They Thought Their Home Was Ordinary—Until They Found This!
source: Gabriela Bocmaru/Facebook
Fast forward to the late 1970s; you are with your grandparents going through the attic of your family’s Victorian house that is located in a suburban neighborhood. Coughing, you look around at the dust-filled room filled with the neglected relics of another time and then, feeling your foot, you notice that there is something hard under the worn-out carpet. Interest getting the better of you, you pull at the flaps and out comes the family’s old floor safe with a dial and a handle. It is a discovery that sweeps stories of the past right back to you, to your parents, your grandparents, the days when your grandfather hid his war medals and your grandmother her jewelry and other valuables in the safe.
Safes that are installed on the floor began to gain popularity from the early 20th century, and they have been popular up to the present day. These are strong protectors of valuables which were built in a way that they can be almost leveled with the floor, this made them to be concealed under carpets or even behind other panels in such a way that one cannot notice them easily. Their use was most prominent in the periods of low confidence in banking institutions or when the Personal Security numbered at most basic.
The floor safe of the 50s to the 80s was a completely different breed and was usually made of solid metals like steel with locks that were pretty intricate for the time. Families and merchants defended themselves with these safes, as well as storing their valuables and sensitive papers, money, and sometimes letters and other documents which they wanted to keep hidden. During the period of economic advancement and the rather uneasy time of the cold war, these safes became symbols of protection and confidentiality of the individual.
To many people, opening an old floor safe or receiving it from a relative is a way to go back in time and feel a connection with the ancestors. The items, whether expensive or nostalgic, are usually brought with stories that depict the lifestyles of the past. These safes not only kept objects safe and sound but also secured the personal information of people and became a keeper of confidential information of people’s lives.
In the present, safes also come in various forms with digital locks and the use of modern materials but what we find ourselves feel attracted to the old floor safes produced from 1950s up to 1980s due to their construction and their purpose to secure people’s treasures which are their memories. They renew a memory of a time when the protection of our dearest belongings was not simply a lock but a door to the history – or a gate – and this door was situated right beneath our feet.
