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Volume 3 – Mobsters – Farrell, Sadie “The Goat” – The Queen of the Waterfront

Sadie Farrell, also known as “The Goat,” held a unique position of power on the New York Waterfront. While not as brutal as Hellcat Maggie of the Dead Rabbits, or as physically imposing as Gallus Mag, Sadie Farrell managed to outearn both women during her reign.

Farrell grew up in the poverty-stricken Fourth Ward near the East River. She spent her time with street hustlers and thieves, using her slight frame and ferocious demeanor to her advantage. Working alongside a male companion for added muscle, Sadie’s signature move was a headbutt to an unsuspecting drunk emerging from a local dive.

Executing this dangerous maneuver with precision, Sadie made sure to strike only the victim’s stomach, avoiding sensitive areas such as the nose and forehead. This headbutt would temporarily halt the victim, allowing Sadie’s partner to strike with a slingshot or other weapons, enabling them to rob the unconscious mark of everything valuable, including clothing.

While this may have been small-time work for Sadie, it bolstered her reputation on the East Side docks.

One fateful day, Sadie’s excessive drinking led to a confrontation at the Hole-in-the-Wall bar. The bouncer, the formidable Gallus Mag, stood at six feet tall and possessed a small bat to subdue unruly patrons. The clash between Irish Sadie and English Mag was inevitable, and insults flew.

The altercation escalated quickly, with Sadie flailing at Mag despite the significant size difference. In a swift move, Mag took Sadie down and forcibly removed one of her ears. The severed ear found a place in Mag’s collection, aptly named “Gallus Mag’s Trophy Case.”

Shamed and defeated, Sadie decided to leave her former territory and eventually wound up on the West Side docks. There, she witnessed the inept Charlton Street Gang’s failed attempt to board a sloop in the North River. Recognizing an opportunity, Sadie convinced the gang members to follow her lead, combining her cunning with their brawn.

Under Sadie’s command, the gang successfully hijacked larger vessels, raiding small villages, farmhouses of the poor, and the mansions of the wealthy along the North and Harlem Rivers. Focusing on smaller merchant ships rather than heavily guarded ocean liners, Sadie embraced the role of a “River Pirate.”

Immersed in her pirate persona, Sadie studied pirate history and lore. Drawing on tradition, she initiated a kidnapping spree and even forced some gang members to “walk the plank” when they failed to meet her demands.

For a while, Sadie and her crew thrived, stashing their ill-gotten gains until they could exchange them for cash through respected fences like Marm Mandelbaum.

However, their success was short-lived. The murder of homeowners by Sadie and the Charlton Street Gang prompted a unified resistance from Hudson Valley residents. The gang was ambushed onshore, and increased police patrols prevented them from pillaging smaller merchant vessels. With many gang members killed, Sadie had no choice but to abandon her pirating activities, and the remaining members disbanded.

Sadie returned to her former stomping grounds in the Fourth Ward, where she was now revered as the “Queen of the Waterfront.” Using the funds acquired during her pirating days, Sadie opened her own gin mill.

Meanwhile, the Hole-in-the-Wall bar witnessed a surge in murders, leading to its permanent closure by the New York City police. Before bidding farewell to the infamous venue, Sadie visited Gallus Mag, and the two reconciled. Mag, showing remarkable grace, retrieved Sadie’s pickled ear from behind the bar and returned it to its rightful owner.

Sadie wore her severed ear in a locket around her neck for the remainder of her life.

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Ihab Salloum