Jerry Fitch - Clevelands Greatest Fighters of All Time

JOHNNY KILBANE, CLEVELANDS FIRST GREAT FIGHTER.

J ohn Patrick Kilbane was born on April 18, 1889, in Cleveland, of Irish stock. He came out of hard times on the Cleveland ore docks to become Clevelands first world champion. Starting as a raw-boned skinny kid weighing 110 lbs. at 18 years of age, he entered the boxing world in 1907 to help support his blind father and two step-sisters. Little did the Cleveland boxing world know that this frail looking Irish lad was soon going to become a very prominent figure in the fight world for many years to come.

After falling under the watchful eye of Jimmy Dunn, a pretty fair ring battler in his own right, Johnny turned pro with very little experience under his belt other than street fights on the docks and in the Westside neighborhood he grew up in.

Actually, it was a chance meeting with Dunn that got him into boxing, as Kilbane had no childhood desires to one day become a boxer. Dunn, who was training for an important match, badly needed a sparring partner because his regular, George Frazier of nearby Lorain, Ohio, had hurt his hand. As fate would have it, the Westsiders elected Johnny Kilbane to do the sparring and after a few hectic rounds, Jimmy Dunn was impressed with his speed and poise for one so green in the fight trade. Dunn invited Kilbane back to his training camp anytime he liked, and history proved he made the right decision, the right decision for both men. One became a manager and trainer of note, and the other world featherweight champion.

Johnny Kilbane had success early in his career, but probably was most famous locally for a grudge fight held with his namesake, Tommy Kilbane, who just happened to live on the next street over from Johnny. Although not related to Johnny, he was about the same size and fancied himself a fighter. A rather strong jealously developed between the two young men, and it would appear Tommy wasnt at all thrilled with all the fame and acclaim Johnny was getting from his early pro bouts. It turned out to be a bit of a bitter thing as the two Kilbanes often ended up slugging it out on the streets. Although Tommy was not a boxer at the time, he figured he sure as heck could be one, because he had held his own with his neighborhood rival.

JOHNNY AND ABE ATTELL SQUARE OFF FOR THEIR CHAMPIONSHIP FIGHT IN VERNON, CALIFORNIA, FEBRUARY 22, 1912.

JOHNNY KILBANE AND JIMMY DUNN IN A VICTORY PARADE AFTER WINNING THE FEATHERWEIGHT TITLE FROM ABE ATTELL, FEBRUARY 1912.

So Tommy turned pro, and eventually these men were to meet several times in the squared circle. Finally, a 25-round grudge match was set up, and they jammed the place until it wouldnt hold anymore and then the two put on a wonderful war that had everyone on the edge of their seats for 23 rounds. Finally in the 23rd round, Johnny floored his rival, and although he got up that turned the fight around and proved to be the winning margin. Referee Johnny Ruddy called Johnny Kilbane the winner after 25 brutal rounds.

Johnny continued to fight around the circuit and did quite well, with many bouts ending in the no-decision ruling of the era. But he was winning, there was no doubt about it, and he didnt officially lose a contest until October 24, 1910, when Abe Attell won a ten-round decision over him in Kansas City. Johnny came right back into the winning habit after the first Attell bout, until Indian Joe Rivers managed to defeat him over twenty rounds in Vernon, California, on May 6th of 1911. In September of the same year, in a rematch, Johnny was to knock out Rivers in 16 rounds.

Winning became a habit, and his previous fine showing against the champion, Abe Attell, sure helped Kilbanes status, so Johnny was given a second chance with the man who had held the crown for so long. And the second time proved lucky, as Johnny Patrick Kilbane became Clevelands first world champion via a 20-round decision over Attell on February 22, 1912, in Vernon, California.

It has been said in history that Johnny Kilbane was a reluctant champion, that he wouldnt put his title on the line. It may be true, because although Johnny held the championship for a record of almost twelve years, he only officially defended it a total of seven times. But to say he was inactive would not be justified, for the boxing public got to see the world champion in action in many cities across the country. He had 23 bouts in 1913 alone!

JOHNNY SPARRING WITH AL CORBETI.

JOHNNY KILBANE AND BENNY LEONARD BEFORE THEIR APRIL 29, 1915 NO-DECISION BOUT. Most of Johnnys bouts ended in the No-Decision verdict of the era, as previously stated, so it is awfully hard to tell his true worth. But he was fighting some good men such as Benny Leonard, Kid Williams, Jimmy Walsh, Cal Delaney, Rocky Kansas, Matt Brock, and Freddie Welsh. Only the great Leonard was able to dent his armor, as Johnny was stopped in three rounds in Philadelphia on July 25, 1917.