Page 47 - Automated Fingerprint Identification Systems (AFIS)

32 AUTOMATED FINGERPRINT IDENTIFICATION SYSTEMS

identification than the physical measurements of the Bertillon method.
Working with Bengali officers Khan Bahadur Azizul Haque and Rai Bahaden
Hem Chandra Bose, he developed a system with 1,024 primary classifications.
(Unfortunately, the contributions to the field of fingerprinting by the two offi-
cers were overlooked for years.) In 1900, Henry published Classification and Use
of Fingerprints. His classification methods began to replace the more cumber-
some anthropometrical records, which gradually began to lose favor. Henry was
appointed Commissioner of Metropolitan Police at New Scotland Yard, and his
classification system with both primary and secondary references became the
international standard for fingerprint classification.

2.2 MOVING BEYOND A SINGLE DATABASE
Becoming proficient in the Henry System required extensive training and expe-
rience. By mastering the Henry System a fingerprint classifier could examine a
finger image and produce a value based on the finger location, pattern, and
ridge characteristics. Before the days of fax machines and electronics, this
allowed a fingerprint file to be searched by classifying a record and looking for
that classification among the records filed. The Federal Bureau of Investigation
(FBI), in using the Henry System in the early 1900s, was able to search against
no more than 8% of its master fingerprint repository, which made searches
much more efficient. This method of classification also allowed agencies to
communicate with other agencies regarding a fingerprint record. Once pro-
vided the classification of all ten fingers, other agencies could quickly deter-
mine if their records contained a possible match. If a possible match was found,
a copy of the card would be sent to the inquiring agency. The Henry Classifi-
cation System remained the standard until the introduction of AFIS.
Although the Henry Classification System eventually gained general accep-
tance, it did face some challenges. Most notable is the work of Captain James
Parke of the New York State prison system. Beginning in 1903, Capt. Parke
fingerprinted inmates using a system he devised that became known as the
American Classification System. Unlike the Henry System, which uses the finger
classification numbers as the primary determinate, the American System used
the hand as the primary determinate. While embraced within the state of New
York, the system was not widely accepted elsewhere.
As the recognition of the value of fingerprints began to spread and the clas-
sification systems become more widely used and understood, the number of
fingerprints taken began to grow. The U.S. military, for example, started to
fingerprint enlistees in the early 1900s, and U.S. prisons such as Leavenworth
began fingerprinting all new inmates. The International Association of Chiefs
of Police (IACP) formed the National Bureau of Identification to retain copies