Barbados Joe Walcott

Joe Walcott (March 13, 1873 – October 1, 1935) was a professional boxer from Barbados who reigned as the World Welterweight Champion from 1901 to 1906, becoming the first black man ever to capture the title. He is retrospectively known as Barbados Joe Walcott to distinguish him from American heavyweight Arnold Cream (1914–1994), who adopted the ring name Jersey Joe Walcott to honor his predecessor.

He was elected to The Ring Boxing Hall of Fame in 1955 and the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1991.

Walcott had an exceptional power to his punch, with 60% of his wins achieved through knockout.

Early life and career Walcott was born on March 13, 1873, in British Guiana but migrated to Barbados at a young age. As a youngster, he set out to see the world and got a job as a cabin boy on a ship sailing to Boston that arrived around 1887. He settled in Boston as a piano mover and porter and took other odd jobs as well. Later, he landed a job in a gym and became popular with the best of the boxers as an able opponent before turning professional. His amateur boxing and wrestling years spanned roughly 1887 to 1889.

On February 23, 1900, Walcott met the Jewish light heavyweight Joe Choynski, winning in a surprising seventh-round TKO, though outweighed by 16 pounds and conceding his opponent a full foot advantage in height. Likely sensing the need for a quick start against his opponent, Walcott sent Choynski to the mat five times in the first round and was the aggressor throughout the bout. Walcott seemed to have a slight advantage in the second, though Choynski landed a solid blow. By the third round, Walcott pressed his advantage with a superior defense and landed blows nearly at will before the sound of the bell. The fourth seemed even and the fifth entirely in Walcott's favor, but in the sixth Walcott cut Choynski's right eye. Walcott sent Choynski to the floor again in the seventh, battering his clearly exhausted opponent. Stopping the final round 38 seconds in, the referee said later that he "felt another blow to Choynski would have put him out."

On September 27, 1901, Walcott impressively defeated Irish boxer George Gardner in a twenty-round points decision at the Mechanic's Pavilion in San Francisco, California. The pre-fight betting was light before the match with Gardner a 10-8 favorite. Gardner, at just under six feet, and holding a serious reach advantage over Walcott, would briefly hold the light heavyweight championship of the world from July through November 1903. Walcott was the aggressor throughout the bout, landing more clean blows, though there was a great deal of clinching and wrestling throughout the furious bout, likely a result of the mismatch in reach between the two opponents. In the first round, Walcott brought Gardner to his knees from a left and right to the head for a nine count, though Gardner returned to the fighting unfazed.

Taking the world welterweight championship from Rube Ferns, 1901 Walcott won the world welterweight title on December 18, 1901, in Buffalo, New York, from reigning champion James "Rube" Ferns achieving a technical knockout in the fifth round. Ferns, from the reaction of the Buffalo crowd as he entered the ring, appeared to be the favorite. Walcott sent Ferns to the floor twice in the fifth round, the first a solid blow to the jaw. Rube took the count both times. At the end, the referee stopped the bout to prevent a knockout. Ferns began to weaken as early as the third round, and in the fourth Walcott sent Ferns through the ropes. The bout featured a clinch in the fourth round that brought both boxers to the mat, possibly a result of a tiring Walcott attempting to counter Fern's six-inch height advantage and superior reach. The match brought roughly 2,000 spectators to the clubhouse, and tickets ranged from a respectable $2 to $5. The Toronto Star wrote "Walcott battered down Ferns with terrific body blows, and right and left swings to the head. To save Ferns from being completely knocked out, Referee McBride stopped the bout."

After the fight, Rube Ferns stated "Well, he won, and I have nothing to say against it. I don't know anybody at the weight - no, nor a good deal above it - that can beat him."

On June 23, 1902, Walcott faced Tommy West in a title defense of his world welterweight title, facing off against West for the sixth time. In their previous encounter in August 1900, the fight had gone as such according to a newspaper called the Durango Democrat: "The bout had gone eleven rounds very much in Wolcott's favor, as he had punished West very badly about the body and head and had him in a very weakened condition. When the bell rang for the twelfth round, to the surprise of everybody, Wolcott refused to go on, claiming he had injured his left arm. Referee Charlie White, suspecting crookedness, insisted upon Wolcott continuing, but [Wolcott] refused to do so, which left White no alternative other than to declare West the winner. There was quite a large sum of money wagered, with West as favorite and the referee is very outspoken in reference to Wolcott's peculiar actions. Manager Kennedy, on behalf of the club, announced that Wolcott's share of the money would not be given to him, but would be donated to some charitable institution." With their first 5 fights having been in America, they fought their final battle, for the world welterweight championship, at the National Sporting Club, Covent Garden in London, England. Walcott clearly outpointed the Welsh fighter and retained his championship with a 15 round points decision victory overseas.

On June 18, 1903, Walcott fought Young Peter Jackson, an exceptional black contender to a twenty-round draw, in Portland, Oregon, in a match billed as a world welterweight championship. The title did not change hands due to the draw decision. Walcott had previously fought Jackson twice in the winter of 1902 to a win and a draw. The match was disregarded as a title bout when it was discovered that Sullivan had bet on Dixie Kid to win the match. In the third round, Langford brought Walcott to one knee with a blow to the jaw.

Historic draw with lightweight champion Joe Gans, 1904

Walcott met world lightweight champion Joe Gans in a non-title fight at Woodward's Pavilion in San Francisco on September 30, 1904, and scored a draw after 20 rounds. Many in the crowd believed Gans should have received the decision. The lightweight champion gained a lead from the second till the tenth, using his right almost exclusively on the body of Walcott. Walcott, however, put tremendous force behind his blows, weakening the lightweight Gans in several points in the bout.

After the tenth, Gans became the superior boxer, avoiding the blows of Walcott and connecting with solid rights and lefts to the face. In the nineteenth round, Gans landed a solid blow to Walcott's jaw that might have ended the fight. In the final round, Gans showed dominance in the in-fighting, though neither fighter took a clear lead. An examination after the fight showed that Walcott had broken his right elbow in the fourth round, though he continued to fight.

After the Gans fight, on October 18, 1904, Walcott accidentally shot himself in the hand, losing several fingers. Walcott took a year off of boxing to recover from the injury, but it may have effectively limited his remaining years as a world class prizefighter. Walcott, however, continued to box until 1911. In the sixth round, Mellody landed a strong right to the jaw which backed Walcott against the ropes. In the eleventh, Mellody landed punches at will, and in the final round he landed a flurry of rights to the stomach before Walcott retreated to his corner before the bell ending the bout.

Returning to the ring on January 15, 1907, Walcott lost a fifteen-round decision on points to Mike Donavan in Providence, Rhode Island. Though winning only a few of his remaining bouts, Walcott succeeded in twice beating George Cole, a competent hard hitting middleweight from Philadelphia, in December 1907 and January 1908. In fact, of their December meeting in Philadelphia, one source noted that "with the exception of the third round when Cole sent over some very hard punches, the "battle was Walcott's all the way."

On January 7, 1908, Walcott lost to a noteworthy opponent, Jimmy Gardner, in twelve rounds at the Armory in Boston. Gardner would become a world welterweight contender against Mike "Twin" Sullivan in April of that year. New York's Evening World stated that Walcott's performance "did not come up to expectations" and that Gardner's win "was one of the easiest victories he ever earned." On November 2, 1911, Walcott fought his last reported bout against Tom Sawyer in Lowell, Massachusetts. He walked out of the ring before the bell at the end of the one-sided 12-round technical knockout, and said to the crowd, "I'm 40 years old and I guess I'm done with this game."

It was believed that Joe was walking along Route 30 in the village of Dalton, Ohio (8 miles west of Massillon) and was struck and killed by a car. His body was not claimed and the village of Dalton buried him at the edge of the cemetery. In 1955 a headstone that reads "Ex Worlds Champion Joe Walcott 1873-1935" was erected on the grave.

Professional boxing record All information in this section is derived from BoxRec, unless otherwise stated.

All newspaper decisions are officially regarded as "no decision" bouts. An unofficial record can be made by counting them as win/loss/draw decisions.

Official record

Unofficial record

ResultOfficial recordUnofficial recordOpponentTypeRoundDateLocationNotes157 Loss 87–24–24 96–31–27 Tom Sawyer TKO 8 (12) Nov 2, 1910 156 Win 87–23–24 96–30–27 Bobby Lee KO 2 (6) Oct 17, 1910 155 Loss 86–23–24 95–30–27 Kyle Whitney TKO 9 (12) May 13, 1910 154 Loss 86–22–24 95–29–27 Bill MacKinnon DQ 6 (12) Apr 25, 1910 153 Draw 86–21–24 95–28–27 Jimmy Potts PTS 10 Mar 7, 1910 152 Draw 86–21–23 95–28–26 Young Jack Johnson PTS 6 Dec 3, 1909 151 Draw/ 86–21–22 95–28–25 Tom Sawyer NWS 6 Sep 6, 1909 150 Loss 86–21–22 95–28–24 Thunderbolt Ed Smith PTS 6 May 10, 1909 149 Loss 86–20–22 95–27–24 Jack Robinson PTS 10 Nov 18, 1908 148 Loss 86–19–22 95–26–24 Larry Temple TKO 10 (10) Nov 11, 1908 147 Loss 86–18–22 95–25–24 Bartley Connolly PTS 6 Sep 7, 1908 146 Loss/ 86–17–22 95–24–24 Jack Robinson NWS 6 Jul 15, 1908 145 Loss/ 86–17–22 95–23–24 Bill Hurley NWS 7 Jun 29, 1908 144 Win 86–17–22 95–22–24 Russell Van Horn PTS 6 Jun 18, 1908 143 Win 85–17–22 94–22–24 Mike Lansing PTS 6 Jun 16, 1908 142 Win 84–17–22 93–22–24 Charles Kemp TKO 5 (10) Jun 11, 1908 141 Loss/ 83–17–22 92–22–24 Charley Hitte NWS 6 Apr 3, 1908 140 Draw 83–17–22 92–21–24 Mike Donovan PTS 6 Mar 3, 1908 139 Loss/ 83–17–21 92–21–23 Terry Martin NWS 6 Jan 30, 1908 138 Draw 83–17–21 92–20–23 Mike Donovan PTS 10 Jan 15, 1908 137 Win/ 83–17–20 92–20–22 George Cole NWS 6 Jan 14, 1908 136 Loss 83–17–20 91–20–22 Jimmy Gardner PTS 20 Jan 7, 1908 135 Win/ 83–16–20 91–19–22 George Cole NWS 6 Dec 26, 1907 134 Draw 83–16–20 90–19–22 Mike Donovan PTS 15 Oct 24, 1907 133 Win 83–16–19 90–19–21 Billy Payne KO 6 (?) Oct 17, 1907 132 Draw 82–16–19 89–19–21 Mike Donovan PTS 10 Jun 18, 1907 131 Loss 82–16–18 89–19–20 Mike Donovan PTS 10 Jan 15, 1907 130 Loss 82–15–18 89–18–20 William "Honey" Mellody TKO 12 (15) Nov 29, 1906 129 Loss 82–14–18 89–17–20 William "Honey" Mellody PTS 15 Oct 16, 1906 128 Draw 82–13–18 89–16–20 Billy Rhodes PTS 20 Sep 29, 1906 127 Win 82–13–17 89–16–19 Jack Dougherty KO 8 (15) Jul 10, 1906 126 Win 81–13–17 88–16–19 Dave Holly DQ 3 (3) Jan 25, 1906 125 Draw 80–13–17 87–16–19 Joe Gans PTS 20 Sep 30, 1904 124 Loss/ 80–13–16 87–16–18 Dave Holly NWS 6 Sep 10, 1904 123 Draw 80–13–16 87–15–18 Sam Langford PTS 15 Sep 5, 1904 122 Draw 80–13–15 87–15–17 Larry Temple PTS 10 Jul 1, 1904 121 Win 80–13–14 87–15–16 Mike Donovan TKO 5 (10) Jun 24, 1904 120 Loss 79–13–14 86–15–16 Young Peter Jackson KO 4 (10) Jun 10, 1904 119 Draw 79–12–14 86–14–16 Sandy Ferguson PTS 10 May 23, 1904 118 Loss 79–12–13 86–14–15 Dixie Kid DQ 20 (20) Apr 29, 1904 117 Loss/ 79–11–13 86–13–15 Black Bill NWS 6 Feb 26, 1904 116 Win 79–11–13 86–12–15 Charlie Haghey KO 3 (10) Jan 18, 1904 115 Win 78–11–13 85–12–15 Larry Temple PTS 15 Dec 29, 1903 114 Loss 77–11–13 84–12–15 Sandy Ferguson PTS 15 Nov 10, 1903 113 Win 77–10–13 84–11–15 Kid Carter PTS 15 Nov 3, 1903 112 Win 76–10–13 83–11–15 Kid Carter PTS 15 Oct 13, 1903 111 Win 75–10–13 82–11–15 Tom Carey KO 5 (?) Sep 21, 1903 110 Win/ 74–10–13 81–11–15 Joe Grim NWS 6 Sep 12, 1903 109 Win 74–10–13 80–11–15 Tom Carey KO 8 (15) Aug 13, 1903 108 Win 73–10–13 79–11–15 Mose LaFontise KO 3 (20) Jul 3, 1903 107 Draw 72–10–13 78–11–15 Young Peter Jackson PTS 20 Jun 18, 1903 106 Win 72–10–12 78–11–14 Mysterious Billy Smith TKO 4 (20) May 28, 1903 105 Draw 71–10–12 77–11–14 Philadelphia Jack O'Brien PTS 10 Apr 20, 1903 104 Win 71–10–11 77–11–13 Mike Donovan PTS 10 Apr 15, 1903 103 Draw 70–10–11 76–11–13 Billy Woods PTS 20 Apr 2, 1903 102 Win 70–10–10 76–11–12 George Cole KO 4 (10) Mar 18, 1903 101 Win 69–10–10 75–11–12 Charlie Haghey KO 5 (15) Mar 11, 1903 100 Win 68–10–10 74–11–12 Mike Donovan PTS 10 Mar 9, 1903 99 Loss 67–10–10 73–11–12 Frank Childs TKO 3 (6) Oct 9, 1902 98 NC 67–9–10 73–10–12 George Cole NC 4 (6) Oct 6, 1902 97 Win 67–9–10 73–10–12 Tommy West PTS 15 Jun 23, 1902 96 Loss 66–9–10 72–10–12 George Gardiner PTS 20 Apr 25, 1902 95 Loss/ 66–8–10 72–9–12 Philadelphia Jack O'Brien NWS 6 Apr 11, 1902 94 Draw 66–8–10 72–8–12 Fred Russell PTS 6 Apr 4, 1902 93 Win 66–8–9 72–8–11 Billy Stift PTS 6 Mar 15, 1902 92 Draw 65–8–9 71–8–11 Young Peter Jackson PTS 10 Mar 13, 1902 91 Win 65–8–8 71–8–10 Jimmy Handler KO 2 (6) Feb 14, 1902 90 Win/ 64–8–8 70–8–10 Young Peter Jackson NWS 6 Jan 13, 1902 89 Win 64–8–8 69–8–10 Rube Ferns TKO 5 (20) Dec 18, 1901 88 Win 63–8–8 68–8–10 Young Peter Jackson PTS 20 Nov 28, 1901 87 Loss 62–8–8 67–8–10 Kid Carter KO 7 (?) Oct 15, 1901 86 Win 62–7–8 67–7–10 George Gardiner PTS 20 Sep 27, 1901 85 Win 61–7–8 66–7–10 Jack Bonner PTS 15 Jul 26, 1901 84 Win 60–7–8 65–7–10 Charlie McKeever TKO 6 (20) Mar 21, 1901 83 Loss 59–7–8 64–7–10 Kid Carter DQ 19 (20) Jan 17, 1901 82 Win 59–6–8 64–6–10 Wild Bill Hanrahan KO 12 (?) Dec 13, 1900 81 Win 58–6–8 63–6–10 Mysterious Billy Smith DQ 10 (20) Sep 24, 1900 80 Loss 57–6–8 62–6–10 Tommy West TKO 11 (?) Aug 27, 1900 79 Win/ 57–5–8 62–5–10 Jack Bonner NWS 6 May 11, 1900 78 Win 57–5–8 61–5–10 Mysterious Billy Smith PTS 25 May 4, 1900 77 Win 56–5–8 60–5–10 Dick Moore KO 4 (20) Apr 10, 1900 76 Win 55–5–8 59–5–10 Andy Walsh PTS 20 Mar 29, 1900 75 Win 54–5–8 58–5–10 Joe Choynski TKO 7 (20) Feb 23, 1900 74 Win 53–5–8 57–5–10 Bobby Dobbs KO 6 (20) Dec 5, 1899 73 Win 52–5–8 56–5–10 Dan Creedon PTS 20 Nov 29, 1899 72 Win 51–5–8 55–5–10 Dan Creedon PTS 6 Nov 25, 1899 71 Win 50–5–8 54–5–10 Dan Creedon PTS 20 Jun 23, 1899 70 Win 49–5–8 53–5–10 Harry Fisher TKO 12 (20) Jun 12, 1899 69 Win 48–5–8 52–5–10 Jimmy Watts KO 8 (20) May 30, 1899 68 Win 47–5–8 51–5–10 Dick O'Brien KO 14 (20) May 19, 1899 67 Win 46–5–8 50–5–10 Charley Johnson TKO 10 (15) May 8, 1899 66 Win 45–5–8 49–5–10 Dan Creedon KO 1 (20) Apr 25, 1899 65 Win 44–5–8 48–5–10 Jim Judge KO 11 (20) Apr 8, 1899 64 Win 43–5–8 47–5–10 Australian Billy Edwards KO 13 (20) Mar 16, 1899 63 Win 42–5–8 46–5–10 Australian Jim Ryan KO 14 (15) Feb 4, 1899 62 Loss 41–5–8 45–5–10 Mysterious Billy Smith PTS 20 Dec 6, 1898 61 Win/ 41–4–8 45–4–10 Bob Montgomery NWS 6 Nov 14, 1898 60 Draw 41–4–8 44–4–10 Kid McPartland PTS 8 Apr 28, 1898 59 Win/ 41–4–7 44–4–9 Tommy West NWS 6 Apr 22, 1898 58 Draw 41–4–7 43–4–9 Mysterious Billy Smith PTS 25 Apr 14, 1898 57 Draw 41–4–6 43–4–8 Tom Tracey PTS 6 Dec 27, 1897 56 Loss 41–4–5 43–4–7 George "Kid" Lavigne TKO 12 (20) Oct 29, 1897 55 Win 41–3–5 43–3–7 George "Young Corbett" Green KO 18 (?) Aug 26, 1897 54 Win/ 40–3–5 42–3–7 Tom Tracey NWS 6 Jun 14, 1897 53 Draw 40–3–5 41–3–7 Jimmy Watts PTS 4 Apr 20, 1897 52 Loss 40–3–4 41–3–6 Tommy West PTS 20 Mar 3, 1897 51 Win/ 40–2–4 41–2–6 Bobby Dobbs NWS 6 Jan 16, 1897 50 Draw 40–2–4 40–2–6 Tommy West PTS 19 (20) Dec 9, 1896 49 Win 40–2–3 40–2–5 Scaldy Bill Quinn KO 17 (20) Oct 12, 1896 48 Win 39–2–3 39–2–5 Dick O'Brien PTS 6 Aug 24, 1896 47 Win 38–2–3 38–2–5 Scaldy Bill Quinn PTS 20 May 29, 1896 46 Win 37–2–3 37–2–5 Scott Bright Eyes Collins KO 7 (20) Mar 16, 1896 45 Win 36–2–3 36–2–5 Jim Jackson PTS 4 Jan 30, 1896 44 Win 35–2–3 35–2–5 Teddy McMahon KO 1 (?) Jan 7, 1896 43 Loss 34–2–3 34–2–5 George "Kid" Lavigne PTS 15 Dec 21, 1895 42 Win 34–1–3 34–1–5 Dick O'Brien TKO 1 (25) Aug 28, 1895 41 Win 33–1–3 33–1–5 Mick Dunn TKO 8 (20) Apr 3, 1895 40 Win 32–1–3 32–1–5 Charley Chapman PTS 4 Mar 6, 1895 39 Draw 31–1–3 31–1–5 Mysterious Billy Smith PTS 15 Mar 1, 1895 38 Win 31–1–2 31–1–4 Billy Green KO 2 (?) Nov 15, 1894 37 Win 30–1–2 30–1–4 George Thomas KO 1 (?) Nov 14, 1894 36 Win 29–1–2 29–1–4 Shorty Ahearn KO 3 (?) Nov 3, 1894 35 Win 28–1–2 28–1–4 Frank Neil TKO 3 (3) Nov 2, 1894 34 Win 27–1–2 27–1–4 Frank Carpenter PTS 3 Nov 1, 1894 33 Win 26–1–2 26–1–4 Austin Gibbons KO 4 (10) Oct 15, 1894 32 Win 25–1–2 25–1–4 Jim Bagley KO 2 (?) Sep 20, 1894 31 Win 24–1–2 24–1–4 Dick O'Brien PTS 12 Jul 6, 1894 30 Win 23–1–2 23–1–4 Mike Harris KO 6 (?) Jun 22, 1894 29 22–1–2 22–1–4 Charley Holcombe ND 4 May 10, 1894 28 Win 22–1–2 22–1–4 Tom Tracey TKO 16 (?) Apr 19, 1894 27 Win 21–1–2 21–1–4 Mike Welsh KO 2 (10) Feb 26, 1894 26 Win 20–1–2 20–1–4 Tommy West PTS 3 Jan 11, 1894 25 Win 19–1–2 19–1–4 Ed Russell KO 2 (?) Dec 28, 1893 24 18–1–2 18–1–4 Harry Tracy NC 1 (?) Dec 1, 1893 23 Win 18–1–2 18–1–4 Jack Hall KO 1 (4) Aug 22, 1893 22 Loss 17–1–2 17–1–4 Mike Harris PTS 4 Jun 17, 1893 21 Win 17–0–2 17–0–4 Paddy McGuigan PTS 10 Jun 5, 1893 20 Win 16–0–2 16–0–4 Patrick Conlon TKO 2 (4) Feb 17, 1893 19 Win 15–0–2 15–0–4 Lewllyn Wetzell Brown TKO 3 (4) Feb 17, 1893 18 Win 14–0–2 14–0–4 Thomas Chase TKO 1 (4) Feb 16, 1893 17 Win 13–0–2 13–0–4 Al Hagen TKO 3 (4) Feb 15, 1893 16 Win 12–0–2 12–0–4 William Quinn KO 2 (4) Feb 14, 1893 15 Win 11–0–2 11–0–4 Jack Friesse TKO ? (4) Feb 10, 1893 14 Win 10–0–2 10–0–4 Jim Carroll TKO 1 (?) Feb 9, 1893 13 Win 9–0–2 9–0–4 Harrity KO 3 (?) Feb 2, 1893 12 Win 8–0–2 8–0–4 Tom McCarthy TKO 1 (4) Jan 31, 1893 11 Win 7–0–2 7–0–4 Billy Harris KO 2 (?) Dec 8, 1892 10 Draw 6–0–2 6–0–4 Sam Bolen PTS 4 Dec 5, 1892 9 Win 6–0–1 6–0–3 Jack Connors KO 1 (?) Dec 5, 1892 8 Win 5–0–1 5–0–3 Johnny Lyman KO 1 (?) Nov 12, 1892 7 Win 4–0–1 4–0–3 Charley Jones PTS 3 Nov 11, 1892 6 Win 3–0–1 3–0–3 Stonewall Allen TKO 3 (4) Nov 5, 1892 5 Draw 2–0–1 2–0–3 Harry Tracy PTS 5 Nov 4, 1892 4 Draw/ 2–0 2–0–2 Andy Watson NWS 4 Oct 29, 1892 3 Win 2–0 2–0–1 Joe Jarg PTS 3 Oct 22, 1892 2 Draw/ 1–0 1–0–1 Fred Morris NWS 4 Oct 22, 1892 1 Win 1–0 1–0 Black Pearl PTS 4 Oct 15, 1892 1–0

Boxing honors and achievements