Nonpareil Jack Dempsey

John Edward Kelly (December 15, 1862 – November 1, 1895) was an Irish-born American boxer, better known as Nonpareil Jack Dempsey, who was the first holder of the World Middleweight Championship (1884–1891). He was nicknamed "Nonpareil" because of his reputation of being unbeatable.

Biography

Dempsey was born on December 15, 1862, in Curragh, County Kildare, Ireland. He claimed the middleweight title on July 30, 1884, by defeating George Fulljames in Great Kills, Staten Island, New York. He held the title for over six years, defending the title against two fighters during the reign.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Fitzsimmons knocks down Dempsey in New Orleans, 1891.

In Dempsey's first 65 contests, he lost only once, in a non-title bout to George LaBlanche (a fighter he had beaten previously to cement his claim as middleweight champion)<ref>Ring Sports Magazine. (Reno, Nevada) April 1994.</ref> via a spinning backfist, a move that was later banned following Dempsey's death. He also faced Billy Baker in a 4-round bout that was fixed to have Baker win, though Baker failed to score a knockout, resulting in a no decision—Baker was later defeated by Dempsey on points in a rematch. His reign as middleweight champion ended when Bob Fitzsimmons pummeled him around the ring and begged him to concede before he was hurt any more. Dempsey, the reigning champion, would not give up; the fight continued and Fitzsimmons knocked him out in round 13. In his final bout, Dempsey, suffering from tuberculosis, lost to Tommy Ryan.

Though Dempsey beat his first battle with tuberculosis, he died at age 32 at the Portland, Oregon, home of his wife's parents on November 1, 1895, due to a recurrence of the disease.<ref>Lenzen, Connie. "Mount Calvary Cemetery; Portland, Oregon", June 1994.</ref> He was buried in an initially unmarked grave at Mount Calvary Cemetery. M. James Brady, Dempsey's father-in-law, refused to permit former World Champion John L. Sullivan and John S. Barnes to raise funds to erect a monument over Dempsey's grave. The family believed that a four-foot marble shaft was a sufficient memorial. The matter was thus dropped.<ref>Tacoma Daily Times, Tacoma, Washington, March 13, 1909.</ref>

Dempsey was inducted into The Ring magazine Hall of Fame in 1954, and into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1992.<ref name=CBZrecord>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Professional boxing record

Template:BoxingRecordSummary All newspaper decisions are regarded as "no decision" bouts as they have "resulted in neither boxer winning or losing, and would therefore not count as part of their official fight record."

Template:Abbr	Result	Record	Opponent	Type	Round	Date	Location	Notes
69	Template:No2Loss	51–3–11 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Tommy Ryan	TKO	3 (15)	Jan 18, 1895	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
68	Template:DrawDraw	51–2–11 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Billy McCarthy	PTS	20	Sep 5, 1895	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
67	Template:Yes2Win	51–2–10 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Billy Keough	PTS	4	Feb 28, 1893	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
66	Template:No2Loss	50–2–10 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Bob Fitzsimmons	RTD	13 (?)	Jan 14, 1891	Template:Flagicon Template:Small	Template:Small
65	Template:Yes2Win	50–1–10 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Billy McCarthy	TKO	28 (?)	Feb 18, 1890	Template:Flagicon Template:Small	Template:Small
64	Template:No2Loss	49–1–10 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon George LaBlanche	KO	32 (?)	Aug 27, 1889	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
63	Template:Yes2Win	49–0–10 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Mike Dempsey	KO	7 (?)	Aug 22, 1889	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
62	Template:DrawDraw	48–0–10 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Mike Donovan	PTS	6	Nov 15, 1888	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
61	Template:Yes2Win	48–0–9 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon James Stevens	PTS	4	Apr 23, 1888	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
60	Template:Yes2Win	47–0–9 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Billy Baker	PTS	10	Feb 18, 1888	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
59	Template:Yes2Win	46–0–9 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Dominick McCaffrey	PTS	10	Jan 31, 1888	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
58	Template:Yes2Win	45–0–9 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon John Reagan	TKO	45 (?)	Dec 13, 1887	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
57	Template:Yes2Win	44–0–9 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Bill Gabig	PTS	4	Nov 5, 1887	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
56	Template:Yes2Win	43–0–9 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Denny Kelliher	PTS	4	Nov 3, 1887	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
55	Template:Yes2Win	42–0–9 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Frank Bosworth	PTS	4	Nov 1, 1887	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
54	Template:Yes2Win	41–0–9 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Ned McCann	PTS	4	Oct 31, 1887	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
53	Template:Yes2Win	40–0–9 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Billy Dacey	PTS	4	Oct 15, 1887	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
52	Template:Yes2Win	39–0–9 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Jim McHugh	PTS	4	Oct 13, 1887	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
51	Template:Yes2Win	38–0–9 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Eddie Reede	PTS	6	Oct 10, 1887	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
50	Template:DrawDraw	37–0–9 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Reddy Gallagher	PTS	6	May 2, 1887	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
49	Template:Abbr	37–0–8 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Billy Baker	ND	4	Apr 9, 1887	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
48	Template:Yes2Win	37–0–8 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Denny Killen	PTS	4	Feb 5, 1887	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
47	Template:Yes2Win	36–0–8 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Jack Langdon	PTS	4	Feb 2, 1887	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
46	Template:Yes2Win	35–0–8 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Mike Boded	PTS	10	Jan 31, 1887	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
45	Template:DrawDraw	34–0–8 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Jack Burke	PTS	10	Nov 22, 1886	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
44	Template:Yes2Win	34–0–7 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Ed Moehler	PTS	4	May 25, 1886	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
43	Template:Yes2Win	33–0–7 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Paddy Norton	TKO	4 (5)	May 20, 1886	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
42	Template:Yes2Win	32–0–7 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Jimmy Ryan	PTS	4	Apr 30, 1886	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
41	Template:Yes2Win	31–0–7 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Charle McCarthy	PTS	4	Apr 28, 1886	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
40	Template:Yes2Win	30–0–7 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Ned McCann	KO	4 (4)	Apr 26, 1886	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
39	Template:Yes2Win	29–0–7 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon George LaBlanche	TKO	13 (?)	Mar 14, 1886	Template:Flagicon Template:Small	Template:Small
38	Template:Yes2Win	28–0–7 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Pete McCoy	PTS	6	Feb 24, 1886	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
37	Template:Yes2Win	27–0–7 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Jack Fogarty	TKO	27 (?)	Feb 2, 1886	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
36	Template:Yes2Win	26–0–7 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Jim Murray	PTS	4	Jan 15, 1886	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
35	Template:Yes2Win	25–0–7 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Tom Henry	PTS	4	Jan 15, 1886	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
34	Template:Abbr	24–0–7 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Mike Donovan	NC	4	Jan 15, 1886	Template:Flagicon Template:Small	Template:Small
33	Template:Yes2Win	24–0–7 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Tom Berry	TKO	6 (10)	Dec 14, 1885	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
32	Template:Yes2Win	23–0–7 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Dave Campbell	KO	3 (8)	Nov 2, 1885	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
31	Template:Yes2Win	22–0–7 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Tom Norton	TKO	4 (6)	Sep 12, 1885	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
30	Template:Yes2Win	21–0–7 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Young Billy Manning	TKO	8 (?)	Aug 29, 1885	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
29	Template:Yes2Win	20–0–7 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Jack Keenan	KO	2 (?)	Jul 20, 1885	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
28	Template:Yes2Win	19–0–7 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Jim Carr	KO	9 (?)	Jun 5, 1885	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
27	Template:Yes2Win	18–0–7 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Tommy Cleary	KO	5 (?)	May 11, 1885	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
26	Template:Yes2Win	17–0–7 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Tom Barry	KO	5 (?)	May 4, 1885	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
25	Template:Yes2Win	16–0–7 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Charles Bixamos	KO	5 (?)	Mar 19, 1885	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
24	Template:Yes2Win	15–0–7 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Jim Fell	PTS	4	Jan 22, 1885	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
23	Template:DrawDraw	14–0–7 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Bill Frazier	PTS	4	Jan 12, 1885	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
22	Template:Yes2Win	14–0–6 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Jimmy Ryan	TKO	4 (4)	Jan 12, 1885	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
21	Win	13–0–6 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon George Wilson	NWS	4	Dec 15, 1884	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
20	Template:Yes2Win	13–0–6 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Mike Malone	TKO	2 (?)	Nov 30, 1884	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
19	Template:Yes2Win	12–0–6 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Bill Frazier	TKO	5 (?)	Nov 20, 1884	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
18	Template:Yes2Win	11–0–6 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Tom Ferguson	PTS	4	Nov 6, 1884	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
17	Template:Yes2Win	10–0–6 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Tom Henry	PTS	6	Oct 24, 1884	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
16	Template:Yes2Win	9–0–6 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Bob Turnbull	PTS	8	Oct 8, 1884	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
15	Template:DrawDraw	8–0–6 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Jimmy Ryan	PTS	7	Sep 15, 1884	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
14	Template:Yes2Win	8–0–5 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Mike Dempsey	KO	7 (?)	Sep 4, 1884	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
13	Template:Yes2Win	7–0–5 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon George Fulljames	TKO	21 (?)	July 30, 1884	Template:Flagicon Template:Small	Template:Small
12	Template:DrawDraw	6–0–5 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Tom Henry	PTS	4	Jul 8, 1884	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
11	Template:DrawDraw	6–0–4 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Jack Hayes	PTS	6	Apr 25, 1884	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
10	Template:Yes2Win	6–0–3 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Bill Dacey	TKO	9 (?)	Mar 6, 1884	Template:Flagicon Template:Small	Template:Small
9	Template:Yes2Win	5–0–3 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Tommy Sullivan	PTS	2	Mar 4, 1884	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
8	Template:Yes2Win	4–0–3 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Joe Hennesey	PTS	4	Mar 2, 1884	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
7	Template:Yes2Win	3–0–3 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Jim Barry	TKO	3 (4)	Feb 28, 1884	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
6	Template:Yes2Win	2–0–3 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Jim Fell	PTS	2	Feb 14, 1884	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
5	Template:DrawDraw	1–0–3 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Joe Heiser	PTS	8	Feb 10, 1884	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
4	Template:Yes2Win	1–0–2 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon William Mahoney	KO	3 (?)	Jan 15, 1884	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
3	Template:DrawDraw	0–0–2 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Bob Turnbull	PTS	7 (4)	Oct 25, 1883	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
2	Template:DrawDraw	0–0–1 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Tom McAlpine	PTS	4	Sep 17, 1883	Template:Flagicon Template:Small
1	Template:Abbr	0–0 Template:Small	Template:Flagicon Harry Force	NC	11 (?)	Sep 3, 1883	Template:Flagicon Template:Small	Template:Small

External links

• Template:Boxrec
• Template:Find a Grave

Template:S-start Template:S-ach |- Template:S-non Template:S-ttl Template:S-aft Template:S-end