Amazing Philanthropists: B1. Jane Rollason

because my father died.

      I made more investments, taking Mr Scott’s advice. I borrowed money from the bank and invested in railways and railway bridges.

      And then the American Civil War started. In 1861, the North (called the ‘Union’) and the South (called the ‘Confederacy’) of America went to war over slavery. Mr Scott and I were sent to Washington to help the Union Army. We set up a telegraph service, and we organized the Army’s transport system. I was injured when I was cutting Confederate telegraph lines.

      I was given three months off work in 1862, and I decided to visit Dunfermline with my mother. I had forgotten how beautiful Scotland was and how much I loved our country.

      Four years later, the North won the war and four million black slaves became free. Six hundred thousand soldiers were killed in the war, and it was a terrible time for the USA. But the end of the war was a fantastic opportunity for a businessman like me. During the war, I had met useful people and I had seen opportunities. Now I invested $11,000 in an oil company. Within the first year, I had already made a lot of money.