Boxing as a featherweight, he gained quite a bit of experience from 1933 to 1935, fighting 46 times, mostly in California and Mexico. He also continued his ministry as an assistant pastor of the First Baptist Church. Armstrong won three world titles at three weight classes. March 4, 1939: Armstrong successfully defends the NBA and The Ring welterweight titles against Bobby Pacho, winning the fight via 4th round TKO. He is considered to be one of the greatest boxers who lived on Earth. Armstrong, at 133+12 pounds, beat Ross, at 142 pounds, by unanimous decision, adding the World Welterweight Championship to his belt. Retrieved February 23, 2023 from Encyclopedia.com: https://www.encyclopedia.com/history/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/henry-armstrong. Pulled from our recent Q\u0026A with Teddy Atlas, Teddy shares why Henry Armstrong is the greatest boxer of all time. For more details about these defeats, refer to "All of Henry Armstrong's losses". The next year was an incredible one for Armstrong as he fought 27 times -- and won all of them. Herb Goldman ranked Armstrong as the #4 All-Time Lightweight; He was inducted into the Ring Boxing Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography. Armstrong retired from professional boxing with a record of 151-22-10, which included 100 knockout wins and two losses via knockout, and three title wins. In 1936, entertainer Al Jolson and actor George Raft underwrote the purchase of Armstrong's managerial contract from Edward Mead.Armstrong knocked out Petey Sarron in six rounds in 1937 to win the World Featherweight Championship, and was named "The Ring Fighter of the Year in 1937. Up to 1937, Armstrong compiled a record of 52-10. Henry has been found in 17 states including Virginia, North Carolina, Missouri, Kansas, California. WHAT MAKES A GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS TITLE? Info Share. After the decision was announced, the second fight started; both managers and the New York State Athletic Commission were the participants. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. . Its my first time in front of all my friends and family, so Im excited, he said. Henry Armstrong, original name Henry Jackson, (born December 12, 1912, Columbus, Mississippi, U.S.died October 24, 1988, Los Angeles, California), American boxer, the only professional boxer to hold world championship titles in three weight divisions simultaneously. #GreatestOfAllTime#HenryArmstrong#TeddyAtlas navcontributeover.src = "/i/sportscentury/nav_contribute_over.gif"; After that, he concentrated once again on defending the world Welterweight title. Name: Henry Armstrong Alias: Homicide Hank Birth Name: Henry Jackson Hometown: Los Angeles, California, USA Birthplace: Columbus, Mississippi, USA Died: 1988-10-23 (Age:78) Stance: Orthodox Height: 166cm Reach: 170cm Promoter: Record Referee: Record Pro Boxer: Record Amateur Boxer: Record In January 1935 he lost to Arizmendi for a second time. He met the minimum weight by upping his calorie intake, drinking beer the days before the bout and a lot of water on the day of weigh-in. On May 31, 1938, he took the welterweight (147-pound) championship from Barney Ross by decision, and, on August 17 of that year, he defeated Lou Ambers by decision to win the lightweight (135-pound) title. Armstrong had his first world title fight at the age of 24 on October 29, 1937 after 93 professional fights, against Petey Sarron for the featherweight NBA and The Ring titles. After retiring from boxing, Armstrong became an ordained Baptist minister, working with disadvantaged youth. He was a Black boxer. Taking the name Melody Jackson, Armstrong won his first amateur fight at the St. Louis Coliseum in 1929, by a knockout in the second round. Please be sure to subscribe! Having gained the fame and fortune that was his goal as a young man working on the railroad, Armstrong was able to produce and star in an autobiographical movie, Keep Punching, released in 1939. Henry Armstrong, born Henry Jackson, decided to become a boxer after reading in a St. Louis newspaper that Kid Chocolate had beaten Al Singer at the Polo Grounds in New York, and was paid a purse of $75,000.At the "colored" YMCA on Pine Street in St. Louis, he met an older fighter named Harry Armstrong, who became his friend, mentor, and trainer. Born Henry Jackson on Dec. 12, 1912, in Columbus, Miss., he was the 11th of 15 children. He defeated Sarron via 6th round KO to become the featherweight champion of the world. Henry R Armstrong in 1940 United States Federal Census Henry R Armstrong was born circa 1887, at birth place, Connecticut, to John Birracase. On March 1, 1940, in Los Angeles, Armstrong sought to become the first-ever four-division champion when he attempted to wrest the middleweight crown from Ceferino Garcia, whom he had decisioned in a welterweight defense in 1938. Henry Jackson was born in Columbus, MS. African-American Sports Greats: A Biographical Dictionary. Standing five feet five and one half inches tall, Armstrong fought in the featherweight class. He died of heart failure on October 22, 1988 in Los Angeles. That didn't surprise anybody in boxing. You may want to start by searching for a person's Military Service Records and Pension and Bounty Land records. Armstrong appeared on the TV game show I've Got a Secret with his simultaneous triple championship as his secret. Therefore, that information is unavailable for most Encyclopedia.com content. Garraty, John A. and Mark C. Carnes, American National Biography, Volume 1. As a child, Henry Jr. moved with his family to St. Louis, Missouri, during the early period of the Great Migration of African Americans from the rural South to industrial cities of the Midwest and North. These 11 fights are the highlight of his career. Floyd Patterson was born on January 4, 1935 in Waco, North Carolinathe third of 11 children. Although Armstrong was outweighed by at least 15 pounds by Ross, he dominated their fight in Madison Square Garden, pounding the champion unmercifully for 11 rounds. Armstrong had his cornermen remove his mouthpiece so he could swallow the blood flowing in his mouth the last five rounds. var navpostcardcold = new Image(); Ill prepared and undernourished, Armstrong lost his first professional fight by a knockout. However, the date of retrieval is often important. [11] In February 1966, Rev. Definitely one of the goals I had in mind, so itll be a good time, to bring everybody out.. There he became involved in boxing. Over the course of his career, Armstrong earned more than $1 million. His first win came later that year, beating Sammy Burns by a decision in six. (You will need to register / login for access). After his death, his heart was found to be one-third larger than average. Ross was favored by odds makers three to one over Armstrong; however, when the two met in Long Island City on May 31, 1938, Armstrong won convincingly on points in 15 rounds, earning his second title, Welterweight Champion of the World. Hall of Fame in 1954 and the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1990. Oxford University Press, 1999. ESPN ranked Armstrong as number 3 on their list of the 50 greatest boxers of all time. To view the purposes they believe they have legitimate interest for, or to object to this data processing use the vendor list link below. He is currently ranked by BoxRec as the 12th-greatest pound-for-pound fighter of all time. 2019Encyclopedia.com | All rights reserved. But the tides turned later in the year when he won against former flyweight champion Midget Wolgast. The Boxing Writers Association of America (BWAA) named him Fighter of the Year in 1940. During the fight Armstrong suffered an eye injury that required surgery. if (document.images) A few notable opponents of that year include Ritchie Fontaine, Baby Arizmendi, former world champion Juan Zurita, and Mike Belloise. For a full list of record titles, please use our Record Application Search. When the promoters postponed the bout for 10 days, Armstrong accepted Joe Louis's invitation to train at Pompton Lakes, New Jersey, with Louis paying for all expenses. Armstrong made his debut against Al Lovino at the age of 18 on July 27, 1931, losing to Lovino via 3rd round KO. He lost by knockout only two times in his 15 years of boxing. Want more WLBT news in your inbox? Birth 22 Sep 1768 . out - if he didn't manage that, he certainly battered him thoroughly Al Silvani. //agent orange compensation amounts,