1953-54 Wheaties General Mills Mini License Plates 48 States + DC Complete Set For Sale

Offered here is an exceptionally nice 1953–1954 General Mills / Wheaties miniature metal license plate collection, a complete set featuring representations of all 48 U.S. states then in the Union plus the District of Columbia (Washington D.C.). These colorful embossed miniature plates reproduce the distinctive license plate designs, colors, slogans and registration formats used by the individual states during the early 1950sINCLUDED: Quantity: 50 pcs
49 different plates total (48 states + District of Columbia) + BONUS = 50 plates:
* 48 states represented
* District of Columbia
* BONUS: Also included at no additional charge is a duplicate Kansas plate, for a total of 50 physical plates !
⭐️ Note: I do not have Alaska and Hawaii, as they weren’t states in 1953–54, neither had yet achieved statehood during this periodAn important detail for collectors: a few plates in this 1953-era collection are correctly marked “54.” These should not be confused with the separate 1954 miniature license-plate series, which used different plate numbers and/or designs. This is because their expiration date was in early 1954, which means they were registered in the year 1953. These 4 plates are Missouri, Wisconsin, District of Columbia and Maryland. Examples of surviving collections and period General Mills mailers support these 1953/54 variations as belonging to this series.The collection includes the particularly distinctive state designs and slogans of the period, including Wyoming’s bucking horse, Idaho’s “World Famous Potato,” Louisiana’s pelican, New Mexico’s Zia symbol, Montana’s “Treasure State,” Iowa’s “Corn State,” Kansas’ “Wheat State,” Florida’s “Sunshine State,” and many others.General Mills / Wheaties History: This miniature license-plate series is associated with General Mills and Wheaties cereal promotions of the 1950s.
These plates were originally given out in boxes of Wheaties cereal between 1953 and 1955. One plate was included in a box of cereal. However, you could send away to General Mills and purchase a complete set, which is what the family who purchased this set did. This license plate set was recently found at an estate sale in Sherman Oaks, California, where they had been packed away for many decades.Surviving original mailing packages for this series are addressed from:
General Mills, Inc.
400 Marquette Ave.
Minneapolis 2, Minn.
The pre-ZIP-code postal address is consistent with the period and helps distinguish this early series from much later miniature license-plate promotions.
Collectors will occasionally encounter these plates incorrectly described as being from the 1980s. There were later cereal miniature-license-plate promotions, but those plates have substantially different designs. The plates offered here reproduce the 1953/54 state designs and correspond to examples found with period General Mills mailing material.Embossed metal construction with mounting holes, just like miniature versions of the original automobile plates!SIZE: approximately 5” x 2¼”, and 4” x 2¼” for the smaller plates, depending upon the state designRare opportunity to find a complete set in this condition! These will display beautifully in your den, family room or man cave, or will make an awesome addition to your collection! Great learning tool for your kids too. CONDITION: Excellent vintage condition overall. Plates retain strong, bright colors and crisp embossed details with relatively light age and storage related wear. Please review all photos closely, as they are part of the condition description. In my opinion, it looks like they were opened, briefly viewed and then packed away in a cigar box for many decades. They were never mounted on a board or hung up based on an evaluation of their condition. I’ve included lots of photos and details from research I’ve done, feel free to do your own research and let me know if there’s a particular view/angle you’d like to see that I didn’t includeSHIPPING: they will be carefully packaged and, in order to protect both buyer and seller, a signature will be required to accept delivery Please message with any questions you may have before purchasing.Thank you for viewing my listing!