One of the best things about power ranking the license plates has been learning new things about the world.
For example, I didn’t know South Carolina had a state motto first written by ancient Romans and Greeks who couldn’t have known it was destined to be some affected teen’s Instagram bio.
I also didn’t know Washington, D.C. had added “end” to the front of “taxation without representation” on their plates, clarifying their stance on the matter.
But one of the most impressive bits of knowledge I’ve found has to do with Dickelbers.
Before I explain what (who) Dickelbers is, I should explain that we’re trying to cite all the photos we use on the site, because we think we’re supposed to do that. None of us really know, but it doesn’t take too long, and it’s safer than larceny. We’re guessing that if someone has uploaded a picture to Wikipedia it’s acceptable to use that picture, and Wikipedia is nice about telling us how to cite it (not that we follow their instructions—I normally just type in the username and mention Wikipedia somewhere).
Anyway, a common name that’s come up in the license plate image game is Dickelbers. Which wasn’t that surprising—I could image a middle-aged American man named Dick Elbers taking pictures of state license plates for the sake of The Internet™. It’s something I could see most dads getting into.
But Dickelbers is not American.
Dickelbers is a Wikipedia user who does, indeed, say his real name is Dick Elbers. His account says he’s Dutch but lives in Germany, having also lived in Cyprus.
He’s contributed a lot of pictures to Wikipedia—pictures from all over the world. Pictures of traffic signs, phone booths, fire engines, landmarks, and, yes, hundreds of license plates.
This Dutchman has uploaded license plate photos from everywhere from Afghanistan to the Vatican City. I started counting them, I got past 100, and I had hardly cracked the A’s, meaning he has literally contributed more license plate photos than I will count. Here’s his page, if you like license plates or you’re simply impressed by human greatness.
Perhaps one day Dickelbers and I will meet. Perhaps I’ll get the chance to shake his hand and thank him for making my job easier. Perhaps we’ll even talk license plate shop for a bit.
But even if we don’t, our paths have crossed. And I am grateful for his service.
