"In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, American cities were confronting a new invasive species: the car. "Up and down the streets of San Francisco, the automobiles are sizzling and steaming," lamented the San Francisco Call in December 1901, as the "new terror of locomotion has been added to the traffic." That fear was real."
"The first driver's license that we would recognize came in 1910, when New York Assemblyman Albert S. Callan sponsored a new law requiring chauffeurs to pass an examination to secure a license: a paper document with their photo on the back side. California became the first state to feature the photo on the front, in 1958."
"For a long time, driver's licenses were relatively easy to fake, making them an easy tool for underage drinkers and others seeking to cloak their identity. One of the first high-tech additions, appearing on licenses in the 1990s, was a magnetic stripe, developed in the 1960s by IBM, that allowed law enforcement to verify a person's identity. Later, after 9/11 terrorists breached airport security using counterfeit IDs, states added more stringent security featu"
Early automobiles moved through cities without traffic controls, signage, or standardized training, prompting public concern and municipal responses. Local governments introduced exams, vehicle licensing, and age requirements to reduce hazards. The first modern-style driver's license appeared in 1910 as a paper card with a photo; California moved the photo to the front in 1958. Licenses gathered personal identifiers such as height, eye color, and eyewear, increasing their role as identity documents. Ease of forgery spurred technological upgrades like magnetic stripes in the 1990s and heightened security measures after the 2001 terrorist attacks.
Read at Smithsonian Magazine
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