John Henry Lewis

John Henry Lewis (May 1, 1914 – April 18, 1974) was a hall of fame American boxer who held the World Light Heavyweight Boxing Title from 1935 to 1938.

Lewis was born in Los Angeles on May 4, 1914, to Mattie Drake Foster and John Edward Lewis.

The family settled in Phoenix, Arizona, where he grew up and was taught to box at an early age by his father, a former lightweight who ran a Phoenix gym.

Lewis claimed a great-uncle was the noted bare-knuckle brawler Tom Molineaux.

Lewis battled in exhibition "midget boxing" matches at the age of five.

Turning professional as a welterweight at 14, he gained a reputation for speed and rapidly improving scientific boxing skill.

Lewis began his professional career in 1928, beating Buster Grant by a four-round decision in Phoenix, where he fought his first fourteen bouts.

In 1931, he traveled to Prescott, to fight Sam Terrain on March 11.

This proved to be a tragic event, as Terrain later died from the blows received during Lewis' fourth round knockout win.

On July 1, 1931, he won his first title, the USA Arizona State Middleweight Championship, in an eight-round points decision against Lloyd Phillips, in Mesa, Arizona.

The crowd violently resented the ruling, possibly as a result of racial basis, but the Arizona Republic called the ruling "eminently just".

Lewis faced future World Heavyweight champion, James J. Braddock on September 21, 1932, defeating him in a ten-round points decision at Civic Auditorium in San Francisco.

Though only eighteen and still in school at the time of the fight, he took nine of the ten rounds by wide margins.

Braddock forced the fighting to take the seventh round.

Taking a break from his high school studies, Lewis won a ten-round decision over Lou Scozza, a veteran Light Heavyweight contender, on October 26, 1932, in San Francisco.

He was awarded six of the ten rounds, despite a half-inch cut over his right eye received in the second.

According to most accounts, Scozza had an edge in the fourth and tenth, while the third and ninth were even.

Lewis landed cleaner punches and in three rounds sent Scozza back on his heels with strong rights to the jaw.

Lewis nearly dropped Scozza in the seventh, and in the eighth scored a terrific right to the jaw that landed him on the ropes.

In 1934, Lewis had 12 bouts, going 9–1–2.

On September 20 of that year, he made an unsuccessful attempt at the Pacific Coast Light Heavyweight title in Portland, Oregon, but drew with Young Firpo in ten rounds.

The first six rounds were extremely close, but in the seventh, eighth, and ninth, Firpo gained a moderate points margin.

In the seventh, Firpo used his unorthodox punches to pull ahead, and in the eighth and ninth, he used aggressive rights and lefts to Lewis's body and chin.

In round ten, Lewis rallied with a two-fisted attack to secure the draw decision.

When John Henry unexpectedly lowered his punches, a tiring Firpo succumbed to a body attack.

Two lefts and a stiff right to the head gained Lewis a slight lead, but Firpo recovered, and the brisk fighting looked even at the final bell.

Light Heavyweight contender Yale Okun became Lewis's third-round technical knockout victim in Madison Square Garden on November 23, 1934.

In the first two rounds, Okun made a fair showing and prevented Lewis from gaining a points margin.

Okun was first staggered by a whizzing right to the face in the third, and after another of Lewis's rights dropped him for a nine-count, the referee called the fight.

This bout, and a previous victory against Lewis, were two of Okun's most important career matches.

Facing Frank Rowsey in San Francisco on May 10, 1935, Lewis won a decisive ten-round points decision in San Francisco.

Rowsey, outweighed by eight pounds, lost all but the fourth, but nearly knocked Lewis out in the eighth with a clean right to the jaw.

The blow staggered Lewis and spun him around, but he recovered and delivered more than he received by the closing bell.

Lewis showed superior ring craft, and aggression in the win.

Lewis quickly knocked out Tom Patrick at Hickey Park in Millvale in the first of a ten-round bout on June 4, 1935.

The Pittsburgh audience watched Lewis knock Patrick to the mat within the first minute of fighting for a count of three, and shortly after he arose, he went down for the full count from a left and right to the jaw.

Lewis took the World Light Heavyweight Title from Bob Olin on October 31, 1935, in a fifteen-round unanimous decision at the Arena in St. Louis.

Due to the Depression and a lack of interest in the Light Heavyweight class, Olin's manager had a difficult time finding a promoter or an audience for the fight, finally settling on a payment of $15,000 to fight Lewis in St. Louis.

The Ring boxing magazine named Lewis the 16th greatest light heavyweight of all time.

His trainer was Larry Amadee, and his managers included Ernie Lira, Larry White, Frank Schuler and Gus Greenlee.