The Bank Nun (Sarah Whitehead)
A visitor to the Bank during the years 1812 to 1837 might have seen loitering near the entrance, a woman in heavy mourning, contrasting strangely with her painted cheeks. She was Sarah Whitehead, the sister of a former Bank Clerk who had been sentenced to death for forging an acceptance to a bill. The tragedy had "turned her mind" and for some 25 years she came daily to the Bank, awaiting her brother under the delusion that he was still employed there. The clerks called her the "Bank Nun" and she became such a well-known figure that many stories were written about her.
