The history of locksmithing or a locksmith originates 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. As the job of the blacksmith started to develop, so did the identity of a locksmith. The locksmith was knows as a person who made and worked with locks. As the vocation professed so did its popularity. During the early part of the 1900’s, more specifically the 1930’s the actual configuration of locks began to change as well. With the onset of higher crime, the industry was looking for new ways to protect individuals. 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. It was also during this period that locksmiths began to change their role in the field. Locksmithing is one of the earlier forms of engineering and security devices. Although locksmithing may seem like an innocent vocation, it did not always steer clear from all controversy. 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 process 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 stayed passed on their trade to their children. For the early part of the trade of locksmithing, it was a field that was passed on by family members and in some cases adopted for surnames. Since there was not a lot of progress during this period, the same style of locks continued being used.

Fast forward to our present day, the locksmith with began as a blacksmith 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. While other schools offer a certificate. The primary way to become a locksmith to is become familiar with the makeup of the key and lock. 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.