Company of Albany, New York to ,402
by the Trenton-based Horace E. Fine.
Whereas New Jersey up to this point had
only used English charcoal iron for its
plates, all but one of the competing firms
were now offering cheaper plates made of
soft steel.  According to a 1981 article in
the ALPCA Newsletter, the contract was
awarded to the Greenduck Company of
Illinois, at a cost of 15 cents less per pair
than the state paid in 1912.  This was an
interesting choice, considering that Greenduck is not believed to have ever
produced porcelain license plates prior to this point.  This cost cutting measure
had predictable consequences, as the 1913 plates were thinner and generally
more poorly made with a greater propensity to chip, and so ended Greenduck's
brief foray into the world of porcelain license plate manufacturing.  It should be
pointed out, however, that the "Trenton Evening Times" of June 17, 1913
contradicts the findings of the collectors who wrote the 1981 article.  Instead, the
"Times" indicates that the low bidder for the 1913 plates - Quayle Enamel - was
actually awarded the contract.  Whatever company actually produced these
plates, the contract ultimately called for some 50,000 pairs.
Shipped with USPS Priority Mail.