This four-volume reference work covers the history, records and lore of boxers and boxing. Part I, the longest section, presents alphabetical entries of bare knuckle boxers, and the transitional and Queensberry Rules eras (with more than 2,600 fighters from the latter). Each entry includes dates of birth and death, place of birth, nicknames, a list of fights, and career statistics. Part II covers non-boxers, including referees, promoters, publicists, managers, trainers, cut men, announcers and others. Part III contains records of world title bouts from 1878 through 2010. Part IV lists various records and champions, both amateur and professional, including the all-time leaders in many statistical categories. Part V describes the organization of the sport, tracing the history of weight divisions, world titles and halls of fame. Part VI is an overview of boxing in history and culture (champions of ancient Greece, equipment, gymnasiums, radio and television, literature, drama, the arts, etc.). An appendix offers a timeline of boxing and a bibliography concludes the work.

Herbert G. Goldman is a former editor of The Ring, Boxing Illustrated and Boxing Digest, and the award-winning author of several books. A theatrical researcher at Packard Humanities Institute, he lives in New York.

Herbert G. Goldman

Format: softcover (8.5 x 11 in 4 vols.)
Pages: 1752
Bibliographic Info: appendix, bibliography
Copyright Date: 2012
pISBN: 978-0-7864-6054-0
eISBN: 978-1-4766-0254-7
Imprint: McFarland

VOLUME 1
Acknowledgments      vi
Preface      1

Part I. The Boxers      3
Bare Knuckle Era, 1791–1880      5
Transitional Era, 1870s–1880s      19
Queensberry Rules Era, 1895–Present (Ada–Gallagher)      27

VOLUME 2
Queensberry Rules Era, 1895–Present (Galloway–O’Brien)      455

VOLUME 3
Queensberry Rules Era, 1895–Present (O’Brien–Zyglewicz)      913
Women Boxers      1326

Part II. Registries of Other Personnel      1333
Referees      1335
Managers      1346
Judges      1339
Trainers      1350
Timekeepers      1341
Cut Men      1352
Promoters      1341
Ring Announcers      1353
Matchmakers      1344
Ringside Commentators      1353
Booking Agents      1345
Historians      1354
Publicists      1345
Record Keepers and Compilers      1354

VOLUME 4
Part III. World Title Bouts      1355

Part IV. Records and Champions      1479
All-Time Professional Leaders      1481
Miscellaneous Queensberry Records      1491
Professional Champions      1500
Amateur Champions      1624

Part V. The Organization of the Sport      1651
Weight Divisions and World Titles      1653
U.S. Association of Boxing Commissions (ABC)      1664
Boxers Associations      1666
Halls of Fame      1667

Part VI. Boxing in History and Culture      1673
Olympic Champions of Ancient Greece      1675
A Brief History of Boxing      1676
Boxing Demographics      1680
Equipment and Equipment Makers      1682
Selected Boxing Venues and Gymnasiums      1683
Boxing Broadcasts on Radio and Television      1689
Literature, Stage, Screen and the Arts      1697

Appendix: Timeline of Boxing History      1705
Bibliography      1721

“Recommended”—Choice; “recommended”—Library Journal; “Goldman…has created a resource full of detailed information and provides a handy reference set that will be valued by both devoted fans and serious historians”—Against the Grain; “presents alphabetical entries on about 2,600 boxers from 1791 to the present”—SciTech Book News; “excellent…elegantly done”—Doghouseboxing.com.