Jack "The Manassa Mauler" Dempsey was the Heavyweight Champion of the World from 1919 to 1926. He originated from the small mining town of Manassa, Colorado. His career began unofficially as he traveled around the West by hopping freight trains and challenging the miners and lumbermen to barroom brawls using the name "Kid Blackie." Beating the giant, Jess Willard, in 1919, Dempsey gained both the Heavyweight Champion of the World title and a fierce reputation. He was known for knockout victories, some of which occurred within seconds of the beginning of the fight. After losing the title to Gene Tunney in 1926, the rematch in 1927 was much disputed as Dempsey knocked out Tunney but, due to confusion, did not return to a neutral corner allowing the official count to begin. After an appeal was rejected, Dempsey retired, continued exhibition boxing until 1940, and then opened a restaurant in New York City.
In this 1923 photograph, Dempsey is on the right in the white trunks and is believed to be boxing Tommy Gibbons, whom he beat to maintain the World Championship in Shelby, Montana that same year. Notes
Caption information sources: The Official Jack Dempsey website; Hickoksports.com; University of Illinois Press book review of "Jack Dempsey: The Manassa Mauler."
