Description

During the California Gold Rush, amateur and professional boxing almost immediately gained a strong foothold in northern California, as the gold fields and mining camps provided both employment and a venue for these athletes. In these times, many of the world's best fighters made their way to the canvas squares of the Pacific coast where San Francisco served as the locus of championship title bouts that even today remain legendary. This volume spotlights such greats as Gentleman Jim Corbett, Joe Choynski, Jack Johnson, Battling Nelson, Stanley Ketchel, and 1904 Olympic heavyweight champion Sam Berger. Somrack explores San Francisco's boxing scene through the years, but also focuses in on weight classifications and ring records.