Thomas Molineaux (23 March 1784 – 4 August 1818), sometimes spelled Molyneaux or Molyneux, was an American bare-knuckle boxer and possibly a former slave. He spent much of his career in Great Britain and Ireland, where he had some notable successes. He arrived in England in 1809 and started his fighting career there in 1810. His two fights against Tom Cribb, widely viewed as the Champion of England, brought Molineaux fame even though he lost both contests. The result of the first encounter was hotly contested, with accusations of a fix. The second, losing contest with Cribb, however, was undisputed. His prizefighting career ended in 1815. After a tour that took him to Scotland and Ireland, he died in Galway, Ireland in 1818, aged 34.
According to some of the chroniclers of 19th-century boxing, Molineaux was born into slavery in the State of Virginia, USA in 1784.[2][3] The most detailed account claims that he was born on a plantation and that he took his surname from the owners' name.[2] An earlier writer just states that he came from the United States of America.[4] In one account he boxed with other slaves to entertain plantation owners and was granted his freedom and $500 after winning a fight on which the son of the plantation owner had staked $100,000.[2] Another source claims he was in the service of the one time American ambassador to London, William Pinkney.[3] One of his biographers points out that while some of these accounts may be based on truth, they cannot be substantiated and may have been romanticised to some extent.[5] After obtaining his freedom, Molineaux was reported to have moved to New York,[2] where he was said to have been involved in "several battles" and had claimed the title "Champion of America".[2] He subsequently emigrated to England where he expected to be able to earn money as a prize fighter.[2]
Molineaux found his way to London in 1809 where he made contact with Bill Richmond, another ex-slave-turned-boxer who ran the pub the Horse and Dolphin in Leicester Square, London.[2] Molineaux's first fight in England took place at Tothill Fields, Westminster on 24 July 1810. According to one report, the match was preceded by bull baiting.[6] Molineaux won the fight, beating Jack Burrows of Bristol in front of a small crowd in 65 minutes.[2] Bill Richmond seconded Molineaux for the fight[7] and Tom Cribb seconded Burrows.[6]
Molineaux's second fight in England was against Tom Blake whose nickname was "Tom Tough".[2] The fight took place at Epple Bay near Margate on August 21, 1810, the American ending up victorious after 8 rounds[4] when Blake was knocked out by Molineaux.[6] In this fight, the American was reported to have shown "great improvement in the science of pugilism".[6]
On 3 December 1810, having been trained by Bill Richmond, Molineaux fought Tom Cribb at Shenington Hollow in Oxfordshire[8] for the English title. According to the writer Pierce Egan, who was present, Molineaux stood at five foot eight and a quarter inches tall, and for this fight weighed "fourteen stone two" (198 pounds (90kg)).[4] Egan wrote that few people, including Cribb, expected the fight to last very long; there was betting that Cribb would win in the first ten rounds.[4] However, Molineaux proved a powerful and intelligent fighter and the two battered each other heavily. There was a disturbance in the 19th round as Molineaux and Cribb were locked in a wrestler's hold (legal under the rules of the time) so that neither could hit the other nor escape. The referee stood by, uncertain as to whether he should break the two apart, and the dissatisfied crowd pushed into the ring. In the confusion Molineaux hurt his left hand; Egan could not tell if it had been broken.[4] There was also dispute over whether Cribb had managed to return to the line before the allowed 30 seconds had passed. If he had not, Molineaux would have won, but in the confusion the referee could not tell and the fight went on. After the 34th round Molineaux said he could not continue[4] but his second persuaded him to return to the ring, where he was defeated in the 35th round.
Two days after the fight, Richmond took Molineaux to the Stock Exchange in London where the boxer received an ovation and was presented with 45 guineas.[3]
On 21 May 1811, Molineaux took on William Rimmer, a 22 year old fighter from Lancashire.[4][9] The bout took place at Moulsey Hurst and Molineaux won after 21 rounds.
A return fight with Tom Cribb took place on 28 September 1811 at Thistleton Gap in Rutland and was watched by 15,000 people. Egan, who was present, said that both fighters "weighed less by more than a stone",[4] which means Molineaux weighed at most 185 pounds (84kg) for this fight. As preparation for the bout, Cribb had undertaken extensive training under the guidance of Captain Barclay.[9] Molineaux, though still hitting Cribb with great power, was out-fought; Cribb broke his jaw and finally knocked him out in the 11th round.[4] After the fight Richmond and Molineaux parted.
Molineaux fought 4 subsequent bouts, winning three and losing one.[3] On 2 April 1813, Molineaux fought Jack Carter at Remington, Gloucestershire, the American winning after 25 rounds.[7][10] After the fight, Molineaux went on tour, where he sparred in exhibition bouts. In 1813, he fought Abraham Denton at Derby, his opponent being described as a "country pugilist" with the stature of a giant. Molineaux won the contest. The tour took him to Scotland and on 27 May 1814, he took on a boxer named William Fuller at Bishopstorff, Paisley, Ayrshire.[7][11] After 4 rounds of fighting the match was interrupted when the "sheriff of Renfrewshire, attended by constables, entered the ring, and put a stop to it".[7] A rematch was staged at Auchineux, 12 miles from Glasgow on 31 May 1814. 2 rounds were fought there, lasting 68 minutes, Molineaux being awarded the contest. On 11 March 1815, Molineaux fought and lost to George Cooper at Corset Hill, Lanarkshire.[7]
Molineaux also entered Cornish wrestling tournaments in England when touring in the early 1800s.[12]
Post-boxing life
Molineaux's prizefighting career ended in 1815. However he continued to show his talents in sparring exhibitions. After his visit to Scotland, he toured Ireland where in 1817 he was reported to be in the northern part of the island.[7] He suffered from tuberculosis.[13] After a stint in a debtors' prison he became increasingly dependent on alcohol.
He died penniless in the bandroom of the 77th Regiment in Galway, Ireland, on 4 August 1818.[1] He was 34 years old.
In 2018, Galway City Museum held an exhibition on the life of Molineaux to mark the 200th anniversary of his death.[14] Also in 2018 a plaque was erected in Galway at the site of his death.[15]
In 2019, Katie Taylor unveiled a headstone over his previously unmarked grave in St James' graveyard in Galway.[16]
It was discovered that Molineaux is a direct ancestor to American hip-hop superstar LL Cool J. The rapper, named James Todd Smith, found out the information when he had his genealogy traced on a television show titled Finding Your Roots.[17]
Thomas Molineaux is featured in the short animation The Prize Fighter,[20] directed by Jason Young.
Tom Molyneaux is featured, as a ghost, in the short story Apparition in the Prize Ring by Robert E. Howard, who was a boxing fan.
Molineaux's fight with Cribb was turned into a 2014 play called Prize Fighters (based on the book Bristol Boys by Jack Allen), by director Ed Viney[21] and was performed in the Tobacco Factory in 2015.
Molineaux's return fight with Cribb in 1811 at Thistleton Gap is referred to in Regency Buck, a novel by Georgette Heyer.
In 2017, a documentary film Ag Trasnú an Atlantaigh Dhuibh/ Crossing the Black Atlantic, directed by Des Kilbane and Andrew Gallimore, premiered at the Galway Film Fleadh.[24]
Bill Richmond was a British boxer, born into slavery in Richmondtown, New York. Although born in Colonial America, he lived for the majority of his life in England, where all his boxing contests took place. Richmond went to England in 1777, where he had his education paid for. He then apprenticed as a cabinetmaker in York.
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References
1 2 "Molyneux, the pugilist, died at Galway, Ireland, on the 4th inst., in a room occupied by the band of the 77th regiment, where he had been maintained the last two months, and very humanely attended by three people of his colour": The Times (London, England), 18 August 1818, p. 3.
↑ Mary Lobel, with Alan Crossley: Bloxham Hundred. A History of the County of Oxford. Vol.9. Victoria County History. 1969. p.205.; pages 139-150 (Parishes: Shenington). And can be viewed on the BHO website
Egan, Pierce (1813), Boxiana; or, Sketches of Ancient and Modern Pugilism, from the Days of the Renowned Broughton and Slack, to the Championship of Cribb: Volume 1
Lobel, Mary D.; Crossley, Alan, eds. (1969), Victoria County History: A History of the County of Oxford: Volume 9, pp.171–188
Fraser, George MacDonald (1997), Black Ajax, London: HarperCollins, ISBN0-00-225585-5
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