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Boxing
Boxing Throughout much of the nineteenth century, boxing was part
Next
of Chicago's bachelor subculture where bouts for small bets
were held in the back rooms of saloons. The first notable
professional prizefight in the city was held in 1885, between
bare-knuckle champion John L. Sullivan and Jack Burke at the
Driving Park Racetrack.
Boxing flourished in the late 1890s at Tattersall's at 16th and
Dearborn. A match there between famed champion Bob
Fitzsimmons and Englishman Jim Thorne was the first
BOXER BOB FITZSIMMONS, prizefight in the city to attract an upper-class clientele.
1894 Following a rigged boxing match between Terry McGovern and
Joe Gans in December of 1900, prizefighting was banned in the city early in 1901, a ban
upheld for more than a quarter century. Amateur matches continued to be held in the
city, however, by such organizations as the Chicago Athletic Association (CAA).
Following agitation to end the ban, notably by the
Chicago Tribune, boxing was legalized in 1926, upon
which the Illinois Boxing Commission was organized.
In 1927, in the largest live boxing gate in history,
104,000 fans at Soldier Field watched Gene Tunney
defeat Jack Dempsey in the famous “long-count”
fight. The Chicago Stadium, opened in 1929, became
an important boxing venue, hosting many major
championship bouts.
In 1928, the Chicago Tribune DEMPSEY-TUNNEY FIGHT, 1927
inaugurated the Golden
Gloves amateur competition. The sport thrived, with boxers
being trained and promoted by such private gyms as Coulon's
(1154 East 63rd Street), founded in 1925 by one-time
bantamweight champion Johnny Coulon. The Roman Catholic
Archdiocese of Chicago was important in the sport's
promotion, becoming the biggest sponsor of youth boxing
through the Catholic Youth Organization, the Knights of
Columbus, and the Catholic High School League. The Chicago
GOLDEN GLOVES PROGRAM, Park District also nurtured and promoted boxing in the city.
1944
The Marigold Gardens on the North Side emerged in the 1930s
as the most significant venue for local professional bouts.
Lightweight Barney Ross became a hero in the West Side
Jewish community in the 1930s. In the 1940s, middleweight
Tony Zane, from Gary, also captured the city's fancy.
In 1949, boxing promoter James Norris and Chicago Stadium
owner Arthur Wirtz formed the International Boxing Club,
which controlled pro boxing competition before being broken
up by the federal government as a monopoly in 1957. During
that time the Chicago Stadium played host to many of the LIFE & BATTLES OF JACK
biggest fights in the country, featuring such boxers as Sugar JOHNSON
Ray Robinson, Rocky Marciano, and Floyd Patterson. In 1961, Wirtz ended boxing
matches at the Stadium, and thereafter Chicago declined as a boxing town.
Since the early 1960s, boxing in the city has been basically a club sport, with fight cards
featuring local boxers holding matches in hotels, many promoted by former
heavyweight champion Ernie Terrell (a product of the West Side). The premier private
gym in the city since the late 1970s has been the Windy City Boxing Club, producing
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such fighters as Andrew Golota and Angel Manfredy. In 1994, the Golden Gloves
opened the tournament to women.
Robert Pruter
The Electronic Encyclopedia of Chicago © 2005 Chicago Historical Society.
The Encyclopedia of Chicago © 2004 The Newberry Library. All Rights Reserved. Portions are copyrighted by other
institutions and individuals. Additional information on copyright and permissions.
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