Unlocking the Past: How a 19th Century Lock Pick Changed Security Forever

In April 1851, Alfred C. Hobbs boarded the steamship Washington bound for Southampton, England. His official duty was to sell the New York City-based company Day and Newell's newest product – the parautopic lock – at a trade show – London's Great Exhibition. But Hobbs had something a bit more nefarious up his sleeve, or rather in the small trunk that accompanied him on the ship.

In it sat a large assortment of picks, wrenches, rakes, and other slender tools. You see, Hobbs wasn't just trying to sell his locks. He was trying to prove that his competitors' locks were, quite simply, not good enough. He had the tools, skills, and charisma to do just that. Alfred Hobbs was about to launch the Great Lock Controversy of 1851.

Of all the locks at the Great Exhibition in July of 1851, the "Detector" was thought of as top of the class. Patented in 1818 by Jeremiah Chubb, it had become the most widely used and prestigious lock throughout England. In fact, in 1823 Chubb was given the distinguished honor of being the sole supplier of locks for England's post offices and "Her Majesty's Prison Service."