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Frederick S. Holmes
Born
Frederick Stacy Holmes

August 27th, 1865 in
Boston, MA
DiedNovember 10th, 1948 (age 84) at the
Danvers State Hospital in Hathorne, MA
Education
  • Boston High School in Boston, MA
  • Private Engineering Instruction in Exeter, NH
OccupationVault Engineer
EraEarly 1900s
Known for
  • Designer of the world's largest vaults
  • Pioneer in the vault engineering field
  • Designer of jamb-controlled vaults
Political partyRepublican / Independent
Spouse(s)Katherine E. Vincent, married on March 27th, 1886 in Everett, MA
Parents
  • George W. Holmes (father)
  • Frances A. Stacy (mother)
Engineering career
DisciplineMechanical Engineering
Practice nameFrederick S. Holmes
2 Rector St. New York, NY
Significant design
Signature

Frederick S. Holmes was an American safe and vault engineer,[1] and inventor who designed the largest vaults in the world. During his career, Holmes designed hundreds of vaults throughout the United States, Canada and Japan from 1895[2] to 1941. The majority of Holmes designed vaults are located in New York's Financial District; many are publicly accessible and in buildings on the National Register of Historic Places. His name is engraved on the builder's plaques, typically located on the encased jamb controls of these vaults.

Frederick S. Holmes Company Logo

Holmes' vault designs evolved over time to keep up with attacks from safe-crackers or 'Yeggmen'[3] adept at vault penetration. A Holmes advertisement from 1921 reads, "Newly discovered methods of attack necessitate radical departures from hitherto accepted standards of design".[4] Holmes specialized in jamb-controlled vaults where the combination locks and bolt-throwing mechanism are located inside the vault creating a solid vault door with no spindle holes. Entry requires two points of attack (door and jamb), which doubles the time required for burglars to breach the vault.[5]

Holmes was described as 'one of the leading, if not the leading vault engineer of America, and a man whose word is unquestioned by those who have had transactions with him'.[6] In recognition of significant contributions to the field of bank vault engineering, a tribute was written in The Journal of the Franklin Institute stating,[7] “Coincident with the modern development of the safe and bank vault industry was that of the profession of the Bank Vault Engineer. The industry owes much of its progress to the work done by the pioneers of this profession: William H. Hollar,[8] John M. Mossman, George L. Damon,[9] Emil A. Strauss,[10] Frederick S. Holmes, Benjamin F. Tripp,[11] and George L. Remington.”[12] Holmes is known to have worked with all these vault engineers except for Strauss.

Holmes collaborated with prominent architects such as Cass Gilbert and Alfred Bossom and leading vault builders including Bethlehem Steel, Carnegie Steel, Damon Safe & Iron Works,[9] Diebold, Herring-Hall-Marvin, J&J Taylor, LH Miller Safe & Iron Works,[13] Mosler Safe, Remington & Sherman,[14] and York Safe & Lock.[15]

Career

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Homes first worked as a Pattern Maker like his father, a Machinist and then a Mechanical Draftsman. He worked his way up to General Superintendent for safe and vault manufacturers in Chicago, Boston, and Philadelphia before venturing out on his own. Holmes was co-owner of Hoyer & Holmes with Isaiah Wellington Hoyer in Philadelphia that specialized in safe and vault design and construction. He worked as a Bank Vault Engineer for John M. Mossman where he designed the Maiden Lane Safe Deposit Company vault among others. Holmes started his company of the same name in 1904 and by 1909 was designing jamb-controlled vaults for which he was known.

1879 to 1883
(4 years)		 1883 to 1887
(4 years)		 1887 to 1891
(4 years)		 1891 to 1895
(4 years)		 1895 to 1900
(5 years)		 1900 to 1904
(4 years)		 1904 to 1941
(37 years)
Pattern Maker
and Machinist 		Mechanical Draftsman[2] General Superintendent[2] for Chicago Safe & Lock[16] in Chicago, IL General Superintendent for Damon Safe & Iron Works[9] in Boston, MA and Philadelphia, PA Co-Owner / Bank Vault Engineer at Hoyer & Holmes,[17][18] a Partnership with Isaiah W. Hoyer in Philadelphia, PA Bank Vault Engineer for John M. Mossman Owner / Bank Vault Engineer at Frederick. S. Holmes, a private practice in New York, NY. Bank Vault Engineer was his most commonly used title, but similar combinations were used in his published works and advertisements
Encased controls with viewer on the vault door jamb
A typical builder's plaque located on the encased jamb controls.

Published works

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This list includes articles, copyrights, court testimony, interviews, patents, and speeches by Frederick S. Holmes in chronological order.

Year Item
1890 Patent - US Patent 438,236 Electric Safe-Lock (electric controlled combination locks) with William H. Hollar[8][19]
1891 Patent - US Patent 459,226 Safe or Vault (soft metal joint packing) Signature Witness for William H. Hollar[8][20]
1892 Patent - US Patent 467,465 Electric Lock (electric controlled combination locks)[21]
1892 Patent - US Patent 477,897 Electric Lock (electric controlled combination locks) with William H. Hollar[8][22]
1892 Patent - US Patent 477,898 Electric Lock (electric controlled combination locks) with William H. Hollar[8][23]
1896 Patent - US Patent 557,389 Removable Sill for Vaults or Safes[24]
1899 Patent - US Patent 620,073 Safe (drill resisting construction) Assignor to William H. Hollar[8][25]
1905 Article - The Design and Construction of Modern Bank Vaults[26]
1908 Patent - US Patent 901,710 Movable Ventilator for Vaults with George L. Damon[9][27]
1910 Court Testimony - Mosler Safe Co. vs. Maiden Ln Safe Deposit Co. (trial witness)[2]
1911 Article - Vault Building - The Backward State of the Art, the Reason and the Remedy[28]
1911 Article - Vault Building Problems[1] with portrait photograph
1911 Article - Why Insure Against Anything that Never Happens?[29]
1912 Article - A Renaissance of Vault Design[30]
1912 Article - Uncle Sam to Build the World's Largest Treasure Vault[31]
1912 Interview - World’s Largest Treasure Vault (P. Harvey Middleton interview)[32]
1913 Article - Vault For Treasure[33]
1913 Article - That $70,000 New York Bank Vault Robbery[34]
1913 Article - Impregnable Safes (Spanish)[35]
1913 Article - Vaults - A Criticism[36]
1916 Article - Modern Practice in the Design of Bank Vaults Part 1 - Protective Principles and Construction Methods[37]
1916 Article - Modern Practice in the Design of Bank Vaults Part 2 - The Requirements of Small Banks[38]
1916 Speech - New Vault Construction to Resist the Cutter-Burner (NY State Safe Deposit Association Convention speech)[39]
1916 Article - Reliability in Vaults and Safes[6]
1916 Article - The Construction of Bank Vaults (a synopsis of the Brickbuilder articles listed above)[40]
1917 Article - A New Concrete for Bank Vaults (describes Holmes's testing methods)[41]
1917 Article - The Oxy-Acetylene Cutting Torch[42]
1917 Article - Thoughts as to Erection, Arrangement and Fitting Up of a Safe Deposit Vault[43]
1921 Article - Vault Construction for Small Communities[44]
1923 Article - Harris, Forbes & Company's New Vault[45]
1923 Article - Protecting Our Great Banks (by Edward H. Smith with Holmes contributions)[46]
1923 Article - The World's Greatest Bank Vaults (by Edward H. Smith with Holmes contributions)[47]
1923 Article - Vault Protection[48]
1924 Article - The Romance of the Lock (by Edward H. Smith with Holmes contributions)[49]
1924 Article - Safeguards that are Required Against the Modern Yegg[50]
1924 Article - Vault Weaknesses that must be Overcome[51]
1925 Article - There Are No Jimmy Valentines[52]
1925 Article - New York Savings Bank Problems - Safety Deposit Vaults for All[53]
1926 Copyright - Copyright with Ralph Moreton Hooker[54]
1927 Article - Guarding America's Wealth - A Renaissance of Bank Burglary[55]
1928 Article - Bank Vault Construction and Equipment[56]
1991 Article - The Lure of The Lock (includes the abridged article 'Bank Vault Construction and Equipment', see above)[57]
2005 Article - Monuments to Money: The Architecture of American Banks by Charles Belfoure, (Holmes article excerpts)[58]

References

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  1. ^ a b Bankers Magazine. (1911). United States: Bradford Rhodes. 1911.
  2. ^ a b c d "Supreme Court Case on Appeal.(1910).(n.p.)".
  3. ^ B and O Magazine. (1914). United States: Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. 1914.
  4. ^ United States Investor.(1921). United States: Investor Publishing Company. 1921.
  5. ^ Construction: A Journal for the Architectural Engineering and Contracting Interests of Canada. (1918). Canada: H. Gagnier Limited Publishers. 1918.
  6. ^ a b Coast Banker. (1916). United States: Coast Banker Publishing Company. 1916.
  7. ^ Journal of the Franklin Institute. (1910). United Kingdom: Elsevier. 1910.
  8. ^ a b c d e f Encyclopedia of Pennsylvania Biography: Illustrated. (1914). United States: Lewis Historical Publishing Company. 1914.
  9. ^ a b c d Toomey, Daniel P. (1892). Massachusetts of Today: A Memorial of the State, Historical and Biographical, Issued for the World's Columbian Exposition at Chicago. (1892). United States: Columbia publishing Company.
  10. ^ "Chicago, Historical, Pictorial.(1902).United States:Rand, McNally & Company". 1902.
  11. ^ "Bankers' Magazine and State Financial Register.(1908).United States:(n.p.)". 1908.
  12. ^ "Coast Banker.(1913).United States:Coast Banker Publishing Company". 1913.
  13. ^ "Sweet's Indexed Catalogue of Building Construction.(1907).United States:Architectural Record Company". 1907.
  14. ^ "New York Illustrated.(1894).United States:A.F. Parsons Publishing Company". 1894.
  15. ^ "United States Investor.(1914). United States:Frank P. Bennett & Company". 1914.
  16. ^ "Year Book of the Commercial, Banking, and Manufacturing Interests of Chicago.(1886).United States:S. Ferd. Howe". 1886.
  17. ^ "Directory of the Principal Office Buildings in Philadelphia.(1896).United States:Waldeck Publishing Company". 1896.
  18. ^ "Boyd's Co-partnership and Residence Business Directory of Philadelphia City.(1897).United States:Boyd's Directory Office". 1897.
  19. ^ U.S. patent 438,236
  20. ^ U.S. patent 459,226
  21. ^ U.S. patent 467,465
  22. ^ U.S. patent 477,897
  23. ^ U.S. patent 477,898
  24. ^ U.S. patent 557,389
  25. ^ U.S. patent 620,073
  26. ^ Review, Architectural (1905). Bank Buildings.(1905). United States: Bates and Guild Company.
  27. ^ U.S. patent 901,710
  28. ^ The Bankers Magazine.(1911). United States: Warren, Gorham & Lamont, Incorporated. 1911.
  29. ^ The Bankers Magazine.(1911). United States: Warren, Gorham & Lamont, Incorporated. 1911.
  30. ^ United States Investor.(1912). United States: Frank P. Bennett & Company. 1912.
  31. ^ "New York Times (1857-1922); Aug 4, 1912; ProQuest Historical Newspapers: The New York Times pg. SM4".
  32. ^ The Technical World Magazine.(1912). United States: Technical World Company. 1912.
  33. ^ The Illustrated Buffalo Express; Jan 13, 1913; United States, 1913
  34. ^ United States Investor.(1912). United States: Frank P. Bennett & Company. 1912.
  35. ^ America and American Industries.(1913). United States: Official International Body of the National Association of Manufacturers. 1913.
  36. ^ The Bankers Magazine.(1913). United States: Bradford-Rhodes & Company. 1913.
  37. ^ The Brickbuilder.(1916). United States: Rogers and Manson Company. 1916.
  38. ^ "The Brickbuilder.(1916). United States: Rogers and Manson Company". 1916.
  39. ^ New York State Safe Deposit Association Bulletin.(1916). United States: (n.p.). 1916.
  40. ^ "The construction of bank vaults.(1916). Journal of the Society of Architects, 1907-1922, 9(105), 187-188".
  41. ^ Bankers Magazine.(1917). United States: Bradford Rhodes. 1917.
  42. ^ New York State Safe Deposit Association Bulletin.(1917). United States: (n.p.). 1917.
  43. ^ New York State Safe Deposit Association Bulletin.(1917). United States: (n.p.). 1917.
  44. ^ New York State Safe Deposit Association Bulletin.(1921). United States: (n.p.). 1921.
  45. ^ Architecture and Building.(1923). United States: W.T. Comstock Company. 1923.
  46. ^ Scientific American.(1923). United States: Munn & Company. 1923.
  47. ^ The Burroughs Clearing House. (1923). United States: Burroughs Corporation. 1923.
  48. ^ Bank Reference Number.(1923). United States: Rogers and Mason Company. 1923.
  49. ^ Scientific American. (February 1924). United States: Munn & Company. 1924.
  50. ^ The Bankers Monthly. (August 1924). United States: Hanover Publishers. 1924.
  51. ^ The Bankers Monthly. (September 1924). United States: Hanover Publishers. 1924.
  52. ^ Scientific American. (July 1925). United States: Nature America, Inc. 1925.
  53. ^ United States Investor. (November 1925). United States: Frank P. Bennett and Company. 1925.
  54. ^ "Catalog of Copyright Entries. Part 1. [B] Group 2. Pamphlets, Etc. New Series.(1927).(n.p.):(n.p.)". 1927.
  55. ^ "Bankers Magazine.(1927). United States: Bradford Rhodes". Thomson Reuters (Tax & Accounting). March 1927.
  56. ^ "Architectural Forum: The Magazine of Building.(1928). United States: Time, Incorporated". June 1928.
  57. ^ Hopkins, A. A.(1991). The Lure of the Lock: A Short Treatise on Locks to Elucidate the John M. Mossman Collection of Locks in the Museum of the General Society of Mechanics and Tradesmen in the City of New York, Including Some of the "Mossman Papers"; with 500 Illustrations. (n.p.): Edwards Bros.
  58. ^ Belfoure, C.(2011). Monuments to Money: The Architecture of American Banks. United States: McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers.
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