New Britain herald., 1917-12-17
GO7CH IS DOWNED
 FOR I: FINAL FALL 4! ].
Retired Wrestling Champion SucA Culnbs to UraeIniC Poisoning

Des Moines. Ia-, Dec. 17.-Frank x. Gotch. retired champion heavyweiRlf wrestler of the world, died at noD1I yesterday at his home, Humboldt, Ia.. of uraemic poisoning. He had been n < failing health for two years.
 Gotch was fl years old. He was born on April 27. 1876, on farm three miles south of Humboldt.
 He is survived by his widow. N four-year-old son. Robert Gotch: brother, Fred Gotch; a ,sisters MrG Charlie Kurth, of Humboldt, and hit mother, Mrs. Amelia Gotch, also s resident of Humboldt.
 His wife and son were at his be{Ik side when death came. It Is said that the famous athlete was conscious Sail most up to the time of his death. dS& spite the rumors that have been t1% circulation during tho past tV3@ months that he was irrational part x4S the time E.
 The first inttmation that his healt < was not as godd as 1t should be cana1 to him in the summer of 1916, Wh( N he was making a tour of the count with well-known circus aS a teu& " see whether he should sign articl0o N a match with Joe stecher. of Dode l Neb.. who had won the title fro& Charlie Cutler, of Chicago. Gotoh ha declared Cutler the American chan
 pion upon his retirement Ns Exhibition of Skin fn Circus. Gotch. in the circus, wre9Aled ,Witj l Bob Managon, Earl Caddock a13ss | uHA< ] compelled to return to his home b T1gg l cause of stonnach troub1e1 11e nev regained his health fully, althouKA N
 later rejoined the circus, N. ys 1 compelled to leave again when h0 i'll l jured his ankle. .ss sss < N ss l The discoveries the chAmpaQn mad 1 regarding his dftiOn th9 A n am l caused him to abandon all plaKa ofs match with stethsr. IT
 The following winter 6otcA hi l no better and went tp H1ts 9pnttn ] Ark. He returned home laie tl <
 but gradually lost his RFpn9fh. q. in October he went to Chie TT
 way to Southern rdeoTt t lDIESl seriously i'll in Chicago h0teA
 was removed to a hosPital, wheo was kept untl early in NovGb( 1 when he was broughe7 bAAk tetu. home. ye SS5 sSA Since that time he hs4 bseAsn Gte 2 | leave his home only ts9Nf or sSai4 i times and then for only-slf6rt a4of
 Ten days ago he began to grnw Wor.
 Made Fortune in We1tli1 Fl
 Gotch made a fortuna sin VI klt
 and he invested his earning1 Iii iotD
 farm lands. His estate is waflouSlS
 estimated at betNoens 3enr re1N s-1,iI
 $40O.0oo. all of which represel1t
 money made through hit
 wrestler. aT
 Gotch won the ArneriS Saf sFs; Si,a; ieis i. ss
 ship January 27, 1904, frcrs,o
 Jenkins after one of the rdG hs It
 matches seen In thio 1F III sle.so1
 bout was staged at BeilinghAm. n
 Gotcl1 won the first fall ards \ ', l awarded the secondyaftec JoEkiS
 fouled him repeatedly hYs lYtnn tltD
 stranglc hold and by striking htlla.
 Beat Ei1ckcnsclamid fn CAic 1S css cssIf i Gotch won the sheavywelEht WrS E
 ling championship of the oII4 V
 1908 in Chicago by dvfe4tlny ~
 Fackenschmtdt, the Aus6f4n a %
 who forfeited the match Fl III t1 "A
 hours and eight minutes Wr4t tI s''
 enthusinsts called itstl4g g,ffseatesa'tt
 spectacle of history. dotGffa lotsiEs tl IG.
 pounds before ilis opponent w14H feated Gotch'- tongue was 0o 1 swollen that it was week BefdtSt v fe
 could speak plainly s4s N 555ss
 Gotch wrestied with T4AckenscIsrniok lin the White Sox ball park hers aka in 1911, winning in sls0rt order. AftS tho match, 1t was made kAor1r taiX Gotch's opponent had ehtaroA tlst
 contest with a badly spraiHed kill and, although he had concealed tt . first, 1t prevented his dxef tfllE 1nu,II uai than feeble resistance to Ifs pion. The gate receipts It tlsat l were $87,OOO, the most naoneY evHS taken in wrestling chow.
 It was in his match with fEacA1fs schmidt that Gotch intruAuced1 aAE 1 perfected the toe. hold against ~h3cm no man was ever able to stand 16h hold caused great anguish to the CT l ponent and soon made the stronGSst IT 1 them weak. as.s The only man who ever publt1 1 threw. the champion was Tred B61HS 1 of Marshfield, Wis, who, in 1S06 III | New Orleans, took the first fAM t0 Gotchs second and third. In q tllrSlol- l fall match Gotch later won from Beell with little effort .tx Weighed 315 Pounds. gayl4- N The champions wrestling weight | was 2l5 pounds, but in the past yeA1 l he had lost weight until hA Gpp1A scales at less than 1So poNnd1
 entered hospital herp sa month 41N and was treated for stomach tEaN1. but gained rapidly and was soon dl1- 1 charged as cured. Gotch and James Jeffries, forme1' l heavyweight boxing chamPAon1 were {! intimate friends and before Jennea 1 lost his belt to Jack Johng0n. the tWd ! champions toured the country. mse~ ing with great receptions every WnefA