J. & J. Taylor Safes: Toronto Safe Works History and How to Date One
J. & J. Taylor’s Toronto Safe Works made safes for Canadian banks, government vaults and corner shops from 1855, and sent prize-winning safes to…
Safe Makers
Histories of the companies that built the world’s safes and vaults: who founded them, how they evolved, and how to recognise their work today.
18 articles
Schwab Safe Company of Lafayette, Indiana: History and How to Date a Schwab Safe
If the door says Schwab, your safe was made by a Lafayette, Indiana, firm that was at work from at least 1899 until it…
Detroit Safe Company: History of Detroit Safes and How to Date One
If your safe says “Detroit Safe Co.” on the door, it could come from either of two firms with the same name. The original…
York Safe & Lock Company: History and How to Date a York Safe
The York Safe & Lock Company of York, Pennsylvania, started out in 1882 making small office safes. Later it built vault doors for the…
Meilink Safes: History of the Meilink Steel Safe Co. and How to Date One
If your safe says Meilink, it comes from Toledo, Ohio, and from a firm that started out making bicycle parts before it became one…
Hamilton Safe Company: History, and Old Safes Made in Hamilton, Ohio
“Hamilton safe” can mean two quite different things. One is Hamilton Safe, a modern maker of bank safes, vaults and drive-up systems near Cincinnati,…
Cary Safe Company of Buffalo: History and How to Date a Cary Safe
If the door of your safe says Cary and Buffalo, it comes from a firm that started out selling other makers’ safes and grew…
Victor Safes: History of the Victor Safe & Lock Co. and How to Date Yours
If the door of your safe says Victor and Cincinnati, it comes from a firm that sold small, hand-decorated fire-proof safes by the thousand…
Hall’s Safe & Lock Co.: History of Hall’s Safes and How to Date One
Hall’s Safe & Lock Co. of Cincinnati built some of the most decorated safes ever made in America, painted doors and all, and its…
Herring-Hall-Marvin Safes: Herring, Marvin, Hall’s and How to Date Yours
If your safe says Herring, Marvin or Herring-Hall-Marvin, it belongs to one family tree. Herring-Hall-Marvin joined three of America’s biggest 19th-century safe makers: Silas…
Diebold Safes: History, the Chicago Fire Claim and How to Date a Diebold Safe
If the door of your safe says Diebold, it came from a firm that started as a small Cincinnati safe shop, moved to Canton,…
Mosler Safes: History of the Mosler Safe Company, Serial Number Lookup, Value and Weight
If the name on your safe is Mosler, it came from the Ohio firm, first in Cincinnati and then in Hamilton, that made everything…
Chatwood Safes and the Chatwood-Milner Safe: History, Models and How to Date Yours
Chatwood of Bolton, and later Shrewsbury, built safes and strongroom doors for banks from Istanbul to Singapore, then merged with Milner to make the…
Ratner Safes: History, the Trustee and How to Date a Ratner Safe
If your safe says Ratner, it comes from the last of the great Victorian safe makers, a firm founded by a former Milner partner…
Milner Safes: History, Patents and How to Identify a Milner Safe
If there’s a heavy old safe in your house, shop or office with a brass plate reading Milner, you’re looking at the work of…