Combat Sports Historian and Martial Artist
Posts about professional wrestling from 1870 to 1930.
Stanislaus Zbyszko toured the United States in 1910 in preparation for a title match with World Heavyweight Wrestling Champion Frank Gotch later in the year. His tour brought him to St. Louis on May 29, 1910. Zbyszko was scheduled to meet highly regarded light heavyweight grappler Charley Olson. Olson was a skilled wrestler, who trained with St. Louis wrestler George
I am ashamed to say I recently discovered the career of Cora Livingston, while researching the development of the local promotor system in professional wrestling during the 1910s and 1920s. Mildred Burke was the first major woman’s wrestling champion of which I was aware. However, Cora Livingston claimed the World Championship a year before Burke was even born. Cora Livingston
On March 10, 1870, Colonel James Hiram McLaughlin competed on the last night of the International Wrestling Tournament in Detroit, Michigan. The tournament ran for almost two months before the finale on March 10th. Wrestling historians frequently credit J. H. McLaughlin as being the first professional wrestler to live only on his earnings as a professional wrestler. Most professional wrestlers
(This excerpt is from my newest book on the history of the American Heavyweight Wrestling Championship.) Jenkins proved himself the top contender as soon as McLeod won the title. On Wednesday, November 17, 1897, Tom Jenkins wrestled former title holder Martin “Farmer” Burns in Indianapolis, Indiana. The men wrestled a best two-out-of-three-falls match according to catch-as-catch-can wrestling rules. Jenkins stood
On April 13, 1936, Ed “Strangler” Lewis wrestled his final legitimate contest with Lee Wykoff at the Hippodrome in New York City. Promoters once again called on Lewis to settle a promotional conflict. The opposing group selected Lee Wykoff, a 36-year-old shooter from Kansas. Wykoff stood six feet, one inches tall and weighed two hundred eighteen pounds. The 44-year-old Lewis
On Tuesday, March 28, 1899, current American Heavyweight Wrestling Champion Dan S. McLeod wrestled Charles Wittmer in a two-out-of-three-falls mixed styles match. Since the champion only defended the title in catch-as-catch-can matches, McLeod wrestled Wittmer in a non-title match. Wittmer, a Greco-Roman wrestling specialist, demanded he and McLeod wrestle at least one fall under Greco-Roman rules. The St. Paul Athletic
If wrestling fans know of Anton “Tony” Stecher, it is as the long-time promoter of professional wrestling in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Stecher started promoting professional wrestling in the Twin Cities during 1933. Stecher built the Minneapolis Boxing and Wrestling Club into a powerful local wrestling promotion. Stecher was also one of the early members of the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA). Stecher
Scottish wrestler Duncan C. Ross wrestled professionally but also took part in strength and athletic contests after arriving in the United States in the late 1870s. An all-around athlete, Ross wrestled skillfully in both catch-as-catch-can wrestling and Greco-Roman wrestling. On Monday, February 26, 1883, Ross wrestled former World Heavyweight Wrestling Champion Theobaud Bauer. Bauer brought the World Championship from France
Joe Stecher made his professional wrestling debut in late 1912 or early 1913. Stecher proved to be a dangerous professional from the beginning of his career. Martin “Farmer” Burns, the storied wrestler and trainer, brought one of his proteges, Yussiff Hussane, to test Stecher in a legitimate contest during June 1913. Burns and most followers of the sport expected Hussane
On Tuesday, October 21, 1913, Ed “Strangler” Lewis defended his newly won American Heavyweight Wrestling Championship against William Demetral. Lewis wrestled Demetral at Lexington’s Auditorium on a mat instead of a ring. The mat setup played a role in the finish of the match. Promoter Jerry Walls placed a mat on the elevated stage, a common setup before the widespread