The World Colored Heavyweight Championship, 1876-1937
Format:Paperback
Publisher:McFarland & Co Inc
Published:30th Aug '20
Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back
For six decades the World Colored Heavyweight Championship was a useful tool of racial oppression--the existence of the title far more important to the white public than its succession of champions. It took some extraordinary individuals, most notably Jack Johnson, to challenge "the color line" in the ring, although the title and the black fighters who contended for it continued until the reign of Joe Louis a generation later. This history traces the advent and demise of the Championship, the stories of the 28 professional athletes who won it, and the demarcation of the color line both in and out of the ring.
“A fascinating book on a subject that has barely been chronicled in the annals of boxing. ...The World Colored Heavyweight Championship, 1876-1937, just may be his best. ...[an] informative and wonderful book...Mark Allen Baker has that rare knack of sending the readers back in a Wellsian Time Machine into the musty arenas of yesteryear to bear witness to stirring pugilistic battles....Baker takes no prisoners in his indictment of the white Heavyweight Champions who used the ‘Color Line’ to cover up their own racist ideals, or just plain cowardice....superb...Mark Allen’s book is filled with men who used their fists and fought with honor who were the real deal. Their stories deserve to be told, and Mr. Allen rises up to the task with flying colors....highly recommended”—The USA Boxing News
“Rich in historical insight, thoroughly researched, and enhanced by many photographs, Baker’s extraordinary The World Colored Heavyweight Championship, 1876-1937, is a book to read, savor and discuss. It’s a book dealing with a crucial time in boxing and simultaneously is a lesson in American history.”—IBRO Journal
ISBN: 9781476677651
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: 475g
260 pages