Diebold
"Triple Time Lock"
Antique Cannonball Safe
Fully
Functional
- 1872 -
SOLD
This rare antique "Cannonball Safe"
was built in the early 1870s by the Diebold Safe and Lock Company of
Canton, Ohio. It features a then, and now, state-of-the-art,
"Triple Time Lock" system. Although its original
frontier use remains a mystery, it has stood in the Van Dyne, State
Bank for almost 100 years.
In the 1870s it was "Absolutely Robbery
Proof". Back in the days of Jessie James, it
was common practice to kidnap the Banker during the night, take
him to the Bank, and have him open the safe. Once the word was
spread about "Time-Locks", this nigh time practice was no longer possible
because the safe could only be opened during daylight
hours. It was a Cannonball Safe exactly like this one that foiled the
attempted robbery by Jessie James and the Cole Younger Gang on Sept, 14,
1876 in Northfield, Minnesota. That day; "Jesse argued
heatedly with the bank teller Joseph Heywood, who refused to open the
safe
which he claimed was still on time lock".
The Cannon Ball Safe gets its name
from its round shape and heavy weight. The rounded corners and
3,600 pound weight kept it from being taken during a robbery.
Cannonball safes were proudly displayed in banks for all the
depositors to see. This was the method of the day to reassure
the depositors that their money was "Safe" within the
latest technological device of the time. To further impress
the depositors, Cannonball Safes were elaborately decorated with
Golden paints and "hand-jewelling".
This Cannonball Safe has a beautifully Hand Jeweled Face
Plate with a 4-number combination lock that is patent dated,
May 23, 1871. After dialing the combination, a large crank
handle is rotated to disengage the huge 300 pound Vault door
and a top handle is grasped to swing open the massive door.
This Cannonball safe has the same
4-digit combination as the one that stood in the Northfield,
Minnesota Bank during that famous Jessie James robbery.
Built into the back of the Vault door, is a second
"Banker's Access" door that requires a special "Banker's Access
Key" to gain entry. It is likewise beautifully hand jeweled, inside
and out, and decorated with Gold Fleck paint and black
pin-striping.
Behind the inner door you will find more
decorative hand-jewelling on all the time-lock
mechanism parts and around the three time lock clocks. When the light
hits these reflective surfaces, they sparkle like diamonds. That's why its called
"jewelling"; it looks like expensive jewelry. In addition,
there are small "safety" screws in all of the large assembly nuts
and bolts. These safety screws prevent them accidentally loosening from
vibration.
The three clocks are used to provide a
"Double Back-Up" system to ensure the safe can be opened
at the desired time. Any one of the three clocks will activate
the mechanism, so if one, or even two clocks would happen to fail,
the remaining third clock will activate, and the safe
can still be opened.
A second "Banker's Clock Key" is used to
set the three clocks. All three clocks are set for the number
of hours that the safe will remain inaccessible. A typically
overnight setting might be for 15 hours with a maximum setting of 72
hours for a holiday weekend or Banker's vacation.
The three clocks in this cannonball
safe were made by
the Elgin National Watch Company of Elgin, Illinois which was
founded in 1865. These clocks have 17-jeweled movements
and have hand painted and enameled faces. The clocks have gold plated
exposed parts and are separately cased as a "Trio"
inside a removable glass covered brass lined compartment. The
compartment is
spring mounted with 4 coil springs to prevent vibrations from affecting their
function. The front of the case is removable for
cleaning. The glass is etched "The Diebold Safe
& Lock Company - Canton, Ohio". The Clocks
that were built for Time Lock Safes were the highest quality of any clocks produced
at the time.
After setting the triple clocks, a third
key, the "Banker's Lock-Bolt Key", is inserted and rotated 1/4 turn
counterclockwise to preload the Lock-Bolt mechanism. The two spring
loaded Lock Bolts, seen in the top two vault door lugs, release
when the door is rotated fully closed. Once these spring-loaded Lock
Bolts release into their mating holes inside the Vault door frame, the door cannot
be rotated open until the Time Lock Clocks have timed out.
Inside the very dependable Time Lock mechanism is a large Master
spring that is actuated when any one of the three clocks
times-out. This Master spring over powers and retracts the two spring loaded
Locking Bolts, and only then can the the vault door be rotated open.
Of course, dialing the correct combination first is also necessary.
Once the door is open, a steel center shelf
divides the inner compartment into two halves, top and bottom. Although
the inside looks small, over $200,000 dollars in paper money will easily fit inside
by stacking $100,000 dollars on the shelf, and $100,000 dollars
below the shelf, still leaving ample room for a few sacks of Gold
bullion or Gold coins. Many Cannonball safes were used well
into the 1960s by Jewelry stores to protect their goods.
Although there are many chips and
bruises to the exterior surfaces of the safe, most of the original
paint, with its Gold fleck lettering
and decorative pin striping, still remains. Most exterior parts
still retain their Nickel plating and have a rich aged patina.
In short, this Cannonball safe shows lots of History and Character.
The safe stands 48" high, 28" wide,
24" deep, and weighs 3,600
pounds, and has 4 built in steel casters for easy rolling. It comes with
all 3 original keys, the combination, and written instructions for setting the
clocks. Purchase
price does not include shipping to final locations. If requested,
we can assist you with shipping arrangements.
........ A true
One-of-a-Kind piece of History........
Call
920.450.0723 for additional information on this item or.. Email
us <click
Copyright
1999-2010, Goodman, Wesson and Associates
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