Joseph Bartlett Choynski (; November 8, 1868 – January 24, 1943) was an American boxer who fought professionally from 1888 to 1904.

Boxing career

"Chrysanthemum Joe", the son of a Jewish Polish immigrant who settled in California in 1867, weighed no more than 176 lb (80 kg) throughout his career but regularly fought heavyweights. He was considered a heavy puncher and a dangerous fighter. In fact,

James J. Jeffries James Jackson "Jim" Jeffries (April 15, 1875 – March 3, 1953) was an American professional boxer and World Heavyweight Champion. He was known for his enormous strength and stamina. Using a technique taught to him by his trainer, former Welte ...

claimed that the hardest blow he ever received in a bout came from Choynski during their 20-round draw. During that bout, Choynski hit Jeffries with a right hand so powerful that the punch drove one of Jeffries' teeth into his lip. The tooth was lodged so deeply that one of Jeffries' cornermen was forced to cut it out with a knife between rounds. A contemporary of heavyweight champion "Gentleman Jim" (

James J. Corbett James John "Jim" Corbett (September 1, 1866 – February 18, 1933) was an American professional boxer and a World Heavyweight Champion, best known as the only man who ever defeated the great John L. Sullivan (hence the " man who beat the man ...

), the two fought professionally three times. Both were from the

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

area, and thus generated a lot of local interest in their rivalry. The highlight of their series of bouts was fought on June 5, 1889, on a barge off the coast of Benicia,

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. The principals agreed that the bout was to be fought wearing two ounce gloves. Corbett had apparently hurt his hand, and Choynski learned of the injury. Accordingly, Choynski "forgot" to bring his gloves to the match, thereby hoping the fight would proceed as a bare-knuckle bout. Corbett, however, declined to fight bare-knuckle, but agreed to allow Choynski to wear leather riding gloves borrowed from a spectator. The riding gloves were seamed, and caused Corbett to suffer many cuts and welts. Nevertheless, Corbett won the legendary bout when he KOed Choynski in the 27th round. In 1892 he KOd a 39-year-old legend in Boston's George Godfrey. Choynski was never given an opportunity to fight for the heavyweight title, but enjoyed some stunning successes against famed heavyweights

and Jack Johnson before they became champions. For example, he held the heavier, larger, and stronger Jeffries to a 20-round draw on November 30, 1892. On February 25, 1901, he faced and KO'ed the young Jack Johnson in three rounds. He then began to train Johnson, helping the younger man develop the style that enabled him to become world champion. Choynski also fought six-round draws with two other men who later claimed the heavyweight championship of the world:

Bob Fitzsimmons Robert James Fitzsimmons (26 May 1863 – 22 October 1917) was a British professional boxer who was the sport's first three-division world champion. He also achieved fame for beating Gentleman Jim Corbett (the man who beat John L. Sullivan), ...

on June 17, 1894, and

Marvin Hart Marvin Hart (September 16, 1876 – September 17, 1931) was the World Heavyweight Boxing Champion from July 3, 1905, to February 23, 1906. Boxing career Hart, nicknamed "The Louisville Plumber" because of his former trade, gained considerable p ...

on November 16, 1903.

Personal life

Choynski was born in

to a

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

family, the son of Harriet (née Ashim) and Isidor Nathan Choynski. He had 4 siblings, Herbert, Miriam, Maurice, and Edwin. In 1895, Choynski married Louise Anderson Miller, an actress in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Halls of Fame

In 1998, Choynski’s ability and ring-record were officially recognised by his induction 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 ...

. Choynski, who was

Jew Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""T ...

ish, was inducted into the

International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame The International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame ( he, יד לאיש הספורט היהודי, translit=Yad Le'ish HaSport HaYehudi) was opened July 7, 1981 in Netanya, Israel. It honors Jewish athletes and their accomplishments from anywhere arou ...

in 1991.

Professional boxing record

All information in this section is derived from BoxRec, 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 ...

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 in the win/loss/draw column.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Choynski, Joe 1868 births 1943 deaths American male boxers American people of Polish-Jewish descent Bare-knuckle boxers Boxers from San Francisco Heavyweight boxers International Boxing Hall of Fame inductees Jewish American boxers