Re: Question

In Reply to: Question posted by Jay MN on February 11, 2011 at 04:41:32:

The correct term is "Safe Deposit." Even a lot of banks get this wrong. There is a branch of a respected and well known bank in downtown San Francisco whose outside wall sports an old and expensive cast bronze plaque or sign advertising "Safety Deposit." However, just because it's in print or because a bank uses the term does not make it correct. I see typos and misspellings in the newspaper daily, and if you listen to the radio or television the commentators almost always make glaring errors in grammar, syntax, subject-verb agreement etcetera. That doesn't make those right either, despite the fact that the people making the errors are supposed to be professionals in writing and presentation. "Safe deposit" originated as a term in the 1800s when banks would rent space inside safes that were stored inside their vaults to depositor/customers who wanted a higher level of protection than simply having a safe at home or in a business. There unfortunately were too many mix ups and suspicious losses and subsequent claims against banks that did this, however, because often enough valuables stored by Mr. Jones would be kept in the same safe as those owned by Mr. Smith, and so on. A bank couldn't devote an entire safe to one person's small stack of papers or handful of jewelry. So from that came the idea of "nests" of smaller key-locked steel doors that required an individual "renter" key, no two alike in a vault, and a common "Guard" or "prep" key. The term Guard key came from the fact that most old time banks had a bank guard, and one of the guard's duties was to escort safe deposit renters into the vault area and operate the "Guard" key, as well as being custodian of the key. Bank guards are mostly a thing of the past, and perhaps the more correct term, especially now, is "prep" key, because that is the key that must be turned first and which preps the lock for unlocking by the renter's key. I guess I turned what should have been a simple answer into a term paper. Need to find a hobby. Ken Dunckel Safecraker Boxman