In The Shadow of John L. Sullivan

By Jaret R. Morgan, bkbworld.com

01.03 - Even the most die-hard bare-knuckle boxing fan would be hard pressed to tell you much about John Joseph Killian, better known as Jake Kilrain. What they might tell you would be "Jake Kilrain? He was the last man beat by John L. Sullivan using bare-knuckles for the championship of the world". That would not do justice at all to the man who almost became our first modern champion on a hot day in Mississippi, 1889.

Sullivan and Kilrain both were chased around the country by authorities before finally descending upon Richburg to do battle. Most people who boarded the train for the fight didn't know exactly where they were headed either. Even before the fight started, the local sheriff entered the ring to stop the fight. After being handed about $200, he stepped right back out! There is also a report that, contrary to popular belief, this fight technically was NOT bare-knuckle, as the fighters wore skin-tight leather gloves. If this is the case, it only made things worse since the leather would cut skin more easily than bare-knuckles.

There are conflicting stories about how the first round ended. Both say Kilrain rushed out and landed the first solid punch of the match and that the round ended when a man threw his opponent to the ground. In the third round, Sullivan very obviously landed a mean blow below the waistline; despite cries of "Foul!" from the crowd, it was not called. In such an important fight, it was unlikely that the referee, John Fitzpatrick, would be so strict. Kilrain responded by violently throwing Sullivan down.

The fourth round would be the longest of the fight at about fifteen minutes and twenty-one seconds. Kilrain moved in and out and around the giant champion, landing at will. Sullivan reportedly growled, "Why don't you stop and fight, you bastard!" When Kilrain edged over to his corner, Charlie Mitchell, his second, whispered something in his ear. Mitchell and Sullivan had engaged in a fierce battle before and all through this fight, Mitchell taunted the champion. Sullivan roared at him, "I wish I had you in here!" Eventually, Sullivan grabbed the elusive Kilrain around the neck and threw him on his side, landing heavily on him. This would be called a foul if intentional. Again, future mayor and current referee, Fitzpatrick, let the fight go on. Kilrain had to be carried to his corner.

At the start of the fifth round, a red blotch seemed to appear below Kilrain's heart. This was a bull's-eye for Sullivan, who pounded it with blows until it grew purple. Kilrain tried to throw Sullivan but couldn't get a good hold of the man. They struggled until they both exhausted themselves. Kilrain stepped back and bloodied Sullivan's nose, but a heavy punch to Kilrain's neck flattened him.

Many feel that Kilrain ended the sixth round by going down on purpose in just a few seconds in order to save himself. The seventh lasted a few minutes, with Sullivan constantly swearing at Kilrain and throwing him again. The eight round ended with Sullivan clocking Kilrain on the jaw. Kilrain had to be carried to his corner again.

The next few rounds featured Kilrain trying to grab hold of Sullivan's neck. At the end of the eleventh, when he knocked Kilrain down yet again, he stepped over his fallen adversary and kicked him in the stomach!

Sullivan's handlers warned their man that Kilrain was using a strategy of hanging near the corners so that if Sullivan missed with one of his crushing haymakers he would strike the ring post. Sullivan continued to curse Kilrain and tried to hold himself in check near the corners. Kilrain's seconds yelled to the referee in the seventeenth round that Sullivan had resin in his hands. Fitzpatrick made the champion wash his hands. Sullivan then took out his anger on Kilrain by brutally throwing him and then tried to follow up by burying his knee in Kilrain's stomach, but missed. Kilrain again had to be carried to his corner.

The following rounds featured more of the same, with Sullivan throwing his opponent and then trying to follow it up by kicking his man while he was down. At one point, he tried to sit on Kilrain's head!

After Kilrain landed a solid blow to Sullivan's stomach in the 44th round, Sullivan began to vomit. This was likely to the whiskey-enhanced tea that Sullivan was getting in his corner between rounds (Kilrain was also getting plenty of whiskey)! Kilrain would not press the attack while his man was defenseless and offered a draw. Sullivan became enraged, threw his opponent, and stomped him when he was down.

The rest of the fight was a tribute to the strength and endurance of these two warriors. As the temperature climbed, their backs began to slightly blister. The fact that they consumed whiskey instead of water in their corners further stretches the limits of comprehension when you hear that the fight lasted two and a half hours! As the fight progressed, one of Sullivan's eyes was completely closed, but Kilrain couldn't press this advantage.

Both Kilrain and Sullivan were mindless zombies at the end, barely able to make their bodies obey their commands. Kilrain's strength as a fighter was his legendary endurance and heart…he just kept getting back up. The awesome power of John L. Sullivan couldn't keep Kilrain down for good. As Sullivan barely got up from his corner to start the 76th round, Kilrain's second, Mike Donovan, threw in the sponge.

Kilrain never forgave Donovan for this "…unauthorized act…" and felt that he could outlast the champion. Donovan defended his actions, stating that the doctor at the fight insisted Kilrain would die if this abuse continued.

Whatever the result, Kilrain deserves more than a passing reference in bare-knuckle history. He stood up to the power of Sullivan and didn't back down. He may have been able to outlast the champion, but thankfully, the fight was ended and he went on to live a full life with his family and ended the latter half of his life in obscurity. He rarely talked about this fight outside his family. He told his grandchildren great tales of this savage day and to the reporters…almost nothing.