{"id":326,"date":"2008-09-11T09:38:23","date_gmt":"2008-09-11T09:38:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/54.229.91.100\/libraryandarts\/library\/ehistory\/?p=326"},"modified":"2008-09-11T09:38:23","modified_gmt":"2008-09-11T09:38:23","slug":"jack-dempsey-the-non-pareil-1861-1895-champion-of-the-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/ehistory\/jack-dempsey-the-non-pareil-1861-1895-champion-of-the-world\/","title":{"rendered":"JACK DEMPSEY – THE NON-PAREIL 1861-1895 – ‘Champion of the World’"},"content":{"rendered":"
Leinster Leader, June 12th 1926<\/em><\/strong><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
A Kildare Champion<\/strong><\/span><\/div>\n
(Communicated<\/span>)<\/strong><\/span><\/div>\n

Somewhere on the plains of the Curragh there is a monument erected in grateful remembrance of a \u201cbare-knuckle\u201d gladiator. The peasant will proudly recall the doughty deeds of the great Donnelly and sometimes by turf fires the \u201cmitchers\u201d sing, o\u2019 the nights the praises of the valiant plainsman. In a county famed for its sporting traditions it is but just that sporting memories should endure. Yet it is strange that Kildare should forget one of the greatest knights who ever stepped forth from the \u201cShort Grass\u201d arena. There is no monument, there is no tradition nor is there a single verse in his native county in memory of one of the greatest fighters in the history of the \u201csquared circle.\u201d Jack Dempsey the famous Nonpareil. Fate is bitter indeed and the fruits of conquest are pitiful recompense when Kildare forgets a son who for six years waved the \u201cShort Grass\u201d stand and over the heads of the foremost middle weights of forty years ago.
\nJack Dempsey was born near the Curragh on December 15, 1862, and his parents brought him to New York while he was a hardy youngster, although little is known of his early career in those tough, bare-knuckle days. His first notable encounter took place on April 7th, 1883 and from that date until he fell victim to the treacherous pivot punch, six years later, he claimed the plaudits of the multitude as a boxer and a gentleman. One hundred and fifty-eight pounds of strength, strategy, grace and chivalry speedily won him the flattering title of \u201cThe Non pareil\u201d of the ring. A man of sterling honesty and gentlemanly bearing in that raw pioneer period, when good qualities were at a premium, could not fail to elicit a grudging word of praise even from those who sampled the dead accuracy of his flashing hands. His uncanny skill and unquestionable pluck could only be really appreciated when this grey-eyed wizard with the light brown, wavy hair was pitted against some fierce cave man battling with desperate ferocity.
\nThe good looking young Irishman easily became the idol of the boxing public. He was a master of strategy who opened a new chapter in ring-craft with his powerful arms and restless, slender legs. His contests numbered hundreds while he suffered only three defeats.
\nThis new favourite was hailed as champion even before he met and defeated George Fulljames. Dempsey fought the Toronto boy on July 30, 1884, at Far Rockway, just outside New York, and the Canadian went down and out in the 22nd round. The Champions during an unbroken series of victories, handed a sleeping draught to La Blanche at Larchmont, Long Island, on March 4th, 1886. La Blanche who was later to prove the Nemesis of his conqueror, was four years Dempsey\u2019s senior and a great fighter. He took the quietus in the 13th round.
\nThe battling Irishman took part in many unique contests, but strangest of all was his encounter with Johnny Regan on December 13th, 1887. This meeting was the climax of much ill-advised bitterness between the backers of both camps. The ring was the dock of an old barge in Long Island Sound, and the test was a fight to a finish with the bare knuckles. Truly it was a battle of primitive man but it is well to remember that the \u201ckid glove\u201d era of boxing was merely at its birth. The rounds were not yet set to time and a \u201cknock down\u201d replaced the gong. Knuckles flashed for a solid hour. Fourteen rounds had been fought under London Prize Ring rules when the barge, which had been securely moored to two stakes, was partly submerged by the tide. The strange \u201cring\u201d was cut loose and towed out into the Sound. Both the principals were about to resume when a squall struck the \u201cring\u201d and a heavy snow shower covered the slippery deck. A truce was called and the party went ashore. Someone suddenly remembered an old boat house about 20 miles away and a heavy trudge through the driving snow brought the small body to more cheerful surroundings. An obliging landlord, some hot drinks, and the men were soon trading punches with the onlookers sitting on the bar and shouting advice between drinks. Another sixteen rounds and almost an hour of furious fighting were marked when word came that two policemen were down the road. Disdaining heavier clothing the fighters plunged into the woods and their followers found a clearing amid the snow. Here Dempsey and Regan fought to a finish. In the 45th round the referee cried \u201cTime,\u201d but Regan was unable to continue. It was the end of over four hours of heavy punching with almost anything allowed except biting and kicking. No doubt some our present-day champions would look rather sheepish at the prospect of a four-hour \u201cmix-up\u201d with a twenty mile walk for a \u201cbreather.\u201d
\nIn August 1889, Jack Dempsey lost the crown. It happened in San Francisco and the winner was La Blanche. Jack\u2019s defeat was the sensational climax to a terrific bout in a setting typical of those prize-fighting days. A rudely constructed ring with its four plain posts and sagging ropes, stood out under the blinding glare of unshaded lights. \u2018Frisco was he-man\u2019s town in those days and many a rough joke was cracked with the waiters who answered the call for beer in the smoke-laden atmosphere of the Old Pavilion
\nFor thirty-one rounds Dempsey had maintained an unbeaten front against his more powerful opponent and held the heavier end of the points. In the thirty-second round the swarthy, thick-set marine bounded to the centre and the final act had begun. A clinch, a break and the champion shot a left and right to the head.
\nBlanche again hung on and the crowd became sarcastic. Four more clinchers and Dempsey was non-plussed. He was content to break away, drop his hands and await the next clinch in La Blanche\u2019s wrestling tactics. And then the crowd woke up. At the ninth break Dempsey dropped his hands and the marine remained at close quarters. A half-turn to the right and he swung completely round. A whirlwind right connected with Dempsey\u2019s chin and the pivot punch had landed. The Nonpareil sagged at the knees and dropped. He was out. The crowd gasped as the referee reluctantly awarded the laurels to the victor. And so the star of a great fighter set in \u2018Frisco. La Blanche won the championship but lost his reputation. Since that fateful August night the pivot-punch has never again been tolerated in the ring.
\nThe Kildare boy was bitter but took his defeat like a sportsman. On January 14th, 1891, he was out-classed by the great Bob Fitzsimons, man of superior strength and weight. Dempsey resisted gamely until the Cornish-man put him away in the thirteenth round.
\nIt was apparent to all that the former champion had seen his best days. He fought three more contests. Mike Keogh suffered defeat at his hands. \u201cAustralian\u201d Bill, Pte. Carthy, was held to a draw and Tommy Ryan secured the victory on January 18th 1895. Ryan was an ambitious, capable young man of twenty-five while Jack was a sick veteran who had seen thirty-two years of a bitter struggle for existence.<\/p>\n

On June 8th 1895, five months after his defeat by Ryan, a benefit was given for the sick and poverty stricken boxer. His friends sent him to Portland, Oregon, hoping that the change of air would aid him in his losing fight and tuberculosis. On November 1st 1895, the poor, wasted body of the once famous Nonpareil answered the final call of \u201cTime\u201d and death was the victor. He lies buried far away from his native plains.<\/p>\n

Perhaps, later on, when Kildare erects a monument to those who took part in a sterner fight she will not forget Jack Dempsey. And, perhaps, the site will be in Donnelly\u2019s Hollow where the spirits of two gladiators will hear the faint echo of distant cheering when the horses come \u201cup the straight.\u201d Meanwhile the champion rests in a neglected grave over which some former admirer has carved the simple, yet sincere, lines:-<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 *<\/div>\n
Far out in the wilds of Oregon
\nOn a lonely mountain side
\nWhere Columbia\u2019s mighty waters
\nFell down to the ocean\u2019s tide,
\nWhere the giant fir and cedar
\nAre imaged in the wave
\nO\u2019ergrown with weeds and lichens,
\nI found Jack Dempsey\u2019s grave<\/div>\n
\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 *<\/div>\n
I found no marble monolith
\nNo broken shaft or stone
\nTo tell of the great triumphs
\nThis vanished hero won;
\nNo rose, no shamrock I could find,
\nNo mortals here to tell,
\nHow sleeps in this forsaken spot
\nThe immortal Nonpareil<\/div>\n
\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 *<\/div>\n
A wind rock-strewn canyon road,
\nThat mortals seldom tread,
\nLeads up this lonely mountain
\nTo the bivouac of the dead.
\nAnd the western sun was sinking
\nIn the Pacific\u2019s golden waves
\nAnd solemn pines kept watching
\nO\u2019er poor Jack Dempsey\u2019s grave<\/div>\n
\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 *<\/div>\n
Forgotten by ten thousand throats
\nThat thundered his acclaim;
\nForgotten by his friends and foes
\nWho cheered his very name
\nOblivion wraps his faded form
\nBut ages hence shall save
\nThe memory of that Irish lad
\nThat sleeps in Dempsey\u2019s grave<\/div>\n
\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 *<\/div>\n
Oh! Fame, why sleeps thy favoured son
\nIn wilds, woods and weeds?
\nAnd shall he ever thus sleep on
\nInterred his valiant deeds?
\n\u2018Tis strange New York should thus forget
\nIts \u201cBravest of the Brave\u201d
\nAnd in the wilds of Oregon
\nUnmarked, leave Dempsey\u2019s grave
\n\u00a0 \u00a0Val O\u2019Grady<\/strong>
\n\u00a0 \u00a0Chicago.<\/strong><\/div>\n
NOTE: Over the years we have had many queries re. Jack Dempsey and based on the information given, Karel Kiely, Genealogist with Kildare Co. Library was able to come up with the following information regarding his birthplace and parents.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Jack Dempsey, \u201cThe Nonpareil\u201d-\u201cWithout Compare\u201d<\/em><\/strong><\/div>\n
Born John Kelly 21\/11\/1861 at townland of Athgarvan to Martin Kelly and Alicia Kelly (nee Lennon).
\nMother remarried at death of her first husband on 7\/8\/1865 to Patrick Dempsey of Walshetown, Newbridge and John Kelly took the name of John Dempsey.
\nJohn \u201cJack\u201d Dempsey died of tuberculosis\/consumption at home of his father-in-law James Brady at Grand Avenue, Portland, Oregon on 1\/11\/1895 and is buried at Mount Calvary Cemetery, Portland, Oregon.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
There are some curious references to other areas and John Noonan of Clane has unearthed a strong local tradition that suggests the Kelly family were originally from Clane and that the boxer hails from there.<\/div>\n
We would be interested in any information regarding his birthplace which might throw further light on the matter.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
A feature in the Leinster Leader of 12 June 1926 on World Champion boxer Jack Dempsey – ‘The Non-Pareil,’ who hailed form Co. Kildare <\/em><\/strong><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A feature in the Leinster Leader of 12 June1926 on World Champion boxer Jack Dempsey – ‘The Non-Pareil,’ who hailed from Co. Kildare<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-326","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-newspaper-articles","category-uncategorised"],"blocksy_meta":[],"featured_image_src":null,"featured_image_src_square":null,"author_info":{"display_name":"Kildare Local Studies","author_link":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/ehistory\/author\/localstudies\/"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/ehistory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/326","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/ehistory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/ehistory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/ehistory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/ehistory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=326"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/ehistory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/326\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/ehistory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=326"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/ehistory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=326"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kildarelibraries.ie\/ehistory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=326"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}