The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1895-10-16
A HUGE STRONG BOX!
The Great Steel Safe for the New
Clearing House.
Made TO Hold 210 Tons OF Gold, or
S1O5,OO0, 900 In Gold Coin.

before another month came round the
new building OF the association in Cedar
street would be ready for occupancy,
"and that the ola building would see
the meetings no more. When the asso-
citation gets into its new quarters 1t will
not only have magnificent marble
palace TO abide in, but hidden away in a
floor beneath the sidewalk level it will
have the best strong box to keep it's
money in that has ever been built and
set up in this country and perhaps the
best in the world. 1t will need to be
strong box il it is ever filled to its caps-
city, for it is designed to hold 210 tons
OF gold or s105, 900, 600 in coin.
This great safe has been in process OF
construction for many months at the big
works OF the Herring Hall Marvin Safe
Company at Gouverneur slip, and has in
volved the skill and labor OF the best
men in the business OF making foils for
thieves, from the man who designed it
to the individual workmen who put 1t
together and put the finishing touches
upon ii. The work of putting this
strong room into the new Clearing House
building began on Saturday, when great
trucks came loaded with tons and tons of
metal work. These were parts Of the
steel vault which is to protect the mil
lions OF the associated banks. Ii will
not take many days 20 set these parts
up and put them together in their final
resting place, for before they left the
factory the whole safe had been built,
set up, put together, and every finishing
touch put upon it, except the final deco
rstions in paint and the putting in of
coatings OF red lead paint in the joints,
which were left to be separated in order
to get the strong room into pieces again
which should be small enough and light
enough to be conveniently handled in
taking it from the factory to the new
marble palace OF commerce.
A week before the setting up Of the
steel vault began the site for it in the
basement of the Clearing House build
ing presented curious appearance. Un-
der that part OF the main floor which is
on the easterly side of the building was
what might be fitly described as an
island, surrounded by deep moat. The
island was "a feet 3i2 inches long, and 16
feet inches wide, and the moat about it
was some feet wide. The surface of the
island was supported by rows Of brick
piers, and IL one were to have jumped
down into the moat he would have found
that while this clear way led him all
a:ound the island, he could at the same
time see the whole under side except just
where the supporting tier touched it. 1t
Is upon this island platform that the
huge steel safe In to stand, held in mid
air, as 1t were, and open on all sides TO
the inspection of the watchman who will
keep an eye on 1t day and night.
The safe and all OF its surroundings was
designed by J. NJ. Mossmsn, az Maiden
Lane, who is known as q safe architect,
the custom OF having strong rooms hav-
ing so developed all over the country as
to have produced a class of men who do
not build safes any more than our ordi-
nary architects build houses, but merely
design them and their safety surround
ings. and superintend their construction.
With the making Of the platform upon
which the strong room is to stand, the
safe makers work began. This platform
is built OF steel railroad rails of the ordi-
nary I pattern, and of a weight of SO
pounds to the ysrd. Each rail runs the
full length of the platform and then has
its ends bent down at right angles to
form a finish. The rails are put together
this fashion,: TLTL-fitted into each
other spoon fashion by having every
other ono turned upside down, and then
as they are laid in place they are bolted
together and finally all bound around at
the edge Of the platform with . band of
endless steel.
Should the enterprising burglar or q
mob-for all modern strong rooms are
lars --endeavor to get at the treasures OF
the Clearing House by attacking the
vault from the bottom with dynamite or
drills, they would find that their work
had only just begun when they had got
through this floor Of steel rails, for over
this will be again the floor of the great
vault proper.
The strong box itself is of the size of
the platform and II feet inches tall. It's
outer walls-top. bottom, and sides-are
6l9 inches thick, and built up of a materi-
al that is calculated to make burglars
tired. This is combination of chrome
steel, which, when hardened, Is pretty
nearly as hard as q diamond, and OF soft
steel to hold the other against being
shattered by blows or explosives. Sheets
of each ere laid together and rolled at
welding heat until plate is produced
which has alternate layers OF each material
In 1t in one solid mass, with each layer
about 3-16 OF an inch in thickness. Some
plates have five OF these layers and some
more. Corner pieces are bent and weld
ed OF this same material, and every part
OF the strong room is built up OF them.
Each layer or skin breaks joints in all
parts with the next one. The building
up begins with the outer plates, and oach
inner layer is fastened to it's outer one