Talk:Jack Burke
Biography by Harold Alderman
John (Jack) Burke was born in Killarney, Co. Kerry on 10 September 1861. He was brought to London as an infant and educated at St Joseph's Catholic Academy. He was apprenticed in the glass blowing trade, his father having such a business in Lambeth. Jack was a good sculler, winning a match when only 15. He then turned to amateur boxing, joining the Broad Street Gymnasium, but went back to rowing and indeed rowed for money. He returned to amateur boxing winning the German Gymnastics Club Amateur Middleweight Competition. However, he was then banned from entering the Queensbury Championship (the forerunner of the Amateur Boxing Association Championship) as he had rowed professionally. English Middleweight Champion
Burke then turned to professional boxing, making his debut on 12 February 1881 when he beat Jem Gaiger on the Hackney Marshes under London Prize Ring rules (bare knuckles) for £20. The bout lasted 35 minutes. On 29 June 1883 in Manchester he lost on points over 3 rounds in the final of "Jem Mace's English Heavyweight Championship Belt Competition" in a bout he seemed to have won easily. Just a month before at Bob Habbijams West End School of Arms, Newman Street, off Oxford Street, he had won the English Middleweight Championship Competition, beating Jack Massey on points over 3 rounds, thus claiming the English/British Middleweight title.
Burke fought all the top men in England, heavyweights as well as middleweights, including Alf Greenfield of Birmingham, in the final of the Heavyweight competition above mentioned, and Charlie Mitchell, also of Birmingham, with whom he drew over 6 rounds (bare knuckles) on 16 June 1881 on Ascot Heath. In May 1883 he travelled to the US, staying there until 1887 and fighting all the top heavy and middleweights. He fought, for example, 4 more draws with fellow Englishman Charlie Mitchell and also drew with Jake Kilraw. On 2 March 1885 he beat Alf Greenfield, another old English opponent, over 5 rounds with gloves at Chicago. He met him again on 23 March when the result was a draw.
Fights with John L. Sullivan, Jack Dempsey, and `Gentleman Jim' Corbett
Burke received a forfeit from Dominick McCaffrey, but lost on points over five rounds to the great John L. Sullivan (`The Boston Strong Boy'), then considered World Heavyweight Champion, in Chicago on 13 June 1885. On 23 November 1885 he was pitted against Mike Cleary in a glove contest at San Francisco - after 5 rounds the police interfered and a draw was declared. However, Burke won the re-match in 3 rounds on 28 December in Chicago. Drew with `Jack Dempsey', `The Nonpareil' (real name John Kelly, born Co. Kildare, 15 December 1862), World Middleweight champion, over 10 rounds. On 27 August 1887 Burke lost on points over 8 rounds to the future World Heavyweight Champion James J. Corbett (`Gentleman Jim') although this is sometimes recorded as a draw.
Burke left the US for Australia in October 1887 and boxed exhibitions in Honolulu en route. He arrived in Sydney on 24 November 1887. He drew with Larry Foley, Australia's famous father of boxing. Subsequently he knocked out Peter Newton, claimant to the Australian Middleweight title, but drew and lost to Frank `Paddy' Slavin, an Australian and a future claimant to the World Heavyweight title. He also drew and then won against Wolf Bendorf of England. In New Zealand he beat their Heavyweight Champion Harry Laing. Subsequently, he returned to the US and on 4 May 1890 in Tacoma, Washington, won two bouts on the same night!
Retirement and `Comeback' in South Africa
In England, Burke fought holder Ted Pritchard for his British/English Middleweight title on 12 March 1891, but was knocked out in 3 rounds. The bout was at 11 stone (154 lb). A benefit was held for Burke on 12 April 1891 at the Washington Music Hall, Battersea and in May 1891 he announced his retirement from boxing. However, in late 1893 he went to South Africa and there made a comeback, going on tour with Patsy Donovan as his sparring partner.
After giving an exhibition with South Africa's then most famous boxer James Couper, Jack `fought' two fake fights with the Australian Owen Sullivan, losing both by so-called knockouts, the first in 6 rounds, the second in 7. He sailed from Cape Town for England on 5 September 1894, virtually being hounded out of town because of the fake fights, after which he had tried to make a living as a bookmaker.
Death and Burial at Norwood
Back in England, after a few exhibition bouts Burke took over the Florence Tavern, Islington, on 1 November 1895, but left in November 1896. He developed peritonitis after catching a chill whilst on a cycle tour. He underwent an operation, but died at the Bellevue Hotel, Cheltenham at 4 pm on Tuesday 29 June 1897. He left a wife, a daughter, and also a sister. His brother-in-law was Mr J. Leftwick of Stepney.
Burke claimed the English/British and World middleweight championships. He also claimed `517 bouts, a world record', but his traced bouts are nowhere near that number. However, he was truly a great fighter. His career covered the bare-knuckle era and glove fights under Marquess of Queensbury rules. The two fixed bouts with Owen Sullivan were completely out of character for Burke, who was otherwise known as an honest and fearless fighter.
Burke was buried at Norwood on Monday 5 July 1897 from 13 Hemberton Road, off Mayflower Road, Clapham. After his death a fund was started to erect a memorial to him. This closed on 29 September 1897 with £70 collected. An old opponent, Charlie Mitchell, when donating £5 at the beginning of September, had stated that if enough money was not collected, he personally would pay to have a memorial erected `by Christmas'. Clearly the enterprise was brought to a successful conclusion because the monument is intact (grave 27,515, square 120) except that the railings have been removed. A photograph showing the railings does survive, however, in the Cemetery office.
The monument is the large granite obelisk next to the tombstone of Burke's fellow Claphamite and former pugilist, Tom King (grave 22,559, square 120). The death of Burke's daughter, Florence Gertrude Armitage ( -1915), a passenger in the Lusitania when it was torpedoed off the coast of Ireland on 7 May 1915, is also recorded on the monument.