U.S. Army Quartermaster Corps Field Safe/Strong Box

[Fushigi Ojisan]

This is something you don't really see every day. So I thought I would share it.

In Mid-December 2022, a local message board had an announcement from a user named "SafeCracker": After 35 years he was closing his shop's doors and would be selling off everything in his shop. I had been looking for a small safe and his preview pictures enticed me, so I talked a buddy with an SUV into joining me there on a Sunday. The goal was to come home with a safe that would not break my budget, nor my back.

Having determined that even the smallest safe would probably be a bit much to wrangle down a set of narrow outside steps, I had settled on some small vaults and safe deposit box drawers when SafeCracker pointed out he had an old Army field safe. It looked rough, but my buddy and I could lift it, and at $100 the price made sense "SOLD!" Safecracker then proceeded to spend the next several minutes ensuring the mechanism was solid and operational, and that the combination he had worked. Once he was satisfied, my buddy and I lifted it by the built-in handles and lifted it into the back of his SUV. On the way out, I grabbed several "scratch and dent" safe deposit box drawers that were in the dumpster outside the shop. It was not all that hard to get into my basement, but my buddy insisted I measure it first to make sure it fit on a shelf, which it did.

Looking online, I found International Military Antiques actually had one, albeit in far better shape and from a different manufacturer.

https://www.ima-usa.com/products/ori...nt=26172802693

I also posted pictures to a social media circle, and one vet told me they were using a similar field safe as late as the 1980s to store pistols while the unit was on maneuvers.

Picture time!

Here it is when I first got it, to the left is a vault made of old Post Office Box doors courtesy of my brother-in-law.


A close-up of the unit after some cleaning


The dial, unlike the IMA-USA unit, this one goes to 100 instead of 50. Because its an older mechanism, it needs to be spun around four times to reset it and then has four numbers (stop on the first number, thrice to the next, twice to the next, then right to the last one). Additionally, the dial is removable


The top handle, which doubles as the latch, presumably this is a serial number


For even more security, a very substantial hasp has been added as well


The odd-shaped side handles make it easy for two men to carry, or one if they are strong (IMA says its 115 pounds. The base is peened into place and also has two substantial rivets


The hinges are also substantial, and have been riveted into place from the back


The interior: Keep in mind these were intended to lie flat (this one is on its side), I am not sure what the two torched-off bolts were for, but there they are. Also note the rivets securing the reinforcing straps, and how the box is a single piece of steel bent and joined in the right


The manufacturer. Wikipedia tells me Hall's was merged with other companies to form Herring-Hall-Marvin in 1892. Google Maps tells me the address is now an empty field. The IMA safe was made by Victor, another safe manufacturer in Cincinnati


The mechanism is all its Gilded Age goodness. I am told its actually a Mosler unit, which makes sense since Hall's, Victor, and Mosler were all relatively close to each other.



I have just the thing for the hasp! This is a vintage Yale & Towne bronze railroad lock, check out who they made it for. Between removing the dial and adding a lock, its going to slow down someone who wants in, moreso if I chain it to the shelf.


I took a lot of images but they are bit redundant, this shows the rivets used to secure the hasp



This is my first "real" safe and I am still getting used to it. I also want to clean it a bit more before it becomes a practical storage unit.

Information

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[browningautorifle]

Nice piece...I worked for Loomis Armored Car for a while after the Army and have an interest in that sort of thing too. Also we had similar field security in the Army. The QM held those sort of safes...

[fjruple]

Back in the days when the US military paid their soldiers in cash. The days of reporting for pay. These safes were kept in the Company HQ's usually chained to the floor or wall. The padlock was designed for locking ammunition bunker doors. I don't how early the design is but the newer ones have changlable keys. It does remind of the days of having to report for pay. All $96.00 US Dollars which was a lot of money back in the day. LOL!!

[browningautorifle]

It does remind of the days of having to report for pay.

I did that too. We even had a street in one camp called pay lane. We'd report in company lines and stand quietly under the threat of death from the Snr NCOs and wait. Long lines stretching out... The paymaster would be set up on a QM loading dock under cover with an MP on hand. I took my $90 or $98 and was rich... (Two pays of $90 or $98 each month), big bucks then. $330 gross pay before deductions.

[BEAR]

I had to smile when reading about this field safe. I too, remember standing in lines for pay but only for a short time before the army started paying with checks.
But this story is not about pay but pay-back.
A friend of mine was assigned to an SF camp in the Central Highlands of South Viet Nam. They had just picked up their morning rations and he got Ham and Eggs (his favorite) and proceeded to sit on the sandbag parapet and open his meal. Having forgotten his tabasco sauce, he jumped down, leaving his opened cans on the sandbags. When he returned, he found that the Team Sergeant's little monkey (I hate monkeys) had turned over all his open cans and was in the process of defecating in his Ham and Eggs. He was furious and grabbed the monkey planning to slash its throat but knew he would be blamed for killing the monkey. So, he took the monkey into the empty CP and put it in the field safe that was empty and standing open. He closed and latched the door (but not locked). He then went and picked up one of his now empty C-Ration cans and inserted a grenade with the spoon locked down by the can's side. He went back into the CP and pulled the pin then opened the safe door and inserted the can with grenade. He then closed and locked the safe. He said that while he was eating another C-rat (not Ham and Eggs) meal he heard a very satisfying muffled "CRUMP". The safe was destroyed and the Team Sergeant came to the conclusion that his curious pet had just got hold of a grenade and climbed inside the safe to examine his prize.
True story.

BEAR

[browningautorifle]

Ham and Eggs (his favorite)

Strange tastes...yuk.

[ssgross]

I fortunately never stood in line for pay, being well in to the days of direct deposit only However, the line of Marines was snaked all the way throughout the ship to draw a cash advance on your pay the day before a liberty port.

[Fushigi Ojisan]

Some photos from the safe sale

You can see the safe deposit box drawers and the mini-vaults I almost bought

[browningautorifle]

There really IS a little bit of everything.

[Fushigi Ojisan]

First of all, thank you everyone for sharing your stories about these field safes. Its amazing to me that they served as long as they did (Hall's merged with other companies in 1892 so this may well have been from that year or earlier).

Since I can't edit my post, I will provide commentary on the pics that I took with my phone the day of the sale.

Outside shot, these were the "dead" safes mostly, but in the lower right was a MASSIVE vault door that would have been cool to use for someone's basement addition gun room. The dumpster is where I salvaged the "scratch and dent" safe deposit doors. Not pictured were several sheets of bulletproof glass, which was way too heavy for me
Attachment 129790

Atop the safe are the safe deposit box drawers, the green were Mosler and the others un-branded. They are incredibly handy and I regret not picking up more. Also note the safe they are sitting on has vents--it was meant to hold computer servers and was re-certified for powder storage.
Attachment 129791


I was advised to pick up the second from the right as a pistol safe, but the person who provided the SUV and his back put the kabosh on that. Had I gone into this with more forethought (and a rented refridgetator dolly) I might have gotten it.
Attachment 129792

Was told the far right safe is a GSA office safe that would've been deployed to a Federal agency someplace. The Army Field safe was over to the right where the empty space is
Attachment 129793

Was told by someone in the know the big safe just left of center was an old U.S. Post Office safe that probably came out of a decommissioned Post Office
Attachment 129794

What I *almost* bought: The mini-vaults and an armful of safe deposit box drawers would have been $50. The damaged ones were free in the dumpster.
Attachment 129795


Unlike the IMA-USA one, mine doesn't have the cool gold pinstriping or name. In fact it looks like it had been painted a couple of times on the outside. Not sure if any of the paint is lead-based on not so don't want to mess with it.

The Ordnance Department lock came from a railroad show, because a lot of railroads used the same Yale & Towne bronze locks to secure their signals. I have a collection of several from various Divisions of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad.