The history of locksmithing comes from the term blacksmith, a blacksmith was an individual who worked with metal and steel. During the middle ages, the blacksmith would create war/battle pieces for their king and horseshoes for the knight’s horses. The job of a blacksmith started to include more lock work and many blacksmiths started to specialise in working on locks, since this point the locksmiths work was recognised as its own profession. During the early part of the 1900’s, more specifically the 1930’s the actual configuration of locks began to change as well, this was because with increasing crime there needed to be improvements in security measures. A new lock was introduced with the first field-reversible with the typical disassembly mortise lock. This new upgrade made it more difficult for individuals to pick the lock. Locksmithing is one of the earlier forms of engineering and security devices. Although locksmithing may seem like a harmless career in the past there have been questions regarding the knowledge they possess about locking systems. The controversy stemmed from the debate whether the information a locksmith has should remain private or become public.

During the 1940’s, with the onset of WWII, many locksmiths became a priceless commodity. The locksmiths who were in business during this era did not have time to progress the invention in their field but focus primarily on the war. Many locksmiths were drafted into service while others continued to work as locksmiths during this era. Those that were able to stay behind passed on the knowledge of the trade to their family members so they could carry it on through the generations. Since there was not a lot of progress during this period, the same style of locks continued being used for a period of time after.

Fast forward to our present day, the locksmith trade is now being taught in several trade schools and engineering departments around the world. For example, Australia offers a degree in locksmithing in the school of engineering. The primary way to become a locksmith is to take one of the courses available in the subject, although a local locksmith may offer you a position as a trainee and you could learn whilst working. Today, locksmith’s do much more than repairing locks they must also be able to asses the potential break in factor and in some sense must implement the appropriate equipment with multiple locks and screen doors. Currently, there are several types of locks on the market, making it more difficult for the locksmith to become familiar with the nuts and bolts of the operation, literally.