Willie Eley

Name: Willie Eley
Hometown: New Salem, Pennsylvania, USA
Died: 1938-08-13
Stance: Orthodox
Pro Boxer: Record
Amateur Boxer: Record

"Kingston, Jamaica, B.W.I. - Knocked down twice in the last minute of a ten round fight here on August 12, Willie Eley, New York middleweight, died in a local hospital early Saturday morning. He was fighting Buzz Barton of Jamaica, who floored the American for a count of nine, then knocked him down again. Dazed, but still game, Eley rose again and the referee stopped the fight.

Eley, 24, termed himself the Negro welterweight champion of the world until Henry Armstrong won that title. He was a resident of Harlem and had been a popular fighter at Rockland Palace and other neighborhood fight clubs. Last winter, he suffered an attack of pneumonia but returned to the ring late in the spring.

His last appearance in New York was at the Coney Island Stadium a month ago against Mike "Kid" Frattini. He was a veteran of 55 fights and was under management of Harry Levy and Clarence Smith."

- New York Age, Saturday, August 20, 1938