Jem Smith

Jem Smith (21 January 1863 – 10 September 1931) was a bare-knuckle prize fighter and heavyweight champion of England in the late 19th century and into the early 20th century. In 2010 he was inducted into the Bare Knuckle Boxing Hall of Fame.

Jem Smith
Smith circa 1885
Born	(1863-01-21)21 January 1863 Shoreditch, London, England
Died	10 September 1931(1931-09-10) (aged 68) Willesden, London, England
Nationality	English
Statistics
Weight(s)	170 to 212 lb (77 to 96 kg)
Height	5 ft 8.5 in (1.740 m)
Boxing record
Total fights	14
Wins	9
Wins by KO	4
Losses	5
Draws	1

Early career

In 1881 he fought his first bare-knuckle prizefight aged 18 years. In 1889, he participated in a fight against Frank Slavin, where he was roundly outclassed by Slavin by all accounts, and knocked out cold for ten minutes, but the circumstances had been so unfairly stacked against his opponent, the referee called it a draw after 14 rounds. It was the last internationally recognized bare-knuckle prizefight, and fought in Bruges, Belgium.

Titles

Smith fought his first heavyweight title fight in 1884 against Woolf Bendoff in the West End of London, England and won by TKO in the 13th round. He fought Jake Kilrain in 1887, in defence of his heavyweight title. The match lasted 2 and a half hours and after 106 rounds the bout was called a draw due to darkness. In 1891 he fought his last BBBC fight against Ted Pritchard in New Cross, also in London, England and lost by a TKO in the 3rd round.

References

• BoxRec

External links

• Cyberzone boxing website data and photo
• Boxinggyms contemporary newspaper reporting of his fight with John L Sullivan of Boston USA in 1887
• Jem Smith at Find a Grave

See also

• List of bare-knuckle boxers