BLACK SOCIAL HISTORY George Dixon (July 29, 1870 – January 6, 1908) was a Black Canadian professional boxer and the first black world boxing champion in any weight class, while also being the first ever Canadian-born boxing champion. Ring Magazine founder Nat Fleischer ranked Dixon as the #1 Featherweight of all-time. Dixon was inducted into the Ring Magazine Hall of Fame in 1956 and the International Boxing Hall of Fame as a first-class inductee in 1990, he was also made a member of Canada's Sports Hall of Fame in 1955.[1]
Boxing career
Dixon was born in Africville, Halifax, Nova Scotia. Known as "Little Chocolate," he stood 5 feet 3.5 inches (1.613 m) tall and weighed only 87 pounds (39 kg) when he began his professional boxing career. Dixon claimed the World Bantamweight Championship in 1888 and was officially considered the champion after knocking out Nunc Wallace of England in 18 rounds on June 27, 1890.
The following year, on May 31, 1891, Dixon beat Cal McCarthy in 22 rounds to win the Featherweight title. While he held the title, Dixon established a vaudeville troup he called the "George Dixon Specialty Co.," which toured the country and appeared at the Naylor Opera House in Terre Haute, Indiana on November 8, 1894. He lost his title in a 15-round decision to Abe Attell on October 28, 1901.
Dixon is interred in the Mount Hope Cemetery in Boston, Massachusetts. There is a recreation centre named after him in down town Halifax.
Dixon is credited for inventing Shadow boxing.
Notable Bouts
| Result | Opponent | Type | Rd., Time | Date | Location | Notes[2] |
| Loss |  Owen Moran | PTS | 6 | 1904-10-17 | National Sporting Club, Covent Garden,London | |
| Loss |  Jim Driscoll | PTS | 6 | 1904-02-10 | Bristol, Avon | |
| Win | Pedlar Palmer | PTS | 20 | 1903-11-09 | Ginnetts Circus, Newcastle, Tyne and Wear | |
| Loss | Digger Stanley | PTS | 6 | 1903-10-12 | National Sporting Club, Covent Garden,London | |
| Win | Digger Stanley | PTS | 6 | 1903-08-01 | Whitechapel Road, Mile End, London | |
| Loss | Pedlar Palmer | PTS | 8 | 1903-06-27 | London | |
| Loss | Jim Driscoll | KO | 5 | 1903-06-01 | Wales | |
| Loss | Jim Driscoll | PTS | 6 | 1903-01-24 | London | |
| Loss | Pedlar Palmer | PTS | 15 | 1902-09-08 | New National Athletic Club, Marylebone,London | |
| Loss |  Abe Attell | PTS | 15 | 1901-10-28 | West End Athletic Club, Saint Louis,Missouri | |
| Draw | Abe Attell | PTS | 20 | 1901-10-20 | Grand Opera House, Cripple Creek,Colorado | |
| Draw | Abe Attell | PTS | 20 | 1901-08-23 | Coliseum Hall, Denver, Colorado | |
| Loss | Young Corbett II | PTS | 10 | 1901-08-16 | Coliseum Hall, Denver, Colorado | |
| Loss | Terry McGovern | PTS | 6 | 1900-06-23 | Tattersall's, Chicago, Illinois | |
| Loss | Terry McGovern | TKO | 8 (25) | 1900-01-09 | Broadway A.C., New York, New York | Lost World Featherweight Title |
| Win | Oscar Gardner | PTS | 25 | 1898-11-29 | Lenox A.C., New York, New York | Retained World Featherweight Title |
| Draw | Pedlar Palmer | PTS | 6 | 1896-01-30 | Madison Square Garden, New York, New York | |
| Draw |  Young Griffo | PTS | 10 | 1895-10-28 | Manhattan A.C., New York, New York | |
| Draw | Young Griffo | PTS | 25 | 1895-01-19 | Seaside A.C., Coney Island, New York | |
| Draw | Young Griffo | PTS | 20 | 1894-06-29 | Boston Casino, Boston, Massachusetts | |
| Win |  Torpedo Billy Murphy | DQ | 3 | 1893-12-15 | People's Theater, Paterson, New Jersey | |
No comments:
Post a Comment