Alfred Charles Hobbs: The American Locksmith at the Great Exhibition
Alfred Charles Hobbs (1812–1891) was an American locksmith and inventor. At the Great Exhibition of 1851 in London he opened two of Britain's most respected locks: the Bramah challenge lock and a Chubb detector lock. He stayed in England to found a lock company. He also wrote one of the standard Victorian books on locks before returning to the United States, where he worked in ammunition manufacturing.
His 1851 demonstrations are often told as a story of a whole national industry humbled overnight. The sources tell a more measured story. Opening the Bramah lock took many hours spread over more than two weeks, under agreed conditions. The result was disputed before the prize was paid, and Bramah's and Chubb's businesses carried on. This article covers his background, the 1851 events, his own locks and writing, and his later life. It explains no picking technique. For the topic in general terms, see lockpicking.
Background
Hobbs was born in Boston on October 7, 1812 (Linda Hall Library; Wikipedia). Wikipedia says his father was a carpenter and both his parents were born in England. By 1851 he worked for Day & Newell of New York, whose main product was the Parautoptic lock designed by Robert Newell. Hobbs went to London to represent the firm at the Great Exhibition, held in the Crystal Palace (Linda Hall Library).
The Chubb Detector Lock
Jeremiah Chubb's detector lock of 1818 was built to jam if anyone tampered with it, alerting the owner that someone had tried to open it (see Jeremiah Chubb). By 1847 a six-lever version had been developed (Wikipedia, "Chubb detector lock"). Wikipedia says that after a number of others had tried and failed, Hobbs was the first to pick the six-lever Chubb lock, during the 1851 Exhibition. The Linda Hall Library account says that Hobbs moved on to the Chubb detector lock after he had opened the Bramah lock, described below.
The Bramah Challenge Lock
Joseph Bramah's firm had kept a padlock in its London shop window with a sign offering 200 guineas to anyone who could make an instrument to pick or open it (see Joseph Bramah and Bramah lock). The Linda Hall Library dates the challenge padlock to 1790. By 1851 Bramah had died, and his sons ran the business.
Hobbs took up the challenge. The Linda Hall Library describes the conditions. Hobbs had to work on the premises. He could bring whatever tools he liked. The lock had to stay undamaged and in working order. In August 1851 he opened it. The Linda Hall Library says it took him 51 hours spread over 16 days, using a set of specially made instruments. Grace's Guide gives "some 45 hours" over 16 days.
The result was disputed. The oversight committee objected that Hobbs's specialized approach was not one an ordinary burglar could use. Grace's Guide says the argument over the circumstances went on for several years. The committee still paid the 200 guineas. The Linda Hall Library adds that Hobbs left the coins on display for the rest of the fair.
What Happened Next
Popular retellings say Hobbs crushed the London lock trade. The Linda Hall Library's historian disagrees. A lock that resisted a skilled specialist for about 50 hours was very secure, and Bramah's and Chubb's sales were not hurt; if anything, they were helped. Day & Newell did worse. The Linda Hall Library reports that after the fair, Linus Yale picked the Parautoptic lock, and the firm went out of business.
The same account mentions a suggestion that Hobbs and Yale had a private arrangement over the British market. The historian says he knows of no direct evidence for it, and this article does not repeat it as fact.
Hobbs's Own Firm and Locks
Hobbs stayed in London. Wikipedia says the firm started in 1851 and was registered as Hobbs and Co. in 1852. By 1855 it was Hobbs, Ashley and Company, and later Hobbs, Ashley and Fortescue at 97 Cheapside, an address it kept for 90 years. Grace's Guide credits him with bringing American mass-production methods into a British trade dominated by individual craftsmen.
His best-known lock was the Protector, which the Linda Hall Library says he sold with great success in London in the 1850s. Grace's Guide notes that he believed his own lock was more secure and offered it for testing. In 1853, according to Grace's Guide citing The Times, he opened Saxby's lock in 10 minutes before witnesses.
Writing
Hobbs's book Locks and Safes: The Construction of Locks was published by Virtue & Co. in London in 1853 and revised in 1868 (Wikipedia). In 1854 the Institution of Civil Engineers awarded him a Telford Medal for his paper "On the Principles and Construction of Locks" (Wikipedia). The Linda Hall Library also points to Charles Tomlinson's 1853 book on locks. It has engravings of the Bramah, Chubb, Parautoptic, and Protector locks, though, the library notes, they do not really show how the locks work.
Return to America
Wikipedia says that in 1860 Hobbs returned to the United States and settled in Bridgeport, Connecticut. There he held about a dozen patents for ammunition-making machinery. Two examples are U.S. 135,913 (cartridge-loading machines, 1873) and U.S. 137,773 (wad-winding machines, 1873). In 1880 he listed himself as a superintendent of a cartridge factory. He died on November 6, 1891.
Legacy
Hobbs's 1851 openings started a long-running argument: should a lock's weaknesses be shown in public, or hidden? Today's locksport community traces its outlook back to him. His career also linked the British and American lock trades at the moment American manufacturing methods were beginning to spread. For the pin-tumbler line that came out of the same period, see Linus Yale and pin tumbler lock.
Related Topics
Sources
| Claim area | Source | URL |
|---|---|---|
| Born Boston Oct 7, 1812; Day & Newell; 1790 challenge padlock, 200 guineas; conditions; 51 hours over 16 days; committee objection; prize paid and displayed; Bramah and Chubb sales unaffected; Yale picked the Parautoptic; Day & Newell failed; Hobbs–Yale deal unproven; Protector lock; Tomlinson 1853 | Linda Hall Library, "Scientist of the Day: Alfred Charles Hobbs" (W. B. Ashworth Jr.) | https://www.lindahall.org/about/news/scientist-of-the-day/alfred-charles-hobbs/ |
| August 1851 opening (Bramah page) | Linda Hall Library, "Scientist of the Day: Joseph Bramah" | https://www.lindahall.org/about/news/scientist-of-the-day/joseph-bramah/ |
| ~45 hours over 16 days; dispute lasting years; prize awarded; 1851 London business; Saxby lock in 10 minutes (1853); mass-production methods | Grace's Guide, "Alfred Charles Hobbs" | https://www.gracesguide.co.uk/Alfred_Charles_Hobbs |
| Father a carpenter; Hobbs & Co. 1851/1852; Hobbs, Ashley 1855; 97 Cheapside; Telford Medal 1854; Locks and Safes 1853/1868; Bridgeport 1860; cartridge patents; died Nov 6, 1891 | Wikipedia, "Alfred Charles Hobbs" | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Charles_Hobbs |
| Six-lever Chubb by 1847; Hobbs first to pick it in 1851 | Wikipedia, "Chubb detector lock" | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chubb_detector_lock |