In an era in which fires were common and home security systems weren’t very complex, the choice was simple: store your valuables with your local bank. Stockpiles of gold and jewelry were a staple among the wealthy, and so were wills and stock ownership documents. In the decades after Francis Jenks created the Safe Deposit Company of New York, the safe deposit box industry had a clear internal logic. The tricky economics of safe deposit boxes By the early 20th century, nearly every bank in America had a safe-deposit arm. While the first safe-deposit companies were stand-alone organizations, dedicated solely to safekeeping, major banks soon got involved. It was such a success that copycat safe deposit box companies began proliferating across the US, with names like the Mercantile Safe Deposit Company and the Lincoln Safe Deposit Company. Hetty Green, the millionaire businesswoman, maintained a private vault so big that it could fit a desk inside of it. Bold-faced names like the Vanderbilts, the Guggenheims, the Roosevelts, and more began storing their valuables with Jenks. It was the first company of its kind - and as the Civil War broke out, demand soared. He called it the Safe Deposit Company of New York. Guards armed with muskets stood in front of the building at 146 Broadway through the night. To ensure the safety of the boxes, Jenks required two keys to unlock a box: one key for the customer and one key for his employees. Armstrong Roberts/ClassicStock/Getty Images) Inside, he offered 500 safe deposit boxes to customers.Ī man accessing his safe deposit box in the 1930s (H. He opened a massive, marble building in lower Manhattan, complete with a thick steel vault. Please try again!ĭelivered weekdays plus a bonus Sunday feature. Rather than worry about burglaries, Jenks suggested that the urban elite store their books, wills, jewelry, tea sets, and silver with him. He decided to create a company that would store items for New York’s “ fashionable inhabitants,” who wanted to, say, decamp to Europe for the summer. In March 1861, while on a trip to England, Jenks - the moneyed son of a Harvard professor - began to wonder what he was supposed to do with his valuables while he was out of town. The Civil War was just days away when a New York businessman named Francis Jenks stumbled on an idea that would change the face of the banking industry. What went so wrong? The rise of the safe deposit box In the coming decade, other major banks seem likely to join them. Most recently, this past September, JPMorgan Chase announced it was phasing out its safe deposit boxes, too. In Hollywood, safe deposit boxes are so prominent, in fact, that it’s easy to miss the seismic changes racking the industry: In the wake of the 2008 financial crisis, big banks have quietly abandoned the safe-deposit business.īoth HSBC and Barclays have shuttered their safe-deposit services in many countries, and Capital One joined them in 2016. Inside Man, The Dark Knight, Casino, and The Da Vinci Code all feature pivotal safe deposit box scenes. Over the years, safe deposit boxes have become iconic - a staple not only of the banking industry but also of heist movies and spy flicks. Inside are the first clues to his identity: a gun, a watch, stacks of cash, and a series of passports under different nationalities, including one bearing the name “Jason Bourne.” All he has is a code - the account number for a safe deposit box in Switzerland.Īt the bank, an attendant leads him into an elaborate steel vault, where he’s presented with a safe deposit box. In the opening sequence of The Bourne Identity, a young Matt Damon wakes up with no idea who he is.
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