Ray Gadsby, fighter of the 1930's

rjpward · Post by **rjpward** » 24 Sep 2006, 03:39

I have a bunch of old issues of The Spindrift. the newsletter of the U.S. Navy Pre-Flight School in Iowa City. My father was stationed there during WWII. The Apr. 9, 1943 issue features a Lt. Raymond Gadsby, who I take to be the Ray Gadsby listed in your database with one fight, which he won, in 1930. According to the Spindrift info, he fought 55 professional fights, winning all but 2, before retiring in 1933 to pursue his education. Sorry I can't offer any specifics on his bouts.

R. Ward

Ric · Post by **Ric** » 24 Sep 2006, 11:58

Info added to his bio. Do you have any other biographical information we could add to his record: date and place of birth, whatever became of him, etc.
http://www.boxrec.com/media/index.php/B ... sby:103962

rjpward · Post by **rjpward** » 24 Sep 2006, 12:33

The article refers to him as a Philadelphia native, though whether the city itself or the area, I don't know. Probably the city, as he "won the city featherweight championship in his first tournament." In all, he had 85 amateur bouts, going 78-7. He was the featherweight on the 1928 Olympic team In Amsterdam, toured with other boxers in Germany and France after the games, and began his pro career after his return to the States. The article does not specify that he remained a featherweight as a pro, but I would guess he did.
After quitting the pro ring he attended Villanova, obtaining his degree in 1939. When WWII broke out, he went to Annapolis for pre-flight training. He was involved with soccer in addition to boxing, and served as coach for both sports, and as a trainer, in both institutions, as well as elsewhere. At the time of the article he was stationed at Iowa City and was serving as head of the boxing department there. He had recently been promoted to lieutenant.
The Social Security Death Index lists only one person with this name, born on Sept. 27, 1908 and died in Feb. 1979. Last residence is given as Levittown, PA.
Thanks for your interest. Sorry if this went on longer than you wanted.

Ric · Post by **Ric** » 24 Sep 2006, 12:52

We can never have "too much" information.

Do you have a photo of him, preferable boxing-related, we can add to his bio?

rjpward · Post by **rjpward** » 25 Sep 2006, 20:10

Sorry, but there's no photo. Just a drawing of him from the neck up, in uniform. I'll look through other issues to see if any photo of him shows up, but I have my doubts.

Thanks for your response and your work on the site.

rjpward · Post by **rjpward** » 25 Sep 2006, 20:22

One small correction: when I said he also coached football, I should have said soccer. I think that's the same for you, but my mistake could cause some confusion. While he did some coaching in American football, his main experience other than boxing was with soccer.