South Dakota license plate numbers are based on a unique ordering system. They are divided into counties with the top nine being the most populated and numbers 10 through 67 following in alphabetical order.
South Dakota license plate numbers. Photo courtesy Flickr.com.
I decided to gather this information because I first had the question myself. This post contains information from several sources online, all of which are marked in the footer. Consider this the best source for looking up South Dakota license plate numbers on the interwebs. (Okay, maybe that is a bit of an overstatement.)
Without further adieu, here is the master list of South Dakota license plate numbers from 1 to 67.
1: Minnehaha (Sioux Falls)
2: Pennington (Rapid City)
3: Brown (Aberdeen)
4: Beadle (Huron)
5: Codington (Watertown)
6: Brookings (Brookings)
7: Yankton (Yankton)
8: Davison (Mitchell)
9: Lawrence (Deadwood)
10: Aurora (Plankinton)
11: Bennett (Martin)
12: Bon Homme (Tyndall)
13: Brule (Chamberlain)
14: Buffalo (Gann Valley)
15: Butte (Belle Fourche)
16: Campbell (Mound City)
17: Charles Mix (Lake Andres)
18: Clark (Clark)
19: Clay (Vermillion)
20: Corson (McIntosh)
21: Custer (Custer)
22: Day (Webster)
23: Deuel (Clear Lake)
24: Dewey (Timber Lake)
25: Douglas (Armour)
26: Edmunds (Ipswich)
27: Fall River (Hot Springs)
28: Faulk (Faulkton)
29: Grant (Milbank)
30: Gregory (Burke)
31: Haakon (Philip)
32: Hamlin (Hayti)
33: Hand (Miller)
34: Hanson (Alexandria)
35: Harding (Buffalo)
36: Hughes (Pierre)
37: Hutchinson (Olivet)
38: Hyde (Highmore)
39: Jackson (Kadoka)
40: Jerauld (Wessington Springs)
41: Jones (Murdo)
42: Kingsbury (De Smet)
43: Lake (Madison)
44: Lincoln (Canton)
45: Lyman (Kennebec)
46: McCook (Salem)
47: McPherson (Leola)
48: Marshall (Britton)
49: Meade (Sturgis)
50: Mellette (White River)
51: Miner (Howard)
52: Moody (Flandreau)
53: Perkins (Bison)
54: Potter (Gettysburg)
55: Roberts (Sisseton)
56: Sanborn (Woonsocket)
57: Spink (Redfield)
58: Stanley (Fort Pierce)
59: Sully (Onida)
60: Tripp (Winner)
61: Turner (Parker)
62: Union (Elk Point)
63: Walworth (Selby)
64: Ziebach (Dupree)
65: Shannon (Wounded Knee)
66: Washabaugh (unincorporated, portion of Jackson county)
67: Todd (Antelope)
South Dakota has 66 counties. However, when county coding was introduced in 1925, there were 69 counties. In 1943, Washington County became part of Shannon County, and in 1954, Armstrong County was combined with Dewey County. In 1976, Washabaugh County became part of Jackson County.
Many of the counties in this list have shifted up and down in rank. For instance, Lincoln county (#44) is actually one of the most populous counties in the state. Similarly, Coddington (#5) is larger than Beadle (#4).
Other facts about South Dakota license plates:
- South Dakota is one of only six states that uses numbers to signify the county for a registered vehicle.
- South Dakota does not require you to surrender your plates if you move out-of-state. Recycle them as you see fit once you get registered in your new state.
- From 1970 to 1988 the number of registered autos more than doubled.
- South Dakota refers to its antique plates as historical plates.
Sources:
South Dakota Division of Motor Vehicles | DMV.org | South Dakota Department of Revenue | Flickr.com | Automobile License Plate Collectors Association
A friend told me last weekend that Brookings County’s population grew, bumping Beadle County (Huron) from #4 to #6.
How many states use a numbering system like ours? It’s always good conversation or reason to excuse someone’s poor driving skills (oh, they’re not from around here. they’re from XX county where they have no stoplights.)