Born: March 31 ,1878 Galveston , Texas Died: June 10 , 1946 (91-14-12) Hall of Fame Induction 1990

Whenever great Heavyweights are discussed by  knowledgeable boxing fans Jack
Johnson's name will surely be one of those names that all will agree upon, the Galveston Giant  was one of the best.

The fact that he was the first African-American Heavyweight Champion would alone seal him a place in the sports history books. However there is so much more to this mans life and ring career that set him apart from the rest.

Johnson's bold and independent nature both enraged and endeared people of his
day, color was the dividing line. The first quarter of the 20th century was a
time in which our country was experiencing great growing pains, and ideas like
racial equality were radical at least. Someone like Jack Johnson becoming
wealthy, powerful, and famous was downright shocking. Johnson took it all in
stride, he after-all, was something special and he knew it.
 

The son of a former slave, he grew up in extreme poverty, with virtually no schooling, and to say that blacks were second class citizens would be an extreme under-statement. Johnson went to work on Galveston's docks and anywhere else he could to eke out a living. He got his introduction to fighting during this period, engaging in  battle royals  a racially motivated sport where white audiences tossed  coins to the winner. Records indicate Johnson fighting professionally as early as 1894 in Galveston. Records of the time are un-reliable,  however an account of Johnson's early loss to west coast Champion Joe Choynski in 1901 remains a milestone in his career. Choynski KO' d Johnson in the 3rd round, police raided the fight and jailed them both. While locked up, Choynski acted as mentor for Johnson, teaching him ring tactics, which with his considerable talent, took hold very rapidly.

In 1903, fighting on the west coast Johnson defeated Denver Ed Martin to win the
black heavyweight title. Four successful defenses followed each with Sam McVey.
In 1905 he lost a decision to future champ Marvin Hart. Two years later Johnson
was back east in Philadelphia, there he would KO former Champion Bob
Fitzsimmons.

Johnson would then have to overcome being repeatedly denied a title shot until
finally in 1908 he got the chance in Australia, to fight reigning champion
Tommy Burns. Johnson scored a 14th round TKO to become the first of his race to be Heavyweight Champion.

At the time, America was in general a racially segregated society, and  popular professional sports was limited to baseball and boxing, so this event was big news to the sporting public. Therefore, many whites were outraged. A search for a White Hope was started. Middleweight great Stanley Ketchel tried to unseat Johnson, however it proved to be a fruitless attempt as Johnson toyed with Ketchel until the 12th when Johnson was floored, the enraged Johnson then promptly KO'd Ketchel with one mighty blow.

Former heavyweight champion James J. Jeffries was enticed to come out of
retirement and try to topple Johnson. A much ballyhooed bout was staged in Reno, Nevada on Independence Day 1910. This was of course before radio and
television, but when  Johnson KO' d  the former champ in the 15th, the news
spread through the country like wildfire. Race rioting followed , several people
were killed in this rioting un-fortunately. 

Jack Johnson's title reign would continue until 1915, during which time he not
only taunted the white establishment by romancing  a string of white women, he
continued his winning ways with wins over boxers like Jim Flynn and Frank Moran.

The Moran bout, a 20 round affair in Paris, refereed by Georges Carpentier,
was captured by the movie camera and has been shown many times since. In this
film , Johnson is shown as an extremely gifted athlete as well as a superb ring
tactician.

Racism of the day resulted in legislation which caused Johnson  to become a
fugitive and flea the country. The moral excuse was that he had transported a
minor across state lines for immoral purposes, it mattered not that the woman in
this case was his wife.
 

Finally in 1915, the now exiled Johnson ,was lured to Havana, Cuba with the promise of safe return to his homeland, which didn't materialize, for a bout with the huge Kansan Jess Willard. The bout itself, which ended with Johnson being stopped in the 26th round, is shrouded in controversy, arguments still rage today as to whether Johnson  took a dive or not. The film and stills of this dramatic bout are still viewed often today, and make fascinating viewing.

In 1920 Johnson surrendered to Federal authorities, spent some months in Federal penitentiary and was released. The aging Johnson continued his ring career with intermittent bouts throughout North America, even returning to Havana, and fighting in a bull ring in Mexico.

In retirement Jack Johnson raced cars, acted in movies, ran a night club, and
died in an auto accident.

Many books and articles have been written about this larger than life figure,
and of course sometimes the line where fact ends and fiction begins is blurred.
His place in boxing history might be argued sometimes, but it surely can't be
over looked.


Photos Courtesy of Antiquities of the Prize Ring