Jack Ortega
Name: Jack Ortega
Hometown: San Jose, California, USA
Pro Boxer: Record
Career and Bio
Jack Ortega grew up around San Jose, California and was born around 1876. He boxed for the San Jose Athletic Club and their Manager (Gibbs) was trying to match him with another middleweight, Al Neill in April of 1900. Ortega was known as "The Pride of San Jose". This was found in the article "Boxing", Oakland Tribune, pg. 8, Oakland, California, 16 August 1900. On March 28, 1899, Ortega was involved in a boxing match with "Nick" Burley in East San Jose, California that ended with guns and knives being drawn by the seconds of both opponents. The fight was called by the referee, who restored order, and gave the ruling to Burley on a foul. Both Ortega and Burley had been giving exhibitions around San Jose. ("Pistols and Knives in a Roped Arena," San Francisco Call, San Francisco, California, pg. 3, 29 March 1899)
On April 9, 1900, Ortega fought Burt Woods for a 20 round draw in San Jose. That April he was training for a fight with a Frank McConnell. ( San Francisco Chronicle, page 8, April 7, 1900.)
Around the age of 24, he was sentenced to life imprisonment for assaulting Grace Gamble, an eleven year old girl on August 26, 1900. He served around twelve years in San Quentin before coming to Panama. He had worked as a prize fighter before his arrest, and had had other scrapes with the law. He had completed Whitier Reform School before his arrest, and was described by the press as having had several of his brothers in trouble with the law. The description of his conviction is best described in the article "Jack Ortega Sentenced to Prison for Life", San Francisco Call, San Francisco, California, pg. 7, Saturday, 1 December 1900. His serving time in San Quentin prior to coming to Panama to box is also covered by "Killing the Goose in the Canal Zone", The Winnipeg Tribune, Winnipeg, Manitoba, pg. 19, Sat, 23 August 1913. In December 1906, he was still in San Quentin when his brother Pat was killed in a shooting at the teamsters Union in San Jose. ("Youngest Ortega is Shot Dead", San Francisco Call, p. 26, 30 Dec 1906.
His time in Panama as a boxer may have been cut short by his advancing age, as he was in his late thirties during his Panamanian boxing career, meeting Abe Hollandersky, roughly around the age of thirty-seven. In Abe Hollandersky's autobiography, he was described as having defeated several boxers in Panama before taking the Panamanian Heavyweight Championship, and having been known as a strong puncher who could take considerable punishment. His late age by the time he began boxing in Panama may explain the difficulty he had in both bouts with Hollandersky who was in his boxing prime and only around twenty-six at the time of their championship matches.
Ortega's arrest on suspicion of fixing his fight with Buck Crouse on August 17, 1913 indicated a troubled past. All ticket receipts paid by check were refunded, for the August 17 fight according to the article, "Crouse in Chain Gang in Panama", The Pittsburgh Press, Pittsburgh, Pensylvannia, pg. 20, 20 August 1913. After Crouse was sentenced to a Chain Gang for three months, the promoters of the fight were released, but Ortega served longer. That law enforcement and the crowd suspected the fight of having been fixed is described in the article, "Buck Crouse in Bad", Altoona Tribune, Altoona, Pennsylvania, pg. 6, 18 August 1913. Abe Hollandersky in his autobiography describes having been present at this fight and that the effects of it on local boxing fans reduced the house receipts for a period in Panamanian boxing.