The Daily Inter Ocean called it a ?disgraceful affair? where Hattie ?knocked out her opponent,? who was ?not so good looking now??
On September 25, 1892,126 years ago today, Hattie Leslie, the first female boxing champion in the U.S., was found dead in her hotel room while on tour in Milwaukee. The cause of death was typhoid pneumonia. She was 23.
A theatrical performer, wrestler, and bare-knuckle boxer, the lady known as the ?Female John L. Sullivan? was described by the Buffalo Express as ?a well-built woman with a strong pair of arms,? with looks that were ?far from homely.?
The first advertised sporting bout between female fighters in the U.S was held just outside Buffalo, New York, on Sunday morning, September 16, 1888, on a remote strip of land in the Niagara River called Navy Island. Some of Buffalo?s finest sporting men, including Billy Baker, heavyweight champion of Buffalo and Hattie?s husband, organized the bout to crown the first female boxing champion of the world. The winner of the fight between Hattie Leslie, the 20-year-old bruiser from Buffalo, and 24-year-old Alice Leary, the veteran from Bradford, Pennsylvania, would receive a cash prize of $250, in addition to the adulation of fans.
Both women were undefeated. Hattie had been fighting for three years and her record was 34-0 with 29 knockouts. Alice had been fighting for five years. Her record was 52-0 with 47 KOs. The National Police Gazette described Hattie as a ?tall, powerful specimen of humanity? a good-looking brunette? who ?[did] not appear tough.? According to the Buffalo Evening News, Hattie stood at 5-foot-10 and weighed 168 pounds. Leary was taller at 6 feet, but weighed 20 pounds less at 148. The Cincinnati Inquirer grudgingly called the fighters ?female brutes,? but praised Alice for being ?very hard with her fists.? She was also ?more quarrelsome? than her opponent.
The fight was supposed to be bare-knuckle, but the promoters pulled a fast one and convinced the fighters to wear gloves when they fought.
They wore ?driving kids, lined with a thin coating of flannel,? reported the National Police Gazette. ?The ends of the fingers and thumb were clipped, and the cording was taken out to avoid cutting the faces of the fighters.?
A reporter for the Daily Inter Ocean said the fight was ?disgusting,? but he couldn?t contain his glee.
?Hattie wore white tights and a sleeveless shirt, and Alice had on black ones,? he wrote. The fighters ?slogged each other in regular male professional style?The women fought like tigresses at times, but no foul blows.?
Leary took charge at the opening bell. She dropped Hattie with a right hand for an eight-count in the fourth. She also broke Hattie?s nose in that round and drew first blood. Hattie went down again in the fifth. Her corner wanted her to quit, but Hattie wouldn?t hear it. She jabbed her way back into the fight in round six and twice floored Alice in the seventh. As the round was drawing to a close, Hattie landed a right to jaw and Alice went down a final time.
?After the fight both made their toilets, came back to Buffalo, and had their disfigured faces and bodies attended to by physicians.?
It was a good fight. But not everyone was amused.
The Daily Inter Ocean wrote that it was a ?disgraceful affair? where Hattie ?knocked out her opponent,? who was ?not so good looking now.?
The New York Times called it a ?disgraceful prize fight,? adding that ?Both women presented a disgusting picture.?
With all the good press, the law couldn?t be far behind. The police tried and failed to find Alice Leary. But Hattie was arrested and later released. According to the Chicago Tribune, the District Attorney condemned the male defendants who ?incited? the ?women to compete.? He said they ?must have forgotten the women that bore them. They must have forgotten that their mother was a woman, and I trust as an outcome of this affair that these men shall be severely punished at the hands of the law, and never again can it be said that men can get together and pollute the honor of womenkind.?
Hattie fought to the bloody end. She challenged all comers, men and women alike, but few wanted to tangle with Hattie Leslie.
