By Michael Blackett
In the small village of Beeston, Norfolk on the 8th of April 1831 a child was born at around twelve Noon who would in later years become The Heavyweight Champion of the world.
Jems life story is a complex and controversial one, it’s said he fathered 14 children by 5 women, married 3 times (committing bigamy twice) and more than once failed to turn up to fights and got fined for doing so. He also advertised the wearing of Boxing gloves when he retired and traveled the globe and was responsible for finding fighters such as Bob Fitzsimmons and he also worked and became friends with Larry Foley. Although referred to as Gypsy, Jem Mace denied any Romany ancestry in his autobiography.
Jem Mace
Jem was born in a small laborers cottage on the Wyndham Estate to his father William and Mother Ann. He developed quickly, he walked from the age of 6 months and began fighting and wrestling with his cousin Pooley Mace and little did they know that in those early days of fighting it would end up taking Jem across the globe in his pursuit of his pugilistic exploits.
His life would have been so different had he followed in his grandfathers and father’s trade as a blacksmith. At the age of 12 Jem damaged his hand, some say intentionally rather than continuing his job as a smithy but weather this is was an accident or not things were about to change.
Jem had already seen his first bareknuckle fight at the age of 10 when he visited a local barn used by organizers to entertain the public on Saturday nights. He became intoxicated with the smell and the sounds of a bareknuckle fight along with the prospect of having the choice of the prettiest women in town should he win he vowed that one day he would be up there fighting himself.
He started fighting the local boys in his town from around the age of 14. Jem didn’t win many but he learned to get up and keep trying. Eventually he beat them all in rematches as his fighting skills and determination improved. He visited the local fairs where he played the violin to earn extra cash as well as fighting, taking on all comers. It was at one of these fairs that Nat Langham spotted Jem after beat up three men who had smashed his violin, Langham took him on as an apprentice fighter on $2 a week in his traveling fair. Langham himself was regarded as one of the best middleweight fighters of his day and also the only man ever to beat Tom Sayers. Jem learned how to slip punches using his great footwork and he also possessed a great jab and enough power to knock someone out cold.
In 1855 Jem won his first reported pro fight against John Slack for the sum of $5. The fight was over in 9 rounds lasting a total of 19 minutes. Weighing in at around 164 pounds and only 5ft 9 ½, he often had to give away weight and height to find opponents worthy of his skill.
After a win against a young aristocrat Jem was introduced to a man who would be responsible for the biggest change the art of bareknuckles boxing had ever seen and unfortunately its demise. His name was John Douglas who would become the new lord Drumlaig and the ninth Marquess of Queensbury.
Moving to London was a eye opener for Jem and with it his opponents were a lot tougher than he’d been used to. He defeated a fighter with a reputation called Bill Thorpe in 17 rounds in a brutal fight which left Thorpe beaten up so bad that he’d never fight again. It wasn’t all plain sailing for Jem though as his character was called into question more than once. He failed to turn upto fights, conceded some and his seriousness for the fight game was questioned more than once..
On the 13th of June 1861 he regained his reputation as a great fighter by beating Sam Hurst and with it the title of Champion of England, it took Jem 40 minutes to win in 8 rounds. He then defended the title the following year against Tom King but lost against King in his next fight. His next fights comprised of a win and a draw against Joe Goss, after his win against Goss an estimated 10,000 people met him at Lime Street station and carried him through the streets on their shoulders. He also drew a fight against Joe Coburn. And in1865, the organizers of the Liverpool Olympics, invited Mace to become the boxing instructor at the Liverpool Gymnasium.
In 1867 Mace was arrested on the night before his scheduled title defense against Ned O’Baldwin. He was bound over in court not to fight again and because of this he decided to go to the United States to continue his fighting.
Jem arrived in the US in 1869 and was greeted by John Heenan who realized the potential to earn money by getting Mace to fight exhibition bouts. This was fine for Jem to make extra cash but he wanted big fights and the man he had his sights on was the American champion Tom Allen. Even though Allen was also English he held the American heavyweight title. The prize money was $2,500 and after a hard fought battle, Jem won in 10 rounds lasting 44 minutes. Jem was a much more accomplished wrestler and after he threw Allen to the ground and landed on him heavily, he was taken to his corner with the crowd on their feet thinking Allen had broken his neck but his injury was not as serious as it appeared but it was enough for Allen’s cornermen to toss up the sponge to end the fight. The fight was also for the heavyweight championship of the world.
Mace vs Allen 1870. For the American and World Heavyweight title.
This is the summary of the fight as printed in the New York Times.
St. Louis, New Orleans. “There were people in both hemispheres who thought that Tom Allen was really a great fighter until that memorable May 10, 1870, when he met Jem Mace, at St. Louis, to fight for $2,500 a-side and the Championship of the World. Allen was ten years younger but in forty-four minutes Mace, the veteran, hit his antagonist to pieces and justified his claim to be the world champion. Mace had turned forty.”
I doubt whether any man ever had such a thrashing as Tom had that day; but he took his gruel like a hero and proved that, so far as gameness went, he was as good a man as his friends had made him out to be, though his scientific attainments were not much more than third-rate.
By 1871 Jem was the owner of a pub and restaurant but controversy followed his fights, one planned fight with Joe Coburn was over before it had begun as police stopped the fight going ahead so a new date was set for June 2nd in Kansas City. The fight will be remembered for all the wrong reasons as Coburn failed to turn up and Mace was awarded to prize money regardless. It didn’t seem to faze Jem as that very night he and Allen put on a exhibition bout in the Walnut Street Theatre. It was third time lucky for the planned fight as on November the 30th they did meet up and Jem retained his titles after a draw was declared in the 12th round and after fighting for 3hrs 38 minutes.
Joe Coburn
Jems globetrotting tour continued with a visit to Sydney, Australia in 1877. He met up with Larry Foley who as well as being a renowned prizefighter himself, Foley also ran a boxing academy known locally as the Iron Pot. Jem eventually opened his own academy in Melbourne and also took over a hotel in Flemington with an American prizefighter called Jack Thompson. Mace helped to set up a fight between Foley and Abe Hicken and after a convincing win for Foley it turned out to be the last official bareknuckle fight in Australia as all future boxing fights would be fought under the Queensbury Rules.
Jem then Visited New-Zealand in 1880 and it was he who is credited with finding the future world champion Bob Fitzsimmons. Regular organized tournaments took place as well as exhibitions. He returned in 1882 and had over 60 exhibition fights. It also was at this time that that Fitzsimmons beat a man 85 pounds heavier called Herbert Slade.
Meanwhile in 1882 in America, a certain John L.Sullivan beat Paddy Ryan, Jem used his influence to get a fight between Slade even though he was well beaten by Fitzsimmons. Slade was put into exhibitions in America and England to get him into shape but despite all this training Sullivan thrashed him in 3 rounds before police stopped the fight at Madison Square Gardens, New York. Sullivan toured the US on a large scale tour and wore gloves in all these bouts, this is after Jem had advised Sullivan on the benefits of using gloves as he didn’t have to be careful of his hands so much under the Queensbury rules.
Jem returned to England where he continued giving exhibitions. A fighter called Charlie Mitchel got fed up with Jems continued criticism of the English fighters at the time and eventually agreed to fight Jem for the English heavyweight title. It was to be fought over six, two minute rounds wearing 6 ounce gloves. Jem was approaching 60 at the time and after 4 rounds he was beaten by the younger man, before the police interviened.
After even more exhibitions as well as talks on the benefits of wearing gloves in the US, he worked for a Liverpool boxing club in 1897 at the age of 66 and even managed to travel to South Africa yet again in exhibitions. At the age of 73 he refereed a boxing tournament at the Theatre Royal. Its even reported that at the age of 78 Jem was giving boxing exhibitions. Jem had earned an estimated $250,000 in his career, also most was squandered on women and his celebrity lifestyle. He was regarded by many as the father of modern scientific boxing.
For having led such a thrilling and exciting lifestyle Jem ended up busking to earn money in the streets of Jarrow, Tyne and wear and in 1910 he sadly passed away.
Below is what the death certificate said;
November 30th: Died at 6 Princes Street, Jarrow (Co. Durham). James Mace, male. 79 years….of no occupation. Cause of death: senile decay, certified by W. M. Jennings MRCS. Present at death and informant: Norah Le Neve, cousin*, Pitt Heap, Jarrow. Death registered second December 1910.
Jem was buried in an umarked grave with no headstone except for the markings 594.
In 2002 Jems remains were transferred to the MacMillin plot at Anfield Cemetery, the ex-Liverpool boxers association raised the money for the new headstone and the belt which Jem won against Sam Hurst in 1861 was sold, it spent time at Madison Square Gardens ring museum in New York before ending up at the Sussex Ex-Boxers Association archive.
A fitting and apt headstone to Jem Mace.
A lifesize statue of Mace v Allen in Louisiana which was erected in 1987.
