Theodore "Tiger" Flowers (August 5, 1895 – November 16, 1927) was an American

professional boxer Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse that is divided between the boxers as determined by contract. Most professional bouts are supervised by a regulatory autho ...

. Nicknamed "The Georgia Deacon", he rose to prominence in the early 20th century, becoming the first African-American World Middleweight Boxing Champion after defeating

Harry Greb Edward Henry Greb (June 6, 1894 – October 22, 1926) was an American professional boxer. Nicknamed "The Pittsburgh Windmill", he is widely regarded by many boxing historians as one of the best pound for pound boxers of all time. He was the Ame ...

to claim the title in 1926. He was inducted into The Ring Hall of Fame in 1971, The Georgia Sports Hall of Fame in 1976, The World Boxing Hall of Fame in 1990, and 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 1993.Cyber Boxing Encyclopedia - Tiger Flowers
CyberBoxingZone.com Retrieved on 2014-04-30 A left-handed fighter, Flowers was fast and elusive, usually avoiding heavy punishment while landing quick, sharp blows. A celebrated African-American prizefighter, Flowers is considered a trailblazer of his era, competing during a time when the boxing profession was predominantly white. Flowers is often compared, in precedence, to fighters George Dixon, the first black boxing champion who won the Bantamweight World Title in 1892,

Barbados Joe Walcott Joe Walcott (March 13, 1873 – October 1, 1935), also known as Barbados Joe Walcott to distinguish him from the more contemporary American boxer known by the same name, was a Bajan professional boxer who reigned as the World Welterweight C ...

, first black to win the World Welterweight title on December 18, 1901,

Joe Gans Joe Gans (born Joseph Gant; November 25, 1874 – August 10, 1910) was an American professional boxer. Gans was rated the greatest lightweight boxer of all-time by boxing historian and ''Ring Magazine'' founder, Nat Fleischer. Known as the "Old M ...

, the first black to win the World Lightweight Title in 1902, and also the more controversial Jack Johnson, the first black to win the World Heavyweight Title in 1908. In addition to becoming the first black Middleweight champion, Tiger’s unprecedented accumulation of wins (136) and knockouts (56) in his career spanning less than ten years proved to many skeptics that African-Americans could compete at the highest level. Prominent Atlanta area rapper Killer Mike, of Run the Jewels, memorialized Tiger Flowers in the song “Kill Your Masters” on RTJ3

Personal life

His parents, Aaron Flowers (1878-1957) married Lula Dawson (1875-1949) on December 28, 1888, Married in Camillia, Georgia. Theodore Flowers (born February 11, 1895) was born in

Mitchell County, Georgia Mitchell County is a county in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 21,755. The county seat is Camilla. Mitchell County was created on December 21, 1857. History Mitchell County was created out of Baker Coun ...

. Flowers’ had 5 siblings Carl Flowers (1896-1978), Gertrude (1898-?), Oc or Osee (1900-1992), Uly Smith (1908-?), Cecil Nathan(1910-1992). Theodore Flowers married Willie Mae Spellers on November 22, 1915, and has a daughter named Verna Lee Flowers (Jackson) September 9, 1921, and Died April 18, 2021, at Martin Luther King Jr. Community Hospital in Los Angeles, California.

Professional career

After working as a

stevedore A stevedore (), also called a longshoreman, a docker or a dockworker, is a waterfront manual laborer who is involved in loading and unloading ships, trucks, trains or airplanes. After the shipping container revolution of the 1960s, the number o ...

on the Georgia coast, Flowers temporarily relocated to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1918; this is where he ultimately began boxing professionally at the age of 23. By early 1920 he started training with manager Walk Miller. Over the next six years the lightning-quick lefthander competed all over the country in a grueling ascent to the top of the boxing ranks. Flowers combined showmanship inside the ropes with a public persona characterized by sobriety and religious devotion; eventually becoming donned “The Deacon”. He famously carried a

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...

into the ring for each fight and also shared scripture. A devoutly religious man, Flowers would recite a passage from

Psalm 144 Psalm 144 is the 144th psalm of the Book of Psalms, part of the final Davidic collection of psalms, comprising Psalms 138 to 145, which are specifically attributed to David in their opening verses. In the King James Version its opening words ar ...

before every bout throughout his career. Flowers’ first bout was a victory over fighter Billy Hooper; which he followed up with an impressive two-dozen straight victories before suffering his first loss to

Panama Joe Gans Panama Joe Gans was a black boxer who held the World Colored Middleweight Championship for four years, shortly before it was discontinued. Born Cyril Quinton Jr. on November 14, 1896 in Barbados, British West Indies and raised in the Panama Can ...

. Like many other African-American boxers of the time period, Flowers found it difficult to obtain fights with white fighters early in his career. He found himself primarily having to fight men of his own race, and many times over, in order to make a living. Despite this, during his era Flowers challenged many high-caliber fighters, including

Maxie Rosenbloom Max Everitt Rosenbloom (November 6, 1906 – March 6, 1976) was an American professional boxer, actor, and television personality. Nicknamed "Slapsie Maxie", he was inducted into '' The Ring's'' Boxing Hall of Fame in 1972, the International Je ...

Sam Langford Samuel Edgar Langford (March 4, 1886 – January 12, 1956), known as the Boston Tar Baby, Boston Terror and Boston Bonecrusher, was a Black Canadian boxing standout of the early part of the 20th century. Called the "Greatest Fighter Nobody Know ...

Kid Norfolk Kid Norfolk (born William Ward, 10 July 1893 – 15 April 1968) was an American professional boxer who fought as a Light Heavyweight and Heavyweight from 1910 through 1926, holding wins over many notable boxers of his day including Joe Jeanette ...

, Johnny Wilson,

Jamaica Kid The Jamaica Kid (b. 1896 – 12 June 1938) was a boxer born Robert Buckley (a.k.a. Robert Bulkley and James Buckley) in British Honduras who fought out of New Orleans and New York City as a professional from 1916 to 1928, primarily as a light-h ...

, Mickey Walker and many other future Hall of Fame inductees. By 1924, after being rated the number-one contender for

's middleweight title by '' The Ring'' magazine'','' Flowers earned a shot at Greb; despite previously losing a questionable decision to light heavyweight champion

Mike McTigue Mike may refer to: Animals * Mike (cat), cat and guardian of the British Museum * Mike the Headless Chicken, chicken that lived for 18 months after his head had been cut off * Mike (chimpanzee), a chimpanzee featured in several books and docume ...

. On February 26, 1926, before a crowd of 16,311 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 ...

, Flowers dethroned champion Harry Greb by split decision. He would also defeat Greb once more on August 19, 1926 to defend the title, although both match results were considered questionable. Tiger's next and final championship bout came against Mickey Walker on December 3, 1926 in Chicago, where he was defeated for the title. A match decided by points in the end, it was considered a controversial decision in the eyes of many. The match later was investigated by the Illinois Athletic Commission, but the decision was not overturned. Flowers immediately set his sights on a rematch to regain the title, but tragically his career would be cut short before ever gaining the opportunity. Flowers’ final match, a victory over Leo Gates, was fought November 12, 1927.

Death

Flowers was hospitalized in New York City in early November 1927, requiring surgery to remove scar tissue from around his eyes. Complications from the surgery ultimately resulted in his death on November 16, 1927 at age 32. The tragic circumstances of Tiger’s death were similar to what caused the death of former champion Harry Greb about a year prior. Posthumously, Theodore Flowers was honored as one of the greatest fighters of his era. The International Boxing Research Organization would rank him as number 12 on their list of Greatest Middleweights of All Time. 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. ...

placed him 68th in his Top 100 Fighters catalog.All-Time Middleweight Rankings
IBROresearch.com Retrieved on 2014-04-29 The

Bleacher Report Bleacher Report (often abbreviated as B/R) is a website that focuses on sport and sports culture. Its headquarters are in San Francisco, with offices in New York City and London. Bleacher Report was acquired by Turner Broadcasting System in Aug ...

named him the number 6 greatest southpaw in boxing history. An important figure in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

's black community, Tiger was remembered as a deacon for the Butler Street CME Church and as a member of the lodges of Masons, Elks, and Knights of Pythias. His house on Simpson Road was one of the most luxurious in the city. Estimates put the number of mourners who turned up to show their respects at around 75,000, with an additional 7,000 crammed the City Auditorium to witness a lavish memorial service. He was laid to rest at Lincoln Cemetery in Atlanta.

Tiger Flowers Cemetery Tiger Flowers Cemetery is a historic cemetery for African Americans in Lakeland, Florida. Most of its burials are in crypts. It is now city-owned and has struggled with maintenance issues and poor record keeping. The cemetery is named for boxer T ...

in Lakeland, Florida was named for him. Tiger Flowers Drive in Atlanta, Georgia is named for him.

Professional boxing record

All information in this section is derived from

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 profess ...

, unless otherwise stated.

Official record

All

newspaper decision A newspaper decision was a type of decision in professional boxing. It was rendered by a consensus of sportswriters attending a bout after it had ended inconclusively with a "no decision", as many regions had not adopted the National Sporting Club o ...

s are officially regarded as “no decision” bouts and are not counted in the win/loss/draw column.

Unofficial record

Record with the inclusion of

s to the win/loss/draw column.

References

External links

*
Tiger Flowers - Cyber Boxing Zone BiographyTheodore "Tiger" Flowers
historical marker * https://boxrec.com/media/index.php/The_Ring_Magazine%27s_Annual_Ratings:_Middleweight--1920s * https://titlehistories.com/boxing/wba/wba-world-m.html * https://titlehistories.com/boxing/na/usa/ny/nysac-m.html {{DEFAULTSORT:Flowers, Tiger 1895 births 1927 deaths World boxing champions People from Camilla, Georgia International Boxing Hall of Fame inductees Boxers from Georgia (U.S. state) American male boxers Middleweight boxers