Yankee Sullivan
Encyclopedia
- James Ambrose redirects here. For the U.S. Under Secretary of the Army, see James R. AmbroseJames R. AmbroseJames R. Ambrose was an aerospace executive who was United States Under Secretary of the Army from 1981 to 1988.-Biography:James R. Ambrose was born August 16, 1922, in Brewer, Maine. He was educated at the University of Maine, graduating in 1943...
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Yankee Sullivan (James Ambrose) (c. March 10, 1811 – May 31, 1856) also known as Frank Murray and James Sullivan was a bare knuckle fighter and boxer. He was a Champion of Prizefighting from 1851 to October 12, 1853. He considered himself to be the inheritor of Tom Hyer
Tom Hyer
Tom Hyer was an American bare-knuckle boxer. He was a champion of boxing in America from September 9, 1841 to 1851....
's title and lost any claim to that title after losing a fight to John Morrissey
John Morrissey
John Morrissey , also known as Old Smoke, was an Irish bare-knuckle boxer and a gang member in New York in the 1850s and later became a Democratic State Senator and U.S. Congressman from New York, backed by Tammany Hall...
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Biography
He was born James Ambrose in IrelandIreland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
and became a prizefighter at an early age. No authoritative source for the location or date of his birth has yet been found.
Sullivan arrived in New York in the early 1840s and gained a reputation as a prizefighter and a political enforcer. He was sentenced to two years in state prison for his involvement in the promotion of a fight between Christopher Lilly and Thomas McCoy which resulted in the death of McCoy. He received a pardon after two years on the condition that two men put up two hundred dollars and that he agree not to fight for two years. During his time in New York he was the owner of a saloon known as the Sawdust House on Walker Street.
On February 7, 1849, he fought Tom Hyer
Tom Hyer
Tom Hyer was an American bare-knuckle boxer. He was a champion of boxing in America from September 9, 1841 to 1851....
in Still Pond, Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
. Billed as a contest between undefeated fighters, the men left Baltimore by boat accompanied by a party of three hundred spectators and chased by a group of local militia. The ring was fashioned from the ships ropes and stakes handmade from forest wood on the spot. Sullivan was knocked out after eighteen minutes and taken unconscious to an area hospital. Following the fight Hyer retired temporarily.
Sullivan claimed Hyer's status as a champion (from 1851 to 1853) as his own on the dubious grounds that Hyer was a champion, Sullivan's only loss was to Hyer, Hyer had retired and therefore Sullivan inherited the Championship on the basis of being a fighter second only to the retired Hyer.
On October 12, 1853, he fought John Morrissey
John Morrissey
John Morrissey , also known as Old Smoke, was an Irish bare-knuckle boxer and a gang member in New York in the 1850s and later became a Democratic State Senator and U.S. Congressman from New York, backed by Tammany Hall...
at Boston Corner, which was then in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, but out of reach of its authorities, and thus a good location for the illegal match. Sullivan was the dominant fighter for the first ten rounds but wore down as fight went on and was taking a serious beating by the thirty seventh round. The fight broke down into a brawl involving Sullivan and the seconds of both fighters. Morrissey stayed out of the fight and was given the winners money (two thousand dollars) as a result.
Sullivan later moved to California where he had a criminal reputation. He was arrested by the San Francisco Vigilance Movement
San Francisco Vigilance Movement
The San Francisco Committee of Vigilance was a popular ad hoc organization formed in 1851 and revived in 1856. Their purpose was to rein in rampant crime and government corruption. They were among the most successful organizations in the vigilante tradition of the American Old West.These militias...
, and he hanged himself in his prison cell. He was buried in the Mission Dolores cemetery in San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
. Initially buried in an unmarked grave, a grave marker was erected by Tom Malloy two years later. He was finally buried at Mission Dolores Cemetery near the southwest corner of 16th Street and Dolores Street in San Francisco. The headstone bears the inscription "Remember not, O Lord, our offenses, nor those of our parents. Neither take thou vengeance of our sins. Thou shalt bring forth my soul out of tribulation and in thy mercy thou shalt destroy mine enemies."
In popular culture
PrimusPrimus (band)
Primus is an American rock band based in San Francisco, California, currently composed of bassist/vocalist Les Claypool, guitarist Larry "Ler" LaLonde and drummer Jay Lane. Primus originally formed in 1984 with Claypool and guitarist Todd Huth, later joined by Lane, though the latter two departed...
recorded the song "Fisticuffs" about Sullivan on their Brown Album
Brown Album
- Personnel :* Les Claypool – bass, vocals* Larry LaLonde – guitar* Bryan "Brain" Mantia – drums* Produced by Primus* Engineered by Les Claypool* Production coordinator: Jill "Galaxy Queen" Rose* Studio assistant: Tim "Soya" Soylan-Critical reception:...
. In the song, the lyrics state that "Lilly and McCoy were shy 140 pounds, in 1842 they went 118 rounds," However, by all accounts, Thomas McCoy died in the 77th round.