Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1921-06-21
DEMPSEY HAS.
GREAT RECORD
AS A FIGHTER
Large Number Of FRS
Round Knockouts Credit
ed to Him.

flSOh the name Oy Wnlcn
the worlds heavyweight champion
g in Manassas, Colo. The prefix
Jack" a assumed by the big fell
low when he had grown to mans es-
tate, and had chosen the fistic ring
for . livelihood. AS a fighter he had
the idea n a good that by as
Stunning the Christian name of JACK
some of the glamor il not the wonder
full boxing science which the original
Jack Dempsey, Brooklyn's famous
weight title holder might revert to
him. 7t
The champion is the sixth child OF
a family Of eight. Three of his broth
ers and three sisters are alive but the
youngest Of the eight, who vas named
Bruce. died about two years ago.
When Dempsey wa Z years old his
parents, Hiram and Celia Dempsey,
with all their children, moved from
they lived for nine years. Then the
Dempsey household was shifted to Salt
Lake City, Utah. and that is the place
which they, including the champion,
claim as their home.
OF Fighting Blood.
Born Of rugged parents Dempsey
claims that he has Irish, Scotch and
Indian blood in his veins and insists
that the fighting qualities for which
all three Of these races are famous,
have been bred in the bone and blood
from his a~ntecedents.
Most of Dempsey's early life waA
spent in the open on a farm but later
he alternAted by working in the
mines except In harvest time when he
found it more remunerative to devote
his strength to reaping wheat and 9TH
er crops In the grain belt. In this way
Dempsey kept himself in fine physical
condition, the hard labor DEVELOPING
to be such a useful factor in his win
ming the worlds heavyweight title.
Unlike his challenger, Carpenter,
Dempsey had very little early training
for a career in the fighting arena,
while the French champion was q
close student Of the glove game and
an actual competitor when he entered
his "teenaL"
His First Scrap.
According to Dempsey's " story
his first fistic encounter was in an
improvfsed ring at Montrose, Colo,
when he was about 10 years old. His
opponent was a young blacksmith,
named Woods, whom he knocked out
In h third round. This initial con
test Melted the. now champion 325.
His next fight also resulted in a third
round knockout, Andy Malloy, who
a previously walloped one Of Demp.
seys oldest brothers. being the victim.
he was 20 years old Dempsey
began rowing around. taking on a bout
whenever the opportunity offered,
! while between times he returned to
odd farming jobs or worked as a
miner. His first eastern experience
in the fighting arena was in New
York city where he met Andre Ander-
son. Wild Burt Kenney and Lester
Johnson. a negro in ten round node.
cfsion bouts. This was in 1916.
During the following year Demp-
sey knocked out Al. Norton and
Charley Miller, zach in one round
Later he won from Willie Meehan,
Carl Morris, Bob McAllister and Gun.
boat Smith in four round bouts III
California and was Knocked OUT in one
round by Jim Flynn, the Pueblo
Fireman" In the following yea
Dempsey reversed this by knocking
Flynn out in a single round and fol-
lowed up with a series Of knockouts
.~--e his victims being Fred Fulton,
Battling Levinsky. Porky Flynn, Ar.
thur Pelkey and Terry Kellar.
Dempsey's banner year was 1915
when after scoring five %knockouts 81
n round each in Pennsylvania and
Connecticut. he won the. title by stop.
ping b big Kansas Jess Willard al
Toledo. Ohio. on Independence Da,
40 yearS ago.