76 Maine

Maine

Maine 76 monthly expiration tabs issued in 1975 and utilized on 74 and 75 issued license plates.

Undated plates issued to new registrants starting in 1975. The November 76 expiration tab would have been issued in November of 1975 and the November 77 expiration tabs issued in November of 1976.

1974 plates with January and October 76 expiration tabs.

December 1976 expiration on Maine 74 plate with sticker well bar in upper right.

This February 76 Maine expiration sample tab that was placed on 74 and 75 sample plates, as shown below.

Two types of 1974 sample issued with February 76 sample expiration tabs. The one on the left has an embossed bar line delineating a sticker well for placing expiration tabs. The one on the right does not. The dies appear more spread on the one on the right, also.

1974 Maine sample with March 1976 expiration sticker.

1975 style sample base with February 76 sample expiration sticker.

Two types of 74 commercial plates were issued for Maine with 76 stickers. The wider COM was the standard die for that caption from 1956 on. However, with the wider dies used from 1956 through 1993, there wasn't enough room to continue using the wider COM shown on the right. Therefore, when they rolled the series over to 100,000, they replaced it with the narrower COM, shown to the left above, so all the numbers could be fit in. Even at that the plate was still cramped, and at some point on these series of plates they removed the dash. Eventually, when Maine moved to narrower dies on the plate numbers, they returned to a wider COM. Thanks to Dave Nicholson, ALPCA#7019, Saco, Maine for the information on Maine commercial plates. Of these two types of the 74 base Maine Commercial plates, the sticker on the one of the right for October of 1976 is highly unlikely. All Maine commercial and trailer plates on the 1974 base expired in February, so no October stickers should be issued to these plates.

1975 style Maine commercial base with the embossed 74 removed. The one sports a February 77 expiration sticker that would have been issued in February of 76.

1976 Maine State Representative license plate.

1976 Maine farm license plate.

1974 Maine taxi plate with March 1976 expiration.

In 1976, Maine issued this front booster plate for the Bicentennial. It is made of a material called acrylite and is about 3mm thick. I assume acrylite is some kind of acrylic plastic. Maine residents could buy the plate for $6.25 in 1976 and display it on the front of the car in place of the regular license plate until January 1, 1977.

1975 style Maine vanity bases. There appears to be some difference in the embossed dies on these two plates.

1974 Maine vanity plate updated with November 75 and 76 expiration stickers.

Maine local police and sheriff plates used from March 1976 to February 1977

Maine local and municipal police plate first issued in 1974 is shown on the left.
This type was used until it was phased out in 1980-81.
The Maine State Police plate on the right was first used in the late 60's through the 70's and into the 80's/

Maine trailer plate with February 1976 expiration.

Maine Antique Auto plate with December 1976 expiration.

74 Maine new and used car dealer plates updated with December 76 expiration tabs.

74 Maine trailer dealer updated with December 76 expiration tab.

Maine 70's style septage conveyor plate with 75 and 76 tabs. I have seen this with the Maine embossed on the bottom and the Septage Conveyor banner across the top.

1976 and 1977 February Maine motorcycle expiration tabs updating a 1974 and 1975 type motorcycle plates. The 1977 tab is placed over a 1976 tab on the right hand plate.

Click on plate for larger image

1976 Portland, Maine bicycle license plate

1976 Maine livestock-poultry license plate

Maine motorcycle sized plate with USA 200 embossed on it. It appears to be of a 74-76 vintage, but the ALPCA archive does not show a motorcycle vanity or prototype of this type of issue. It remains somewhat of a mystery at this time. Write me if you have any answers to what this is. In the meantime, the USA 200 on it would make it seem related to 1976.