PHILLY BOXING HISTORY

  

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PHILADELPHIA RING FATALITIES

       
 

Billy Walker

August 31, 1876



Billy Walker (a.k.a William Kosta), 19, Philadelphia, died of injuries after being KO'd in the 76th round
by Jimmy Weeden, 30, also of Philadelphia. The bout took place on a barge near Pennsville, NJ for the benefit of Philadelphia gamblers.

 
       
 

Steve Flanagan

October 5, 1900

 

Steve Flanagan, 22, of Philadelphia, collapsed in
the 6th round of a bout with fellow Philadelphian Jimmy Devine at the Industrial Art Hall in Philadelphia. Flanagan died the following day.

 
       
 

Edward Sandford (a.k.a. Frank Barr)

December 22, 1900
 

Edward Sandford collapsed after his bout with
Young Kelly in an amateur tournament at Philadelphia's Atlantic Club and died at
Hahnemann Hospital two hours later.

 
       
 

Thomas Horketh (a.k.a. Thomas White)

April 2, 1902



Thomas Horketh was KO'd in the third round
at the Knickerbocker A.C. in Philadelphia on
March 29th and died at Presbyterian Hospital
four days later.

 
       
 

Albert Terrell

September 1, 1902
 

Albert Terrell, 17, collapsed in 4th round of his
bout with William Stokes at Golden Gate A.C. in Philadelphia. Terrell was taken to hospital and
died four hours later.

 
       
 

Joe Riley (a.k.a. Oliver Knight)

September 10, 1903

 

Joe Riley collapsed shortly after his six-round
bout with Griff Jones at Philadelphia's Southern
A.C. on September 8th. He was rushed to St.
Agnes Hospital where he died on September 10th.

 
       
 

Con Coughlin

October 1, 1903

 

Former heavyweight champion Bob Fitzsimmons KO'd Con Coughlin in the first round of their boxing contest at Philadelphia's Washington Sporting Club on September 30, 1903. Coughlin died the following day from head injuries he suffered in the bout.

 
       
 

Jack McKenzie

September 24, 1906

 

Jack McKenzie, of Philadelphia, collapsed and
later died after being KO'd by Terry Martin,
also of Philadelphia, at the Exposition Hall in Portland, Maine.

 
       
 


Mike Ward

November 15, 1906

 

Canadian lightweight Mike Ward suffered
a severe concussion when his head head
hit the ring floor after being dropped by
Philadelphian Harry Lewis in the ninth
round of a bout in Grand Rapids, MI.
Ward died the following day (11/16/06).
 

 
       
 

Peter Hage

June 17, 1908

 

William Sharkey, a.k.a. Johnny Hogan, KO'd Peter Hage in the 3rd round on the Battleship Mississippi
at League Island Navy Yard in Philadelphia. Hage died a few minutes afterwards.

 
       
 

Kid Gardner (a.k.a. Charles Emhof)

December 17, 1910

 

Kid Gardner (Charles Emhof) was fatally injured in
a preliminary bout with Johnny Kain at the
Nonpareil Club in Philadelphia on December 16, 1910. Gardner died the following day.

 
       
 

Andy Crowley

March 17, 1916

 

Andy Crowley collapsed in the third round of his bout with Mike Malone at Philadelphia's Nonpareil Club and died en route to Hospital.

 
       
 

Young Terry McGovern
(a.k.a. Frank DeLeo)

December 30, 1918

 

Young Terry McGovern (Frank DeLeo), of Philadelphia, died after his bout with Frankie
Britt at Boston, MA.

 
       
 

Sailor Miller

February 2, 1922

 

Sailor Miller was KO'd by Spike Roger in 1922.
He never regained consciousness  and died at Philadelphia's Lincoln A.C.

 
       
 

Charley Kid Hill

March 18, 1926

 

Charley Kid Hill, Wilmington, DE, was fatally
injured in a bout with Jack Gross at the Olympic in Philadelphia. He died two hours later in the hospital.

 
       
 

William McCloud

1936

 

Heavyweight William McCloud died during a preliminary bout at the Cambria A.C. in
Philadelphia. The exact date and opponent are unavailable.

 
       
 

Herman Gowdy

March 14, 1938

 

Heavyweight Herman Gowdy died after his bout
with Buddy Paul on March 11th, at the Cambria
in Philadelphia. Paul KO'd Gowdy in the first
round. It was Gowdy's 4th professional fight.

 
       
 

Herbert Black

March 5, 1942

 

Herbert Black, of South Philly, was fatally injured after being KO'd by Angelo Pantellas (Augie's
uncle) of West Philly at the Olympia in
Philadelphia.

 
       
 

Nat Hines

March 4, 1946

 

Nat Hines died of a brain hemorrhage after being KO'd Billy Eck in six rounds on March 1 at the Cambria A.C.

 
       
 

Glenn Newton Smith

August 15, 1947

 

Glenn Newton Smith, 23 year old Philadelphian,
died at the hospital after being KO'd in the ninth round by Sam Baroudi in North Adams, MA.

 
       
 

Billy 'Chicken' Thompson

September 21, 1948

 

Billy 'Chicken' Thompson died at Temple Univer- sity Hospital from the injuries he received in
his eighth round KO loss to Johnny Haynes at
Toppi Stadium on September 16th.

 
       
 

Sonny Boy West

December 21, 1950

 

Sonny Boy West of Washington D.C., was KO'd
by Percy Bassett on December 20th at St.
Nicholas Arena in New York. He died the
following day.

 
       
 

Bryan Thompson

April 17, 1955

 

Former National AAU middleweight champion, Bryan Thompson of Philadelphia, died almost three weeks after being knocked out in the second round by Jerry Luedee on March 29th, in Trenton N.J.

 
       
 

Robert Perry

January 29, 1956

 

Robert Perry died at Episcopal Hospital after being KO'd in the sixth round of a bout with Rudy
Watkins at the Cambria A.C.

 
       
 

Sonny Banks

May 10, 1965

 

Sonny Banks was KO'd in the ninth round of
his bout with Leotis Martin at the Arena. He was
rushed to Prebyterian Hospital afterward but
never regained consciousness and died there
three days later.

 
       
 

Clarence 'Jody' White

March 21, 1978

 

Clarence (Jody) White, of Trenton, collapsed in
his dressing room after being stopped in the fourth round by Curtis Parker at the Blue Horizon. He
died en route to the hospital.

 
       
 

Francisco Rodriguez

November 20, 2009
 

Francisco Rodriguez of Chicago collapsed
in his corner after his fight with Teon Kennedy
was stopped in the 10th round. He was taken
to Hahnemann Hospital where he underwent
surgery to relieve pressure for a brain bleed.
He survived the operation but was placed
on life support. Rodriguez died two days
later (11/22/09 @ 8:30 PM) after being
removed from the life support system.
 

 
       
 

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