Sarah Gall, a 22 year old hairdresser, emigrated from Scotland to America, where a job awaited her in Steubenville, Ohio. She was instantly popular with the clientele because of her cutting and styling expertise, as well as her delightful Scottish accent.
An opportunity arose to buy the business and, with the help of a friendly bank manager, became owner/operator of the salon. The bank manager became so impressed by her work ethic and intelligence that he convinced her to enrol in an accountancy course, run by the Bank of America. His faith in her was justified as she revealed a natural aptitude for the work. Soon, she was able to read a balance sheet and assess the state of any business along with the best of them.
The era was known as The Roaring Twenties. Due to the prohibition of the sale of alcohol, illegal speakeasies proliferated throughout the land and people took to drink as never before. Then followed the Wall Street Crash and Sarah was recruited by a financier wheeler and dealer, to travel extensively to assess his many business loans and cash up wherever possible. There was great urgency in the task, the financier having forecast an imminent depression, which duly arrived.
The cashed-up financier turned philanthropist and asked Sarah to set up free soup kitchens to feed the unemployed in Steubenville. For this initiative, she became known as Aunt Sarah and appeared on the cover of Time magazine.
In this new American life, Sarah found herself consorting with jazzmen, bootleggers, prostitutes, and crime figures. She learned the value of pragmatism in business. It’s hard to believe, but our erstwhile prim Scots lass even had a brief romantic fling with the notorious Al Capone, during an attempt to get him out of the country.
Eliot Ness of the FBI convinced her of Capone’s villainy and coerced her into helping him bring Public Enemy Number One to justice.
This all makes for an intriguing tale wherein Sarah plays out a fascinating lifestyle, during possibly the most important era in American history.
About the Author
James G. Dow was born in Scotland in 1931. He migrated to Australia in 1956 and has since taken out Australian citizenship. He lives in Dandenong, Victoria, and his hobbies include, jazz drumming, bridge, and golf.
