See those who have been recognized by their peers as significant contributors to the lock collecting hobby, and to the preservation of lock history.
Note: we use the best photographs available to us. If you have a better photo for any of the Hall of Fame inductees, please let us know! We also welcome additional information on the inductees so we can best represent what they did for the lock collecting hobby.
Franklin M. ArnallFrank began collecting in earnest when his children were young. He found opportunities for lock hunting while his wife Mary was shopping for antiques. His two sons remain active lock collectors and still have his world class collection in excess of 7500 locks.
Frank was on the board of directors for the Lock Museum of America and was one of the founders of The West Coast Lock Collectors club in 1978.
He was a pioneer in the hobby of collecting railroad locks, which has become a very popular field for collectors. He is remembered most by lock collectors for his major contribution of photographing and valuing antique padlocks in his book, The Padlock Collector from the first edition in 1962 until the sixth edition in 1996.
Deceased June 20, 2001, age 83
Robert 'Bob' DixBob is a lifelong collector, historian, and one of the pioneers of the lock collecting hobby. He has the world’s largest known lock collection (in excess of 25,000 locks).
Many of the rare padlocks collected and traded between collectors today were discovered and put into circulation by Bob. He is a Trustee of Lock Museum of America, the author and publisher of ALCA (American Lock Collector's Association) newsletter since 2000.
Has not only been a keeper of valuable lock history, but has mastered the art and science of antique lock restoration, so future generations of historians and collectors can see history that would have otherwise been lost forever.
Bob and his wife Cindy have three grown children. Bob graduated from Baldwin Wallace College in 1968 with a B.S. in engineering. He was an engineer at Lubrizol Corp. in Wickliffe OH. (Retired 2006).
John GiustiA locksmith by trade, John Giusti, was a lifelong resident of New York City. In WWII he was in Patton's Army 3rd Corps. John got all around his city on the subway, never having a driver's license. From his family lock shop, he did work for some well known agencies including the FBI, CIA, and ATF. He was also a locksmith for David Copperfield. John was regarded by his peers and customers as one of the 'best of the best' locksmiths. .
John was one of the pioneers of the lock collecting hobby. He mentored many lock collectors, and is spoken of highly by many of the longtime lock collectors.
Deceased March 2007
Richard 'Dick' HubbardDick Hubbard was a lifelong resident of New Jersey, and a police lieutenant with the Hackensack PD. He collected a little of everything but specialized in locks, doorknobs, and paperwork. He drove John Giusti (above) to shows, and picks. Wherever Dick went, John was there. Dick had a great eye for collectible locks, and had great knowledge of which collectors had which locks. Therefore Dick became the go-to guy to help other lock collectors find what they were looking for.
Deceased November 17, 2007
Russell K. 'Russ' SoderquistRussell K. Soderquist, was originally from Iowa. He was badly wounded in WWII, and was returned to the USA for rehabilitation until 1947. He then went to the University of Iowa for engineering. Russ was a corporate engineer, was always on the lookout for locks to add to his collection. He and wife Kay moved to Colorado and went into his own business.
He was involved in civic organizations. Russ helped to start, and personally financed the Grand Junction Community College. Russ maintained the Pancake Lock 6 lever List for over 40 years. He wrote numerous articles about locks, their history, their use and their back
ground.
Deceased April 2015
Donald E. 'Don' StewartDon spent his early years in the dust bowl areas of Nebraska and North and South Dakota. Always a collector, he collected arrowheads and other artifacts to be found on the plains. Don was involved with locks all of his life. Don joined the navy before his 17th birthday in 1943 and served in the Pacific until the end of the war. He received two purple hearts before his 19th birthday along with several citations and ribbons. In all, he was awarded four Purple Hearts from WWII. He studied architecture in college in northern Idaho, then began to build custom homes in Idaho in 1949. In 1965 Don left Idaho to work for ABC theaters in Arizona.
Based on research of the keys he collected, he began his first publication of the Standard Guide to Key Collecting in 1975. This was followed by the Key Collectors Journal starting in October 1978 and continuing through June 1994. In 1988 he began publication of the "Padlock Quarterly" which continued until Fall of 1994.
In addition to periodicals, Don published approximately 20 books about locks and keys. He also offered a large selection of early lock company catalog reprints. Don published a tremendous amount of material to assist collectors in learning about the lock and key hobby. All of Don’s books are with Richard Chenovick. The rest of his research is with Bosco Milligan Foundation in Portland, OR.
Deceased May 3, 1999
Paul was a self-taught locksmith and was often able to make keys for locks where others failed.
He was an award winning marksman with the National Guard in the 1950's. He then began a career as an oil burner technician in Pennsylvania, in 1960 he moved to Orange NJ and went to work for A&A Fuel Oil company. The owner was so impressed with him, that in just a few years, he made him a partner in the business. In 1970 (at the age of 35), he sold his share in the business, “retired” and moved back to Pennsylvania. He then devoted his time to his collecting, which also became his source of income. He often bought entire house contents as part of his “treasure hunting”. He also enjoyed digging around the foundations of old house ruins for bottles and other collectibles.
Deceased May 24, 2014
Thomas F. Hennessy, Sr. As a lifelong resident of New England, Tom served in WWll. He is a self-taught engineer, and attended military schools.
Tom worked at major lock companies in Connecticut. Later in his professional life, Tom worked for Corbin Lock Co. He designed the locking systems in the World Trade Centers. Tom was the primary founder of the Lock Museum of America. His son Tom, Jr. manages the museum today. Tom is the author of several books and contributed to lock related newsletters.
Deceased June 25, 2015
Harry C. Miller An inventor, teacher, mentor and friend to those he met. Mr. Miller had a love for the industry that he learned from his father, John C. Miller and passed on to his son J. Clayton Miller.
One of his first inventions, a manipulation proof combination lock. He became associated with Sargent & Greenleaf to produce this lock and eventually gained control of the company, because of the success of the lock. Recognizing a need for education, he began training customers through the Sargent & Greenleaf Lock Service School. The school became its own company Lockmasters, Inc.
His passion continues to be on display for students and visitors to see at the Museum of Physical Security.
Deceased December 19, 1998.
Charles W. Chandler Charles 'Charley' Chandler is a resident of Michigan. He served in the Navy. Following his service he went to law school. Throughout his career he and practiced patent & trademark law.
Charley started collecting handcuffs and locks in 1963. He started the ALCA newsletter in 1970, was the editor for 30 years. He has written numerous articles about handcuff's and locks.
He is very active in lock shows. Charley always has time to answer questions or to point people to the right person for their inquiries.
Donald Friedman Donald Friedman, a Certified Public Accountant, is a lifelong resident from Chicago. He started the Texas Lock Show. Don is a tireless contributor to the lock collecting hobby. 1994 he held one of the first major lock auctions, setting the standard for all lock auctions to meet.
Don is always eager to answer questions from other lock collectors. He was one of the early lock collectors, and continues to be a cornerstone to the hobby.
A. J. Hoffman A world-renowned expert on antique locks and the history of interchangeable core locks, AJ's 30 year career as a lock smith was rooted in his childhood hobby of collecting locks and keys. At the time of his passing in 2004, he had been working as the Training Communications Manager for Schlage (Ingersoll-Rand).
He served as a member of the ALOA Board of Directors, Co-Chairman of the Lock Industry Standards & Training Council, and Curator of the ALOA Museum in Dallas. He was the 1992 recipient of the coveted Philadelphia Award, and a 1988 inductee into the Locksmith Ledger Security Hall of Fame.
He instructed many classes on master keying, interchangeable cores and other cylinder related topics for ALOA and regional locksmith associations. AJ was always an immediate resource whom many depended upon.
Deceased July 12, 2004
Peter L. Schaefer Peter L. Schaefer has lived in Indianapolis, IN his entire life. He met Marilyn at Indiana University and they married in 1955.
Pete always worked in the family business; Edward W. Schaefer and Sons a cemetery memorial business. Pete retired in 2005 after 56 years.
Pete and Marilyn have 2 grown sons who were both were Eagle Scouts. The boys are the love of their lives.
Pete became interested in padlocks in the 60's. He has managed the Crossroads of America (Indy) Lock show in Indianapolis for over 30 years.
Padlocks are not Pete's only interest. Both he and his wife collect items memorabilia from the 1934 Chicago World's Fair. They are interested in auto racing and die cast cars/trucks. They are founding members of the "Hoosiers Mini-Mizers" one of the oldest miniature clubs in Indianapolis. Both Pete and his wife are on the Board of Directors.
David Rankl David L. Rankl was born in the Massillon , Ohio area. He comes from a transportation family business. David ran the trucking business with a fleet of 100 trucks and hundreds of trailers. In addition to the trucking business, David has also always done accounting. David's wife Linda is a nurse. They have three boys and their grandchildren are the loves of their lives.
David and Linda actively support their church in many ways. They are involved in church ministry with young people in trouble with the courts. They make a difference in so many people's lives and ask for nothing in return.
David has collected both locks and keys all of his life. David was one of the pioneers of today's hobby of lock collecting.
David and Linda started the Tuslaw and Cleveland Lock Shows. He is the treasurer of ALCA (American Lock Collector Association), and is responsible for quarterly distribution of The Journal of Lock Collecting.
Charles CameronCharles Cameron is an ALOA Security Professionals Association Certified Master Locksmith (CML) and a North Carolina licensed locksmith.
He has 40 plus years of experience as a locksmith with much of that time working as a university locksmith.
As a collector of padlocks he particularly
likes locks made by the former Miller Lock Company of
Philadelphia the Yale Lock Company’s Standard Lever padlocks.
Oliver (Tom) Gallian Oliver Ward Gallian was born in Ironton, Ohio in 1935. After graduating from high school in 1954 he went to a 6 week training school for mobile chest x-Ray units.
In 1955 he joined the Air force serving in the Medic corp. In 1957 he married Grace Ruckel; and they had three children, Vickie, Janie, and Steven.
In 1981 he took a correspondence course from ‘Foley-Belsaw’ and a class in safe opening.
In 1996 he went to work for A & G Lock and Safe in Dunn, N.C. working at Fort Bragg, Pope Air Force Base, and Seymour Air Force Base. From 2002 to 2006 he worked for “Custon Vault Corporation” doing safe deposit work.
His hobbies include Collecting anything related to lock collecting, he enjoys lapidary: casting, silver and goldsmithing, and doing scrimshaw.
Robert (Bob) Heilemann Bob Heilemann is a lifelong locksmith and lock collector. For over 20 years he served as the treasurer of the West Coast Lock Collectors Association maintaining the membership list and planner for the annual lock collector show held in the Los Angeles area. He has attended the various lock shows for decades and continues to add to his collection.
Bob has served on the Lock Museum of America board of directors. He has written many articles for publication and his reputation as an expert restorer of locks is known both here and in Europe.
Bob has an extensive collection of locks that covers most of the lock categories. He has always been a source of knowledge and expertise for other collectors and freely shared that knowledge.
Deceased November 3, 2019
Donald (Don) Jackson Don Jackson was born and grew up in South Bend, Indiana. Graduated from Purdue University with a Bachelors of Science degree in chemistry. He then attended the University of Kansas receiving his Masters of Sciences degree in Chemistry.
He served in the U.S. Army from 1953-1955. He worked for the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory from 1958 to 1991 as a reseach chemist.
Don not only published the WCLCA newsletters from 1992 to 2003 he also did research, wrote articles and distributed the newletters.
In 2000 he started the website RomanLocks.com and the "Market Watch" published in the WCLCA newsletter.
Jon Kolozvary Jon Kolozvary was born in Rochester, N.Y. He joined the U.S. Coast Guard in 1964 serving until 1971. While in the Coast Guard he was able to earn a degree in "Bachelor of Business Studies" from Baldwin Wallace College.
Jon worked for G.E. Corp as a Credit Manager for a year. In 1971 he became a Federal Government Special Agent. In 1975 he founded this own company "Admiral Ajusting". In 1989 he was the founder of "Admiral Risk Management". He retired in 2006.
Jon started collecting padlocks in 1989. He served as the publisher for the American Lock Collectors Association newletters from1999 to 2006. He has served as the Vice President of the ALCA since 2009. He was a founder of the Cleveland lock show that ran from 1998 to 2005. In 2009 he help in founding the Lancaster Lock Show. He was instrumental in founding the Lock Collector Hall of Fame.
Scott Klemm Scott Klemm joined the American Lock Collectors Association in 1973. In 1974 he designed the logo for the American Lock Collectors Association and published a pamphlet entitled " The History of Locks and Keys: an Annotated Bibliography.
He joined the Key Collectors International in 1978, and became an associate editor of the Key Collectors Journal. He contributed numerous articles to the Key Collectors Journal from 1978 until 1986.
He published the book "Padlock Treasury". Is shows full size pen and ink drawings of 91 locks.
In 2008 he published the book "Ancient Locks" The Evolutionary Development of the Lock and Key.
"Unlocking the Portals of History" through the lock and key collection of Scott Klemm was published in 2013.
Michael (Mike) Pitman Mike Pitman was born and raised in Grangeville, Idaho. After graduating from high school he entered into the U.S. NAVY where he served for 20 years. During this time he was station with the "Sea Bee's" serving in Viet Nam for 6 months. While stationed at Sub Base, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, he was given the collateral duty of serving as the locksmith for the Sub Forces in the Pacific.
After retiring from the Navy he continued to work as a locksmith and safe specialist earning the status of "Certified Master Locksmith", "Certified Professional Safe Technician", and "Certified Master Safe Cracker. He has taught classes in Locksmithing and Safe work.
He became serious with lock collecting in 1987 specializing in US Government and Military locks.
Has written several articles for both the "American Lock Collectors Association" and the "West Coast Lock Collectors Association" news letters. He helped with research for the book "The Beauty of Cast Victorian Padlocks".
Linus Yale Sr. Linus Yale Sr. was born in 1797 in Middletown, Connecticut. He proved to be a man of rare machanical ability with the curiosity of an inventor. He and his family moved to Salisbury, NY, then they built two houses, one 3 stories of natural stone in an octagnal shape and a Lock Shop in Newport, NY. His first inventions were farming implements, one for dressing millstones and one for a saw mill head block.
His chief forcus was on the mechanical study of locks. In 1840 he began producing the "Yale Lock" for bank vaults, safes and art treasures. The various locks he created had keys which set the tumblers and became know as the " Yale Pin Tumbler Principle". These locks were shipped around the commerical world until his passing in 1857.
Linus Yale Jr. Linus Yale Jr. was born in Salisbury, NY in 1821. As a youth he began as an artist but soon followed his father in designing and patenting locks for banks, clocks, street letter boxes, mail boxes, etc. Using "dial + shaft" for combination locks, double locks, and fluted key tumblers.
At the World's Fair, Linus Yale,Jrs'. exhibition won gold, silver and bronze medals against all competitors. About 1860 he moved to Philadelphia, where with enlarged factories he filled government contracts and shipped locks around the world. Linus Yale Jr. died in 1868.
Frank E. BestFrank Ellison Best was born on February 21, 1883 in Marango, Illinois. Following his graduation from New York State Teachers College, he taught high school in Jamestown NY and Seattle for 15 years. As a teacher, he was faced one day with having to quickly open a number of hallway doors each of which required a different key. To his frustration, he had to search through a large ring of keys to find the correct ones and this delayed him from his urgent duties. After several years of experimentation, he perfected the system of Master Keying which has become the industry standard. Further, he designed the system to be used in a removable “core” which not only fit into an extensive variety of locks, but also allowed the keying system to be changed in moments with the use of a special “control key.” In 1925 his company, Best Universal Lock Co. sold its first locks with this system. In time, it became Best Lock Corporation and later Best Access Systems.
In World War 1, he consulted with War Department officials on development of a one-man armored tank and a plan to combat German U-boats. His antisubmarine plan was adopted by the U.S. Navy and brought him the personal congratulations of President Woodrow Wilson. Other inventions included a rotary engine, superchargers, roller bearings, dynamic rectifiers, navigational control devices, aircraft compass and stabilizers and aircraft proximity and direction indicators. In all, he registered more than 100 patents. His final patent was granted by the patent office within the last month of his life. He was a registered engineer and held an honorary doctor of engineering degree. He passed away on July 2, 1966.
Howard SmithHoward Smith was born in Dayton, Ohio. He graduated from Hillsdale College in Michigan in 1968. He spent the next four years in the United States Coast Guard. He has been employed at the Wilson Bohannan Lock Company for 46 years, starting in 1973 in the accounting department and since 1995 as its president. He earned an MBA from Ashland University. He was married to Pam Norris Smith for 42 years, she sadly passed away in 2013. Howard has two daughters, Patricia Kozlik and Sarah Rassell who are the owners , along with himself and their spouses also work at the Lock Company, making them the seventh generation to work at WB. The Wilson Bohannan Lock Company was founded in 1860 by Pam’s great great grandfather, Wilson Bohannan, in Brooklyn, New York. Pam’s grandfather, Wilson Bohannan Tway moved the company to Marion, Ohio in 1926. Wilson Bohannan will be 160 years old in 2020.
Daniel K. MillerDaniel K. Miller was born in 1844
around the Philadelphia area. He served in the 48th
Pennsylvania Militia during the Civil War. Daniel’s first
endeavor into locks was in 1867 with the invention of a “alarm
lock for tills”. In 1870 he was issued a patent for a padlock
mechanism that would have a significant impact on the lock
manufacturing industry. This would lead to the formation of
Miller Lock Co. in 1871. The “Champion” 6-lever push key
padlock, (known to the lock collector as the “pancake” 6-lever
padlock), would spawn into 6-lever rim locks, lever tumbler
and combination cabinet locks. During the 50 some years the
Miller lock co. was in business, they acquired approximately
one hundred patents, of which over fifty were related to
various improvements in padlocks. They would also register
over 30 trademarks during their time in business. When other
lock manufacturers were going to pin tumbler padlocks in the
early 1900’s, Miller lock never varied away from making lever
tumbler padlocks.
David HeuermannBorn and raised on Long Island, New York. David’s work background was in scientific software engineering in the medical industry. David was the Director of Information Technology at Winthrop University Hospital on Long Island.
David retired in 2003 to Virginia where he spent much of his time developing the ‘Antique-Padlocks.com' website and ‘Padlocks Patent Book’.
Collecting padlocks was quite by accident. At age 20 while visiting a local antique shop David bought a rusty old British lock on impulse. Well, that’s all it took to become hooked.
Don MuratDon Murat was born in Brownsburg, Indiana on May 16,1936. Don went to the Indiana University where he met this wife to be Earlene. They have been married for 66 years. They have one daughter and two sons.
Don worked at Eli Lilly & Co. for over 36 years. Twenty-two of those years he worked on Eli Lilly’s police force. Don started his own lumber business and had it for 18 years. He served as a Scoutmaster for 23 years.
Forty years ago, Don found time to start collecting padlocks and has helped with the Indy lock show ever since its inception in 1981 when it was first called the Midwest Lock and Key show. Don is also a member of the American Bell Association. He has acquired over 30 padlocks that are bell related.
Tom SchofieldTom was born and raised in
Cleveland, Ohio. While in college he began buying antiques at
local country auctions and selling at shows and fairs.
Tom & Donalyn met at Wayne State while finishing MFA degrees.
In 1972 they got married and bought a 250-year-old house in
Massachusetts. And, they have spent the last 50 years
restoring it.
Locks were not on Tom’s radar until
1996, when he was offered a collection of 3,000 padlocks.
Allison, their daughter, was in college and didn't have a
summer job, so he bought the locks and put her in charge of
cataloging them. Finally he said: “Let’s figure out how we can
sell these things.” Coming from a long line of mechanical
engineers, he was intrigued by the mechanics of these complex
pieces of history. With Frank Arnall's bible, they deciphered
the mysteries of locks, and Schofield's Padlock Auctions was
born.
Schofield Auctions has certainly
grown over the years. It is a real family affair.
Several years ago, Donalyn took over the office, customer
service, and Facebook advertising. She still photographs and
edits the padlocks plus produces the catalogs. Allison
and her husband, Jan Erik, are the technical gurus managing
the website and data bases that make everything move smoothly.
Tom and Donalyn are honored to help
collectors sell their collections to people who will
appreciate and enjoy the locks and keys as much as the
original collectors did. The auctions also, establish actual
current values which is extremely important for present day
collectors. However, the biggest perks for the Schofield’s are
the wonderful people they have met along the way.
Mike & Ellen MastrosMike & Ellen Mastros, were born in the Philadelphia area They met in collage. They married and have two children. Mike was a real estate developer and realtor. Both he and Ellen owned and managed properties in Lancaster, Pa. Mike is the past president of the Chamber of Commerce, he worked closely with local administrations. Mike and Ellen loved antiques. Mike was in the process of buying a historic building and opening a museum. Life happens and a tragic accident ended all of that. Mike was one of 3 people who started the Lancaster Lock Show, and the Lancaster Hall of Fame. Mike and Ellen were good friends, lock collectors and historian They were ambassadors of Lancaster County. There are way too many good deeds that both Mike and Ellen did for their community. We are all better off for crossing paths with Mike and Ellen. They are missed.
Jeff IrvinI suppose collecting RR signal locks got me on the way to being involved in this great hobby. Went to my first Lock Show in 1985 Got involved with Indy show soon after and learned about lock collecting from all those fellas running that event. It has been a great journey. After high school, I went to the University of Indianapolis and then to the US Army in 1965. Was employed by the RR for 41 years. I am married and have three grown kids. I am so happy and honored to be a part of this lock family.
William H. “Bill” Stevens II
Bill started collecting locks in 2015, much by accident. In search of a Keen Kutter padlock, he purchased one on eBay that had this curious round lock as part of the auction. Satisfied with his KK lock, the round lock ended up in a drawer. Curiosity about the round lock finally got the best of him, and this started his collection of 6 lever and warded pancake locks.
Bill has over 300 pancakes in his collection and is still excited about the hunt.
Sometime in 2016 he taught himself how to pick and make keys for the locks in his collection.
Bill is a writer for the “Journal of Lock Collecting.” He wrote his first article in December of 2020 and has a reoccurring article called “Bill’s 6 Lever Corner.” In 2023, he wrote his first book “The History of Pancake Padlock Logos.” Every Sunday Bill does an article on the Facebook padlock sites called “Happy 6 Lever Sunday” where he shares the history of the logo on the lock.
He is also on the Board of Directors of the Lock Collectors Hall of Fame and is a member of the American Lock Collectors Association.
Bill was vice president of Unique Home Solutions in Indianapolis, Indiana for 30 years, retiring in 2022.
Bill and his wife Julie live in Brownsburg, In. and have two children and three grandchildren - all that have locks with their names on them.