Sadie Farrell
Encyclopedia
Sadie Farrell was an American criminal, gang leader and river pirate known under the pseudonym
Sadie the Goat. She first came to prominence as a vicious street mugger in New York's "Bloody" Fourth Ward. Upon encountering a lone traveler, she would headbutt
men in the stomach and her male accomplice would hit the victim with a slung-shot and rob them. Sadie, according to popular underworld lore, was engaged in a longtime feud with rival female bouncer Gallus Mag
who once bit off her ear in a bar fight.
Leaving the area in disgrace, she ventured to the waterfront area in West Side Manhattan
. It was while wandering the dockyards in the spring of 1869 that she witnessed members of the Charlton Street Gang
unsuccessfully attempting to board a small sloop
anchored in mid-river. Watching the men being driven back across the river by a handful of the ship's crew, she offered her services to the men and became the gang's leader. Within days, she engineered the successful hijacking of a larger sloop and, with "the Jolly Roger
flying from the masthead", she and her crew sailed up and down the Hudson
and Harlem River
s raiding small villages, robbing farm houses and riverside mansions and occasionally kidnapping men, woman and children for ransom. Sadie was even said to have made several male prisoners "walk the plank
".
Sadie and her men continued their activities for several months and stashed their cargo in several hiding spots until they could be gradually disposed of though fences
and junk shops along the Hudson and East River
s. By the end of the summer however, farmers had begun resisting against the raids by attacking landing parties with gunfire. The group eventually abandoned their sloop and Sadie returned to the Fourth Ward, where she was now known as the "Queen of the Waterfront", and she made a truce with her old rival Gallus Mag. Her ear was later returned to her by Gallus Mag, who displayed it in a pickled jar
at her bar; Sadie afterward kept it in a locket and wore around her neck for the rest of her life.
Sadie is referenced in several historical novel
s, most notably, J. T. Edson's Law of the Gun (1968), Tom Murphy's Lily Cigar (1979), Bart Sheldon's Ruby Sweetwater and the Ringo Kid (1981) and Thomas J. Fleming's A Passionate Girl (2003).
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
Sadie the Goat. She first came to prominence as a vicious street mugger in New York's "Bloody" Fourth Ward. Upon encountering a lone traveler, she would headbutt
Headbutt
A headbutt is a strike with the head, typically involving the use of robust parts of the cranium as areas of impact. Effective headbutting revolves around striking a sensitive area with a less sensitive area, such as striking the nose of an opponent with the forehead...
men in the stomach and her male accomplice would hit the victim with a slung-shot and rob them. Sadie, according to popular underworld lore, was engaged in a longtime feud with rival female bouncer Gallus Mag
Gallus mag
Gallus Mag was a 6-foot-tall female bouncer at a New York City Water St. bar called The Hole in the Wall in the early 19th century, who figures prominently in New York City folklore...
who once bit off her ear in a bar fight.
Leaving the area in disgrace, she ventured to the waterfront area in West Side Manhattan
West Side (Manhattan)
The West Side of Manhattan refers to the side of Manhattan Island which abuts the Hudson River and faces New Jersey. Fifth Avenue, Central Park, and lower Broadway separate it from the East Side. The major neighborhoods on the West Side are West Harlem, Morningside Heights, Manhattan Valley, Upper...
. It was while wandering the dockyards in the spring of 1869 that she witnessed members of the Charlton Street Gang
Charlton Street Gang
The Charlton Street Gang was a New York street gang and river pirates during the mid nineteenth century.The Charlton Street Gang was one of the earliest river pirates raiding small cargo ships in the North River of New York Harbor during post-Civil War period of the 1860s...
unsuccessfully attempting to board a small sloop
Sloop
A sloop is a sail boat with a fore-and-aft rig and a single mast farther forward than the mast of a cutter....
anchored in mid-river. Watching the men being driven back across the river by a handful of the ship's crew, she offered her services to the men and became the gang's leader. Within days, she engineered the successful hijacking of a larger sloop and, with "the Jolly Roger
Jolly Roger
The Jolly Roger is any of various flags flown to identify a ship's crew as pirates. The flag most commonly identified as the Jolly Roger today is the skull and crossbones, a flag consisting of a human skull above two long bones set in an x-mark arrangement on a black field. This design was used by...
flying from the masthead", she and her crew sailed up and down the Hudson
Hudson River
The Hudson is a river that flows from north to south through eastern New York. The highest official source is at Lake Tear of the Clouds, on the slopes of Mount Marcy in the Adirondack Mountains. The river itself officially begins in Henderson Lake in Newcomb, New York...
and Harlem River
Harlem River
The Harlem River is a navigable tidal strait in New York City, USA that flows 8 miles between the Hudson River and the East River, separating the boroughs of Manhattan and the Bronx...
s raiding small villages, robbing farm houses and riverside mansions and occasionally kidnapping men, woman and children for ransom. Sadie was even said to have made several male prisoners "walk the plank
Walk the Plank
Walk the Plank is a South African television gameshow produced for the South African Broadcasting Corporation in 2005. It was hosted by Rutendo Matinyarare. A crossover of Survivor and traditional quiz shows but with a voiceover and puzzle games and costumes...
".
Sadie and her men continued their activities for several months and stashed their cargo in several hiding spots until they could be gradually disposed of though fences
Fence (criminal)
A fence is an individual who knowingly buys stolen property for later resale, sometimes in a legitimate market. The fence thus acts as a middleman between thieves and the eventual buyers of stolen goods who may or may not be aware that the goods are stolen. As a verb, the word describes the...
and junk shops along the Hudson and East River
East River
The East River is a tidal strait in New York City. It connects Upper New York Bay on its south end to Long Island Sound on its north end. It separates Long Island from the island of Manhattan and the Bronx on the North American mainland...
s. By the end of the summer however, farmers had begun resisting against the raids by attacking landing parties with gunfire. The group eventually abandoned their sloop and Sadie returned to the Fourth Ward, where she was now known as the "Queen of the Waterfront", and she made a truce with her old rival Gallus Mag. Her ear was later returned to her by Gallus Mag, who displayed it in a pickled jar
Pickling
Pickling, also known as brining or corning is the process of preserving food by anaerobic fermentation in brine to produce lactic acid, or marinating and storing it in an acid solution, usually vinegar . The resulting food is called a pickle. This procedure gives the food a salty or sour taste...
at her bar; Sadie afterward kept it in a locket and wore around her neck for the rest of her life.
Sadie is referenced in several historical novel
Historical novel
According to Encyclopædia Britannica, a historical novel is-Development:An early example of historical prose fiction is Luó Guànzhōng's 14th century Romance of the Three Kingdoms, which covers one of the most important periods of Chinese history and left a lasting impact on Chinese culture.The...
s, most notably, J. T. Edson's Law of the Gun (1968), Tom Murphy's Lily Cigar (1979), Bart Sheldon's Ruby Sweetwater and the Ringo Kid (1981) and Thomas J. Fleming's A Passionate Girl (2003).
Further reading
- Lorimer, Sara. Booty: Girl Pirates on the High Seas. San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 2001. ISBN 0-8118-3237-6
- Sifakis, Carl. The Dictionary of Historic Nicknames: A Treasury of More Than 7,500 Famous and Infamous Nicknames from World History. New York: Facts on File Publications, 1984. ISBN 0-87196-561-5