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Henry Jackson Jr. (December 12, 1912 – October 24, 1988) was an American professional
boxer Boxer most commonly refers to: *Boxer (boxing), a competitor in the sport of boxing *Boxer (dog), a breed of dog Boxer or boxers may also refer to: Animal kingdom * Boxer crab * Boxer shrimp, a small group of decapod crustaceans * Boxer snipe eel ...
and a world boxing champion who fought under the name Henry Armstrong. Armstrong was one of the few fighters to win in three or more different divisions:
featherweight Featherweight is a weight class in the combat sports of boxing, kickboxing, mixed martial arts, and Greco-Roman wrestling. Boxing Professional boxing History A featherweight boxer weighs in at a limit of . In the early days of the division, this ...
,
lightweight Lightweight is a weight class in combat sports and rowing. Boxing Professional boxing The lightweight division is over 130 pounds (59 kilograms) and up to 135 pounds (61.2 kilograms) weight class in the sport of boxing. Notable lightweight boxe ...
, and
welterweight Welterweight is a weight class in combat sports. Originally the term "welterweight" was used only in boxing, but other combat sports like Muay Thai, taekwondo, and mixed martial arts also use it for their own weight division system to classify th ...
. He defended his welterweight title a total of nineteen times. ''The Ring'' magazine named him Fighter of the Year in 1937. The
Boxing Writers Association of America The Boxing Writers Association of America (BWAA) was originally formed in 1926 as the Boxing Writers Association of Greater New York. The association's purpose is to promote better working conditions for boxing writers, as well as hold its writers t ...
(BWAA) named him Fighter of the Year in 1940. He is currently ranked by
BoxRec BoxRec or boxrec.com is a website dedicated to holding updated records of professional and amateur boxers, both male and female. It also maintains a MediaWiki-based encyclopaedia of boxing. The objective of the site is to document every profes ...
as the 12th greatest
pound-for-pound Pound for pound is a ranking used in combat sports, such as boxing, wrestling, or mixed martial arts, of who the better fighters are irrespective of their weight, i.e. adjusted to compensate for weight class. As these fighters do not compete direc ...
fighter of all time. In 2007, ''The Ring'' ranked Armstrong as the second-greatest fighter of the last 80 years. Historian
Bert Sugar Herbert Randolph Sugar (June 7, 1936 – March 25, 2012) was an American boxing writer and sports historian known for his trademark fedora and unlit cigar. Biography Early life and education Sugar was born in Washington, D.C. on June 7, 1936. ...
also ranked Armstrong as the second-greatest fighter of all time.
ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The co ...
ranked Armstrong as number 3 on their list of the 50 greatest boxers of all time. He was posthumously inducted into the
International Boxing Hall of Fame The modern International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF), located in Canastota, New York, honors boxers, trainers and other contributors to the sport worldwide. Inductees are selected by members of the Boxing Writers Association of America. The I ...
in the inaugural class of 1990. In 2019, the International Boxing Research Organization (IBRO) ranked him as the second best boxer of all time, pound for pound, as well as the second best featherweight, third best welterweight, and fifth best lightweight of all time.


Early life

He was born Henry Jackson, Jr. on December 12, 1912, in
Columbus, Mississippi Columbus is a city in and the county seat of Lowndes County, on the eastern border of Mississippi, United States, located primarily east, but also north and northeast of the Tombigbee River, which is also part of the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterwa ...
. He was the son of Henry Jackson Sr., a
sharecropper Sharecropping is a legal arrangement with regard to agricultural land in which a landowner allows a tenant to use the land in return for a share of the crops produced on that land. Sharecropping has a long history and there are a wide range ...
of
African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of enslav ...
descent and America Jackson, said to be a "full-blooded" Iroquois. As a child, Henry Jr. moved with his family to
St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...
, during the early period of the Great Migration of African Americans from the rural South to industrial cities of the Midwest and North. There he became involved in boxing. He graduated as an honor student from
Vashon High School Vashon High School is a high school of the St. Louis Public Schools in St. Louis, Missouri. When it opened in 1927, it was the second high school for black students in St. Louis. History Designed by Rockwell M. Milligan, the school opened on Sep ...
in St. Louis Later he took the surname Armstrong as his fighting name.


Early career

Armstrong began his professional career on July 28, 1931, in a fight with Al Iovino, in which Armstrong was knocked out in three rounds. His first win came later that year, beating Sammy Burns by a decision in six. In 1932, Armstrong moved to Los Angeles, where he lost two four-round decisions in a row to Eddie Trujillo and Al Greenfield. Following these two losses, however, he started a streak of 11 wins. In 1936, Armstrong split his time among Los Angeles, Mexico City and St. Louis. A few notable opponents of that year include Ritchie Fontaine, Baby Arizmendi, former world champion
Juan Zurita Juan Zurita (2 May 1917 – 24 March 2000) was a Mexican professional boxer in the lightweight division and a 1944 National Boxing Association Lightweight world champion. Zurita was a southpaw or left handed boxer, who often fought with his right ...
, and Mike Belloise. Early in his career, he fought some fights under the ring name Melody Jackson. In 1937 alone, Armstrong went 27–0 (26KO). Aldo Spoldi was the only opponent to take him the full 10 rounds. He kayoed Baby Casanova in three rounds, Belloise in four, Joe Rivers in three, former world champion
Frankie Klick Frankie Klick (May 5, 1907 – May 18, 1982) was an American boxer who became a World Jr. Lightweight boxing champion when he defeated Kid Chocolate, on December 25, 1933 at the arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in a seventh-round technical k ...
in four, and former world champion
Benny Bass Benjamin "Benny" Baruch J. Bass (December 4, 1904 – June 25, 1975), known as "Little Fish", was an American boxer. He was born in Kyiv, Ukraine, with his family emigrating to the United States in 1906; choosing to settle in Philadelphia, Penn ...
in four. Armstrong was given his first world title fight, for the title in the 126-pound weight class against World
Featherweight Featherweight is a weight class in the combat sports of boxing, kickboxing, mixed martial arts, and Greco-Roman wrestling. Boxing Professional boxing History A featherweight boxer weighs in at a limit of . In the early days of the division, this ...
Champion
Petey Sarron Petey Sarron (November 21, 1906 – July 3, 1994) was an American boxer who became a National Boxing Association (NBA) Featherweight Champion on May 11, 1936, defeating Freddie Miller at Griffith Stadium in Washington, D.C. He was inducted in ...
at
Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylva ...
. Armstrong knocked Sarron out in six rounds, becoming the World Featherweight Champion. Armstrong's two nicknames were ''Hurricane Henry'' and ''Homicide' Hank''. In 1938, Armstrong started his season with seven more knockouts in a row, including one over
Chalky Wright Albert "Chalky" Wright (February 1, 1912 – August 12, 1957) was an American featherweight boxer who fought from 1928 to 1948 and held the world featherweight championship in 1941–1942. His career record was 171 wins (with 87 knockouts), ...
, a future world champion. The streak finally ended when Arizmendi lasted ten rounds before losing a decision to Armstrong in their fourth fight. Armstrong's streak of 27 knockout wins in a row qualifies as one of the longest knockout win streaks in the history of boxing, according to '' The Ring'' magazine. Later in 1938, Armstrong, still the Featherweight division world champion, challenged
Barney Ross Barney Ross (born Dov-Ber "Beryl" David Rosofsky; December 23, 1909 – January 17, 1967) was an American professional boxer. Ross became a world champion in three weight divisions and was a decorated veteran of World War II. Early life Dov ...
for the title. Later a fellow member of the three division champions' club, Ross was then World
Welterweight Welterweight is a weight class in combat sports. Originally the term "welterweight" was used only in boxing, but other combat sports like Muay Thai, taekwondo, and mixed martial arts also use it for their own weight division system to classify th ...
Champion. Armstrong, at pounds, beat Ross, at 142 pounds, by unanimous decision, adding the World Welterweight Championship to his belt. Armstrong lost weight in order to compete in the lower weight division, and beat World
Lightweight Lightweight is a weight class in combat sports and rowing. Boxing Professional boxing The lightweight division is over 130 pounds (59 kilograms) and up to 135 pounds (61.2 kilograms) weight class in the sport of boxing. Notable lightweight boxe ...
Champion Lou Ambers by split decision. Armstrong was the first boxer ever to hold world championships in three different weight divisions at the same time. He decided not to maintain the required 126-pound weight anymore and left the featherweight crown vacant.


Welterweight defenses

Armstrong dedicated the next two years to defending the welterweight crown, beating, among others, Ceferino Garcia, a future World
Middleweight Middleweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the middleweight division is contested above and up to . Early boxing history is less than exact, but the middleweight designation seems to have beg ...
Champion, and Bobby Pacho. Armstrong defended his Lightweight belt in a rematch with Ambers, which he lost on a 15-round decision. After that, he concentrated once again on defending the world Welterweight title. He defended it in eight fights in a row, the last of which was a nine-round knockout win over
Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and unincorporated ...
's Pedro Montañez. Armstrong sought to become the first boxer to win world titles in four different categories in a rematch with Garcia, already the World Middleweight Champion, but the fight ended in a ten-round draw. Armstrong's attempt to win a world title in a fourth division was frustrated. According to boxing historian
Bert Sugar Herbert Randolph Sugar (June 7, 1936 – March 25, 2012) was an American boxing writer and sports historian known for his trademark fedora and unlit cigar. Biography Early life and education Sugar was born in Washington, D.C. on June 7, 1936. ...
, many commentators of the time said that Armstrong deserved the decision in this fight. Returning to the welterweight division, Armstrong successfully defended the title five more times, until
Fritzie Zivic Fritzie Zivic (May 8, 1913 – May 16, 1984), born as Ferdinand Henry John Zivcich ( hr, Živčić), was an American boxer who held the world welterweight championship from October 4, 1940, until July 29, 1941. His managers included Luke Carney, ...
beat him to take the world title in a 15-round decision. This ended Armstrong's reign as Welterweight Champion. Armstrong's eighteen successful title defenses were the most in history in the Welterweight division. In 1945, Armstrong retired from boxing. His official record was 152 wins, 21 losses and 9 draws, with 101 knockout wins.


After boxing

After retiring from boxing in 1946, Armstrong briefly opened a Harlem nightclub, the Melody Room (named after his first nickname). He returned to settle again in
St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...
where, apart from the ceremonies and galas that he attended afterward, he led a quiet retirement. He became a born-again Christian and an ordained
Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul com ...
minister and youth advocate, helping to run the Herbert Hoover Boys Club. He also taught young fighters how to box. In February 1966, Rev. Armstrong appeared on the TV game show
I've Got a Secret ''I've Got a Secret'' is an American panel game show produced by Mark Goodson and Bill Todman for CBS television. Created by comedy writers Allan Sherman and Howard Merrill, it was a derivative of Goodson-Todman's own panel show, ''What's My Li ...
with his simultaneous triple championship as his secret.


Honors

*1937, ''The Ring'' magazine named him as Fighter of the Year. *1940, the
Boxing Writers Association of America The Boxing Writers Association of America (BWAA) was originally formed in 1926 as the Boxing Writers Association of Greater New York. The association's purpose is to promote better working conditions for boxing writers, as well as hold its writers t ...
(BWAA) named him as Fighter of the Year. *In 1954, Armstrong was inducted into ''The Ring'' magazine Boxing Hall of Fame the year it was established. *In 1987, he was among those inductees from ''The Ring'' list who were absorbed into the
International Boxing Hall of Fame The modern International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF), located in Canastota, New York, honors boxers, trainers and other contributors to the sport worldwide. Inductees are selected by members of the Boxing Writers Association of America. The I ...
when it was established. *In 1995, Armstrong was posthumously honored for his boxing career by being inducted into the
St. Louis Walk of Fame The St. Louis Walk of Fame honors notable people from St. Louis, Missouri, who made contributions to the culture of the United States. All inductees were either born in the Greater St. Louis area or spent their formative or creative years ther ...
. *In 2007, ''The Ring'' magazine ranked Armstrong as the second-greatest fighter of the last 80 years. *In 2007,
ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The co ...
ranked Armstrong as number 3 on their list of the 50 greatest boxers of all time.


Professional boxing record


See also

*
Lineal championship In combat sports where champions are decided by a challenge, the lineal championship of a weight class is a world championship title held initially by an undisputed champion and subsequently by a fighter who defeats the reigning champion in a ma ...
*
List of boxing triple champions In boxing, a triple champion is a boxer who has won world titles in three weight classes. For most of the 20th century it was a remarkable and rare achievement accomplished by only a handful of fighters. Beginning in the 1970s, triple champions ha ...


References


External links

* * The story of his life is retold in the radio drama
The Saga of Melody Jackson
, a presentation from ''
Destination Freedom ''Destination Freedom'' was a weekly radio program produced by WMAQ in Chicago from 1948 to 1950 that presented biographical histories of prominent African-Americans such as George Washington Carver, Satchel Paige, Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tu ...
''
The Official Henry Armstrong Web Site

Henry Armstrong Foundation Web Site


on the International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF) web site *
National Boxing Association's Quarterly Ratings: 1938 – BoxRec

National Boxing Association's Quarterly Ratings: 1939 – BoxRec

National Boxing Association's Quarterly Ratings: 1940 – BoxRec

The Ring Magazine's Annual Ratings: Lightweight--1930s – BoxRec




{{DEFAULTSORT:Armstrong, Henry American male boxers African-American boxers Native American boxers 1912 births 1988 deaths 20th-century Native Americans American people of Irish descent Boxers from Mississippi Burials at Angelus-Rosedale Cemetery Featherweight boxers World featherweight boxing champions World colored welterweight boxing champions International Boxing Hall of Fame inductees People from Columbus, Mississippi Boxers from St. Louis Welterweight boxers World welterweight boxing champions Lightweight boxers World lightweight boxing champions World boxing champions American Christians Baptists from Mississippi Native American sportspeople 20th-century African-American sportspeople 20th-century Baptist ministers from the United States