If your safe says Ratner, it comes from the last of the great Victorian safe makers, a firm founded by a former Milner partner who had married into the Milner family, and famous for bodies bent from a single steel plate. Here’s who made it, how to date it, and what to do with it now.
1889
founded in London as Ratcliff & Horner
12
corners bent from one steel plate
200
employees in 1914
1970–71
sold to the Tann group
Key takeaways
- Ratner was founded around 1889 by Daniel Rowlinson Ratcliff, a former partner in Milner’s, with J. M. Horner, Milner’s works manager. The name probably joins RATcliff and HorNER.
- A plate reading “Ratcliff & Horner” is from before about 1896; “Ratner Safe Co.” is from then or later. A Ratner safe cannot date from the 1870s or 1880s.
- Ratner’s selling point was a body bent at all twelve corners from one steel plate, with no riveted corner joints.
- The Trustee is a later 20th-century Ratner range. The firm was sold to the Tann group in 1970–71, and the Australian Ratner company has been independent since 1972.
In This Article
Ratner at a glance
| Country | England (London); a separate Australian company from 1972 |
| Founded | 1888–1890 as Ratcliff & Horner (sources differ); Ratner Safe Co. Ltd from 1895–96 |
| Founders | Daniel Rowlinson Ratcliff (1837–1923), his son William Milner Ratcliff, and J. M. Horner, formerly Milner’s works manager |
| Works and office | Works at Bromley-by-Bow, East London; office at 51 Moorgate Street, EC |
| Known for | Bodies bent at all twelve corners from one plate; drill-resisting doors; the Grade 3 cash safe; later the Trustee range |
| Size | 200 employees in 1914 |
| Fate | Joined with Griffiths in the early 1940s; sold to the Tann group in 1970–71; the name later disappeared in Britain |
History of the Ratner Safe Company
Ratner’s story starts inside Milner’s, the Liverpool safe makers. Daniel Rowlinson Ratcliff was born in Birmingham on 2 October 1837 into a family of machinists and founders. In 1862 he married Jane Milner and became a partner in Thomas Milner & Son, and in 1865 he and William Milner took out a joint patent for safe fastenings (No. 903).1
Sources disagree on whose daughter Jane was. Grace’s Guide calls her Thomas Milner’s only daughter; the History of Locks Museum and the British Safe and Vault Trade Association (BSVTA) make her the only child of William Milner, which fits her age better (she was 31 in the 1871 census).1,2,3
Timeline
- 1862 Daniel Ratcliff marries Jane Milner and becomes a partner in Thomas Milner & Son.
- 1865–1873 Patents for safe fastenings, a compound hooked bolt and locks, alone or with William Milner.
- 1880 Ratcliff is elected MP for Evesham; the election is declared void in June.
- 1888–1890 Ratcliff & Horner is founded in London (sources give all three years).
- 1895–1896 Recapitalised and incorporated as the Ratner Safe Company Ltd.
- 1900–1909 Twelve-corner bent body perfected (1900), interchangeable key lock (1901), patent for blowpipe-resisting doors (1909).
- 1914 200 employees; office at 51 Moorgate Street.
- Early 1940s Ratner combines with the Griffiths safe company.
- 1963 An Australian Ratner division starts making safes in Melbourne.
- 1970–1971 Ratner is sold to the Tann group.
Ratcliff at Milner’s
George Hayter Chubb’s 1875 list of safe patents shows how active Ratcliff was while still at Milner’s: the joint patent with William Milner in 1865, a provisional patent for “angles dovetailed to bars” in 1867, and a “compound hooked bolt” in 1871 (No. 1221).4 Grace’s Guide adds a lock patent of 1873 (No. 3453).1
When William Milner died in 1874, his executors turned the firm into the limited company Milners’ Safe Co. According to the History of Locks Museum, Ratcliff received £35,000 in shares, and the museum suggests that the formality of a public company didn’t suit a man used to making his own decisions.2 Ratcliff meanwhile served as a JP for Worcestershire and Warwickshire, and in 1880 won Evesham for the Liberals, only for the election to be declared void that June.1
Ratcliff & Horner: the last Victorian safe maker
Grace’s Guide dates the new firm to 1889, founded by Ratcliff with his son William Milner Ratcliff and John M. Horner.5 The History of Locks Museum gives 1890 and says Horner was Milner’s works manager, while a Ratcliff family history gives 1888 and calls him Douglas Horner.2,6 The firm set up its works at Bromley-by-Bow in East London and brought experienced safe engineers down from Liverpool.7 The BSVTA history names the Wynn, Lowe and Larkin families among the Milner workers who moved.3
The business struggled at first. It was recapitalised in 1895 as the Ratner Safe Company Ltd, and Grace’s Guide records its incorporation as a limited company in 1896.2,5 The name is usually explained as RATcliff plus HorNER; one family memoir says RATcliff plus MilNER, but the family’s own historian thinks Horner is more likely.6 Safeman.org.uk calls it “the last prominent safemaker to be founded in the 19th century”.7
The Bromley-by-Bow works took over buildings of a former paper mill on the River Lea by 1896. A cold rolling machine made by Craig and Donald of Glasgow in 1891 was still in use there in the 1960s; the works were demolished in 2012.8
Bent plate and drill-proof doors
Until about 1890 a strong safe body was built from separate iron plates, dovetailed or riveted at the corners and often reinforced with bands. Cheap mild steel changed that: it could be bent, so a body could be formed from one sheet with joints only at the front and back. Around 1905 the box press allowed flanges front and back as well, giving the “12 corner bent” body.9
Ratner made this its trademark, and it wasn’t modest about it. In 1914 the company described its speciality as safes “bent at all twelve corners out of the solid plate”, a principle it said was perfected in 1900. It also claimed a patent of 1909 for safe doors and strongrooms that resisted the oxy-acetylene blowpipe, and an interchangeable key lock of 1901, which “thousands of keys will lock” but which only the key that locked it would open.5 Its advertisements made the same point in a single line: “All Ratner safes are bent solid and jointless at all 12 corners from one steel plate.”10
“No Ratner thief-resisting safe has ever been opened by burglars.”
Ratner advertisement, 1913
Grade 3, Griffiths and the Tann takeover
The BSVTA history says Ratner first concentrated on safe deposits and had built 26 of them worldwide by 1925, among them the first extension of the Chancery Lane deposit and deposits for Selfridges, Harrods, Rotterdam and the Bank of Athens. Its most successful product, by the same account, was the Grade 3: a fully bent body of ⅜-inch plate with the first automatic anti-explosive device, which held out against explosive attacks from the 1930s to the 1970s and was popular with Co-operative societies and dairies for overnight shop takings.3
Ratner combined with the Griffiths safe company in the early 1940s, keeping both identities; Griffiths was used mainly to sell second-hand safes taken in part-exchange.2,3 After the war Ratner was still a major name: a Chubb manager recalled the 1960s as a time when Chubb and Chatwood-Milner took market share “from the likes of John Tann and Ratner”.11
The end came after some years of financial difficulty. The BSVTA history says Ratner was sold to Tann International in 1970; the History of Locks Museum says it was taken over by the Stratford-Tann group in 1971.3,2 Ratner then followed John Tann through later mergers, and Mike Palmer’s history of the trade lists Ratner among the British names, with Tann and Stratford, that have since disappeared.12
Ratner in Australia
Australian readers may know Ratner as a local maker. According to the present Australian company, its Australian division began manufacturing in 1963 and became a fully owned family company in 1972; it still builds safes and strongrooms in Melbourne.13 So if your Ratner was made in Australia after 1963, it’s a different product from a London-made one, even though the name is the same.
How to identify and date a Ratner safe
No Ratner serial register has been published, so dating yours means putting several clues together. Ratner’s late start works in your favour: anything with a Ratner or Ratcliff & Horner name was made after 1888, which already rules out a good many dealer descriptions.
Clue 1
The name on the plate
“Ratcliff & Horner”: about 1889 to 1896. “Ratner Safe Co.” or “Ratner”: 1895–96 or later. A Melbourne or Australian address: 1963 or later, made by the Australian company.2,13
Clue 2
Body construction
Look at the corners. A body bent from one plate, with rounded corners and no rivets or dovetails at the corners, is the Ratner pattern from about 1900. Heavy grades add laminated plates, including copper against cutting torches.5,9
Clue 3
Locks and keys
Ratner made its own lever locks, close to Milner’s in design, with a solid iron block inside the lock against gunpowder. The design hardly changed, so the number on the lock tells you more than its looks do.2
Clue 4: addresses
Ratner plates often just say “London”. Where an address appears, these are the ones we’ve been able to document. The years show when each is recorded, not exact start and end dates.
| Bromley-by-Bow, London E (works) | From about 1889; works on the former paper mill site by 1896 |
| 51 Moorgate Street, EC (office) | Recorded in 1913 and 1914 |
| Melbourne, Australia | Australian-made, 1963 or later |
Clue 5: lock and safe numbers
Ratner stamped serial numbers on its locks, and collectors have dated locks with known histories. The reference points below come from the History of Locks Museum’s Ratner collection, a Ratcliff & Horner lock described by its owner, and a dated Ratner Grade 7 safe.2,14,15 Safe numbers and lock numbers may not run in the same sequence, so treat them separately.
| Lock 2542 (Ratcliff & Horner, 8 levers) | c.1893 |
| Lock 7941 (7 levers) | c.1899 |
| Lock 18123 (change-key) | c.1908 |
| Lock 30008 (8-lever double stump) | c.1915 |
| Lock 33911 (9 levers) | c.1918 |
| Lock 45803 (double stump, wedge bolts) | c.1926 |
| Lock 49714 (dual control) | c.1930 |
| Safe No. 42393, Grade 7 | 1925 |
Model names, including the Trustee
The model name, if it survives on a plate or in paperwork, is often the best dating clue. Like other makers, Ratner used “List” numbers for its early ranges, and later “Grade” numbers.16 Safe engineers’ lists of discontinued Ratner ranges include List 2 to 7, Grade 1 to 5, the Tenacity of the 1930s, the Excelsior, Executive, Paymaster and Secretariat, and the RQ and RG series.17
The Ratner Trustee belongs to the later part of that story. The same lists name Trustee T1 to T4, a Trustee 5000, a “Trustee (1980)” and a New Trustee, which suggests a range that ran through the late 20th century in several versions.17 We haven’t found a Ratner catalogue giving the date the Trustee was introduced. If you have one, or a Trustee with a dated document, we’d like to hear from you.
Did you know?
Ratcliff took Milner’s lock know-how to London. Ratner locks kept the solid iron door block from Milner’s long-expired patent and levers with integral springs, a design whose pedigree the History of Locks Museum traces back to the lock maker Aubin.2
Notable Ratner safes and incidents
The drill test that went to court, 1892
Calling a safe undrillable is asking for trouble. Ratcliff & Horner’s thief-resisting safe was marked on the door as made of “Hardened Congreave Safe Steel”, said to be undrillable. Samuel Chatwood’s company drilled one anyway. Ratcliff & Horner claimed the plate must first have been softened with heat. The dispute reached the High Court in December 1892, which found for Chatwood, with £600 costs. Ratcliff & Horner hit back by forcing open one of Chatwood’s best safes with a giant screw and printing the results for its agents.7 More on these public contests in our history of safe-cracking.
A 1925 Grade 7 and its letter lock
Ratner’s top grades were built against every known attack. A Grade 7, No. 42393, made in 1925, has Ratner’s patent letter lock, which moves drill-resisting shields over the two keyholes, and an automatic “safety bolt” relocker worked by the top lock. Its door edges show the laminations of copper and steel used against cutting torches.15,9 The history of safe locks explains relockers and lever locks in more detail.
Myths and unverified claims
Ratner was founded in London in 1784.
The firm began as Ratcliff & Horner in 1888–1890. We have found no trace of a Ratner business in the 18th century.
My Ratner safe is from the 1870s.
Ratner did not exist before about 1889, and the Ratner name dates from 1895–96.
Ratner stands for Ratcliff and Milner.
The firm was Ratcliff & Horner, so RATcliff plus HorNER is the likelier origin.
A modern Australian Ratner is the same company as the London firm.
The Australian business started in 1963 and has been an independent family company since 1972.
I have a Ratner safe: what now?
Weight
How heavy is it?
Heavier than it looks. Sale listings give about 75 kg for a 46 cm-high small Ratner, 350–400 kg for an 80 cm “heavy duty” model and 1,800 kg for a large Australian one.18 Use a specialist safe remover.
Keys
No key?
A qualified safe engineer can often make a key for an old Ratner lever lock. Don’t drill or force the door: the relockers in many grades make that harder and destroy most of the safe’s value.
Value
Is it worth anything?
It depends on age, grade, condition, original paint and brass, a working lock with keys, and the cost of moving it. Early Ratcliff & Horner pieces are rarer than 20th-century office safes.
Want help dating yours? Send us photos of your safe’s plate, keyhole and any numbers and we’ll tell you what we can. Thinking of buying one? Read our guide to buying a second-hand safe first.
Frequently asked questions
Who made Ratner safes?
The Ratner Safe Company of London, founded around 1889 as Ratcliff & Horner by Daniel Rowlinson Ratcliff, a former partner in Milner’s, with J. M. Horner, Milner’s works manager.
How old is my Ratner safe?
Check the name (“Ratcliff & Horner” before about 1896), any address, the body construction and the lock number against the tables above. Every London-made Ratner dates from about 1889 to the 1970s.
How much does a Ratner safe weigh?
From under 100 kg for small models to several hundred kilos for cash safes, and over a tonne for the largest. Measure it and ask a safe remover before you try to move it.
What is a Ratner Trustee safe?
A later 20th-century Ratner range made in several versions, including T1 to T4, the Trustee 5000 and a 1980 model. We haven’t yet found when it was introduced.
Can I get a key for a Ratner safe?
Often, yes. A specialist safe engineer can usually make a key for an old Ratner lever lock from the lock itself, without damaging the safe.
Are Ratner safes still made?
Not in Britain: the London firm was sold to the Tann group in 1970–71 and the name later disappeared. A separate Ratner company still makes safes in Melbourne, Australia.
Sources:
- Grace’s Guide, “Daniel Rowlinson Ratcliff”, citing the London Gazette and the 1871 census. ↩︎
- The History of Locks and Locksmithing Museum, “Ratner gallery” (page of February 2010, via the Internet Archive). ↩︎
- Alan Bullock (Insafe International), “A history of the British safe industry”, British Safe and Vault Trade Association. ↩︎
- George Hayter Chubb, Protection from Fire and Thieves (1875), table of patents, via Project Gutenberg. ↩︎
- Grace’s Guide, “Ratner Safe Co”, citing the 1914 Whitaker’s Red Book. ↩︎
- Adkins family history, “Daniel Rowlinson Ratcliff”. ↩︎
- safeman.org.uk, “Unfair tactics”. ↩︎
- Edith’s Streets (London local history), “River Lea/Bow Creek: Bromley by Bow”, August 2012. ↩︎
- safeman.org.uk, “Coming of age: from iron to steel”. ↩︎
- Ratner Safe Co. advertisement, Dod’s Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage (London, 1913), front advertising pages, via Internet Archive. ↩︎
- Philip J. Pascoe, “Chatwood-Milner Ltd”, The Chubb Archive, 2008. ↩︎
- Mike Palmer, “A history of British safe making, part 3”, British Safe and Vault Trade Association, 30 January 2020. ↩︎
- Ratner Safes (Australia), “About us”. ↩︎
- Lock Picking 101 forum, “Ratcliff & Horner safe lock (c. 1893)”, 17 March 2012. ↩︎
- safeman.org.uk, “Safe museum”. ↩︎
- safeman.org.uk, “Safeman’s scrapbook”. ↩︎
- Bradley’s Master Locksmiths, “Discontinued safes”. ↩︎
- Weights from dealer listings: Safe Places, “Ratner Safe Co, London 076”; Secondhand Hotel Furniture, “Ratner heavy duty safe, London”; United Safes (Melbourne), “Ratner Safe Co”. ↩︎
