Johnny Kilbane

Holding the world featherweight boxing championship for more than 11 years, Johnny Kilbane’s name became synonymous with the title. His accepted record of 51–4–7, with 78 no decisions and two no contests (25 victories by way of knockout), put him in elite company with other members of the International Boxing Hall of Fame.
In October 1917—while still World Featherweight Champion—Johnny Kilbane became a lieutenant in the U.S. Army to serve in World War I. Following his career as fighter, he turned to adjudication and transformed himself into a talented and prolific boxing referee. He did so while juggling other responsibilities such as operating a gym, serving in the Ohio Senate, or acting as Clerk of the Cleveland Municipal Court. As dedicated to public service as he was to pugilism, he gained the respect of his peers and his constituents and was admired for his commitment to family. This is his biography.

Mark Allen Baker, business executive and author of hundreds of articles and more than 30 books, is the only person to serve the International Boxing Hall of Fame as an author, historian, chairperson, sponsor, volunteer and biographer. He was accorded a Lifetime Award of Merit by the State University of New York in 2022, and inducted into the Connecticut Boxing Hall of Fame in 2023.

Mark Allen Baker
Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 250
Bibliographic Info: 53 photos, appendices, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2024
pISBN: 978-1-4766-9398-9
eISBN: 978-1-4766-5283-2
Imprint: McFarland

Acknowledgments ix
Preface 1
Introduction: A Champion in Perpetuity 3
One. Birth of a Champion 7
Two. 1910 24
Three. 1911: Some of These Days 35
Four. 1912: The Featherweight Champion of the World 49
Five. 1913: A Second Title Defense 67
Six. 1914: Better by the Dozen 79
Seven. 1915: Staying East 91
Eight. 1916: Another Title Defense 102
Nine. 1917: World War I 113
Ten. 1918 and 1919: Boxing and Bayonets 128
Eleven. 1920: The Roaring Twenties 144
Twelve. 1921: Nothing Left to Prove 155
Thirteen.  1922: Let Me Think About It 166
Fourteen. 1923: One Last Crack 178
Fifteen. 1924 to 1939: A Transition 189
Sixteen. 1940 to 1957: All This and World War II 198
Appendix A: Boxing Record 205
Appendix B: Referee and Judging Record 216
Appendix C: Official Records of Associated Members of the International Boxing Hall of Fame 221
Chapter Notes 223
Bibliography 235
Index 237

“Mr. Baker, in his famousexplorative narrative, takes the readers from Kilbane’s impoverished background to his rise as one of the highest paid athletes on the planet. There does not appear to be a sportswriter in the field today who thoroughly researches a subject better than Mark Allen Baker. The author treats his subject as sunken treasure from a long-disappeared pirate ship. Mr. Baker is the diver who repeatedly goes deep into dark waters to excavate whatever nuggets and boxing lore that are available. Once again, with the story of Johnny Kilbane, the readers are presented with a chest full of boxing riches. … As is his consummate, investigative style, Baker goes into details of all of the bouts, stating who the press gave the various ‘wins’ to. Through all the new changes the sport was going through, Mr. Baker writes in a heartfelt way describing how Kilbane persevered in his career, even after experiencing the early death of a beloved young daughter. … The book contains one fabulous segment after another throughout Kilbane’s fascinating fistic career. … Mark Allen Baker writes wonderfully about a man who was a champion in and out of the ring. … Just like other books written by Mr. Baker, once again, a reader will come off an expert of a long-since forgotten battler and time as boxing ghosts from yesteryear jump off the pages to resurrect the exploits of one of the greatest and wily featherweights who ever laced on a pair of gloves. This enjoyable book is highly recommended!”—The USA Boxing News