Historical  Record
Bare  Knuckle  Fighters

James Figg born 1695, Thame, Oxfordshire.
Master of y Noble Science of defence on y right hand
in Oxford road near Adam and Eve Court.
Died 1740.

                                           1761 - 1783 a chaotic period.

 Title dropped into disrepute.

Ben Brain retired and died of liver disease in 1794.

The record of the late 1700 seems uncertain, as two champions are given credit for the same period.

Daniel Mendoza, who was born in 1764 of Spanish and English blood, yet of Jewish nationality, emerges as the 16th Champion in 1787. Also, he was the first Jewish Champion of the World. Nat Fleischer said of him: "The development of boxing as a really scientific proposition, reached its first polished stage in the able hands of this extraordinary young Israelite"  He was the first fighter to charge to see him fight. Mendoza died in 1836, aged 72. 

W. Fewterell  fought Jackson in the presence or the Prince of Wales.

In 1814 a pugilistic fete was put on for the Emperor of Russia by Jackson and in 1821 he furnished a body of boxers to prevent anyone disturbing the coronation of King George 1V at Westminster Abbey.

Jackson retired and died on October 7th 1845, in London.

John Gully (a convict) was visited in prison by Pearce, as a possible contender for the title. Flecher Reid became Gully's benefactor and settled his debts after seeing Gully hold Pearse to 61 rounds of boxing within the prison walls.

 Bob Gregson

John Gully after gaining the title, retired and became a member of Parliament, and was also a wealthy coalmine owner. He served two more sentences in Pontifract Prison before his death in 1863.

 G. Maddox

Tom Molineaux, USA.  On December18th 1810 at Copthall common, Molineaux fought Cribb for the title. In the 33rd round Cribb emerged the winner. One year later Cribb bettered Molineaux inside 11 rounds. 1820 brought his retirement, and he ran the Union Arms in Piccadilly. He named Tom Spring as his successor, but there were others also in contention.  

Burke was exonerated of any blame of the fight against Byrne but left for the USA, feeling the pressure after the fight. He fought twice in the USA and returned to England. Burke had taken part in more bouts than any other Champion who preceded him and died of tuberculosis in 1845.

Harry Macone
"Farmer"

Simon Byrne. An Irishman who after 99 rounds against Burke, died.

Bendigo, in later years, was placed in prison for the 28th!!! time. While serving his sentence he heard a clergyman's sermon, and took up a career in the church after his release. He was perhaps the first to leave pugilism for the pulpit. A Inscription on his memorial in Nottingham reads.

"In memory of William Thompson (Bendigo),
who died on the 23 August 1880, aged 69.
In life always brave, fighting like a lion,
in death like a lamb,
tranquil in Zion". 

 On the 17th April 1860 at Farnborough England , the first World Bare-knuckle Championship was held between John C. Heenan and Tom Sayers. It brought interest from all over the world, with the London Times giving a complete supplement over to the fight. Literary geniuses's like Charles Dickens, and William Thackeray among others came to mingle and write about the event.

The fight was held as a draw after two hours of fighting by the participants, and several hours of drunkenness and voyeurism, finishing with the cutting of the ring ropes.

Both received a silver belt, it was classed as a draw, but Sayers never fought again, so John C Heenan was accepted as the first Champion of the World.

World Champion 1860.

Tom Paddock, Sam Hurst and Tom King became contenders for the British title, as Heenan, the World Champion, had gone back to the USA.

In 1863 Heenan returned to England to defend his right to the title as the World Champion. Tom King defeated Heenan.                                        

He advocated for the full use of the gloves.

Larry Foley
Bob Fitzsimmons
Peter Jackson
Young Griffo
Jem Hall
Sam Hurst

Mace lost the title to Tom King, but King retired and Mace regained it. Mace went to the USA and fought.

Tom Allen
Joe Coburn, USA

Mace returned to Liverpool England. Before leaving he was presented with a huge silver belt, and a Brick, with the inscription. "This is a brick and you are another."

He died in Liverpool, aged 79, in 1910.

At this time there was a dispute over who had the right to call himself the World Champion. An Irish born American Mike McCool, USA Champ, believed he held the title and came over to England to fight Allen, in 1873. This was a return match.  

Born 1853 Thurles Tipperary, emigrated to the USA as with many others after the famine of 1845 to seek fame and fortune. He fought Goss in West Virginia USA on the 30th May 1880, and was given the title after the 87th round.

John L. Sullivan
 World Champion 1882.                      

Boston.
Title from Ryan.
7th Feb, 1882.

Father: Mike Sullivan Tralee, County Kerry,Ireland.
Mother: Catherine Kelly County Roscommon, Ireland.

Mike emigrated from Ireland during the great famine of 1845/50. He met his wife Catherine in the USA, her family also having emigrated. They married in 1856.

Children:
John Lawrence Sullivan born 1858., Annie and Mike.

Raised in a catholic family in the aftermath of the civil war, with plenty of bad feeling against all immigrants, both black and white, the future was far from promising. Over 1.000.000 Irish people had fled their homeland to settle in the new World. Nobody was going to give up a job to them, any more than to the black communities.
"Find one Irishman to kill a black, then hang the Irishman", this was just one of the statements made at this time. "An Irishman is only a blackman turned inside out" another of the bad  racist language banded around.
Even women did not have it easy in those rough days in the New World, a man had to be hard and a woman scared, seems to sum up the life in the land of Uncle Sam.  

John L. Sullivan tried his hand at several trades until he found himself visiting an exhibition of boxing in the year 1878. The baiting by a Mr. Jack Scamell, who threw out a challenge to the young Sullivan that day, causing Sullivan to knock the daylights out of his challenger, lit the first flame in the career of what has been called "The Champion of Champions".      

                 John L Sullivan - World Champion from 1882.

Career prior to 1882:

1877., aged 19, turned professional.

From 1877 onwards:

     Dan Dwyer
     Tommy Chandler
     Patsy Hogan
     Cocky Woods
     Professor Mike Donovan
     Willaim Muldoon, ex-wrestler, later acted as Sullivan's trainer for his 1889 Kilrain fight
     Billy Madden, who became Sullivan's manager
     Jerry Murphy.

Fights after 1881:

     George Rooke
     Donaldson
     John Flood "Bulls Head Terror"
     Jack Burns
    
     Paddy Ryan, fight of 1882.
     9th round defeat, Sullivan becomes:
       

World Champion 1882   

Fights after 1882:

     John Elliot
     Tug Wilson, (English) "Joe Collins"
     Charlie Mitchell (English) , Birmingham
     Herbert Slade

For quite some time a fight had been brewing between Jake Kilrain and Sullivan, but due to Sullivan's lack of training, and drinking habits, the fight was repeatedly postponed by the Sullivan camp. It was because of this that Kilrain was crowned Champion in 1889. This brought rage from the people of Boston, and money started pouring in, which in turn switched the fight back into the public eye. This succeeded in fixing a fight date. On the 8th July 1889 at Richburg, Mississippi, the final professional bare knuckle fight in the USA took place.    

After two hours and sixteen minutes, the Kilrain corner threw in the towel. John Lawrence Sullivan was re-crowned as the World Champion.

Sullivan had been attended in his corner by his trainer Muldoon, who had supplied Sullivan with tea laced with whisky, and when asked how long he could keep up the pace Sullivan told him "until tomorrow if necessary". In the words of Boxing Historian Nat Fleischer: "Not even the later day idols, Jack Dempsey and Joe Louis exercised such lasting spell and fascination on the public mind, as did the picturesque indomitable biffer from Boston" John L Sullivan.

****Champion of Champions****

  Boxing records contributed by Phil Barrow

 back