March 1, 1982

Inspiration For A Fighter

Tom Molineaux was a black slave who would have been the first American heavyweight boxing champion of the world hut for a tragic accident.

Molineaux toiled in the fields on an early Virginia plantation.  He was a quiet and peace loving young man, but he was handy with his fists.

Boxing, in those days, was considered uncouth by socially important colonists.  Yet, active young men of both gentry and servants delighted in secret contests for fun.

Molineaux sought to emulate the fisticuff reputation of an old and frequent visitor of his master.  The friend, as a young man had been the bare knuckles boxing champion of Virginia and gone on to a distinguished career and honored retirement.

One day, Molineaux had to defend himself against a Negro bully from a nearby plantation.  In a fierce battle of bare knuckles.  Molineaux skillfully beat his opponent unconscious.

Molineaux' master was so thrilled by the feat that he gave Tom his freedom!  In addition, the plantation owner paid Molineaux' passage across the Atlantic to England then the center of the fistic world.

After disposing of numerous challengers in a sensational climb to the top, Molineaux earned the right to fight the champion.  He and Tom Cribb met for a title fight on Dec. 10, 1810 at Cophall Common.

Twenty thousand persons gathered to see the great fight according to Historian John Bangs.  Molineaux, in superb fighting condition made a punching bag of Cribb for 30 rounds.  As the 31st round began, Molineaux rushed Cribb and dropped him with a right-hand smash.

In trying to get out of Cribb's way.  Molineaux stumbled and pitched head-long into a ring post.  The impact knocked him out.

Both men were revived for the 32nd round.  By the ring rules of the day the fighters were shoved into mid ring to continue the match.  They staggered through the round without a semblance of a blow.

In the 33rd round.  Cribb gathered every ounce of his remaining strength and drove his right to Molineaux' face.  The American Negro went down and out.

That blow was the end of Molineaux's career for he had fractured his skull when he struck the ring post.

So disappeared from the boxing world a gallant Black who, with his bare fists, had won his freedom from slavery and almost the world boxing championship.

But what of the man whose youthful exploits had inspired Molineaux to box and the plantation owner to free the slave'?

This man, who died before Molineaux' epic battle, was the son of a well-to-do Virginia family.  He loved a hard fight.  Strong and husky, he developed great skill as a bare knuckles fighter.  The fighting, of course, he had to do in private because his family would have disowned him had they known of it.

Nevertheless, this youth had gained such a wide reputation in fistic affairs that by the time he was 16 years old he was acknowledged hare knuckles boxing champion of Virginia.

In all types of athletic activity he far outstripped his schoolmates particularly in wrestling and weight throwing.  It was said that he could out jump anybody in the State of Virginia.

When he had long since recorded historic deeds in other fields he still maintained his sinewy, well proportioned strength.  At the age of 40 he participated in a contest at some village games and hurled an iron bar farther than anybody else.

At Monmouth, New Jersey, the great French general Lafayette, saw him and declared.  "Never have I beheld so superb a man!

But this man's boxing and athletic feats have long since been forgotten because of his victories in a greater arena.

You see, the Virginia gentleman who inspired Tom Molineaux to boxing fame and freedom was another great champion of freedom...  the father of our country, George Washington!

Author: Lindsey Williams