Owen "Owney" Geoghegan (c. 1840 – January 19, 1885) was a lightweight bare-knuckle boxer. Geoghegan claimed the

Lightweight Lightweight is a weight class in combat sports and rowing (sport), rowing. Boxing Professional boxing The lightweight division is over 130 pounds (59 kilograms) and up to 135 pounds (61.2 kilograms) boxing weight classes, weight class in the spor ...

Championship of America in 1861, and held it until his retirement in 1863. He stood and weighed between 130 and 140 pounds.

Boxing career

Geoghegan was born in about 1840 in

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

. He traveled to the

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in 1849 and settled in

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Police Gazette, 1922 His first recorded prize-fight took place in 1860 against Jim McGann in New York. Geoghegan won the bout in five rounds and 15 minutes. That same year, he defeated Deaf Moran, Bill Dukes, Arthur Gowan, and held a draw with Mike Donohue.Police Gazette, 7 February 1885 Patrick "Scotty" Brannagan retired as Lightweight Champion of America in 1861, and a contest was held between Geoghegan and Eddie Touhey to fill the vacant title. The two men met on April 18, 1861, in New York. Although Toughey was a better boxer, Geoghegan wore his opponent down with his incredible strength. After 45 rounds, and 61 minutes, Geoghegan was declared the new champion. Between 1861 and 1863 he defended his title against Bob Slaon, Chick Sullivan, Banty Edwards, and Pat Devlin before being challenged by the 144-pound Con Orem. The bout between Geoghegan and Orem took place near

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on May 15, 1863. After 19 rounds and 23 minutes, Geoghegan was declared the winner, when his opponent committed an illegal foul. After this contest, Geoghegan relinquished his title and retired from the ring.

Later life

Shortly after retirement, he opened a sporting house at 103

Bowery The Bowery () is a street and neighbourhood, neighborhood in Lower Manhattan in New York City, New York. The street runs from Chatham Square at Park Row (Manhattan), Park Row, Worth Street, and Mott Street in the south to Cooper Square at 4th ...

known as "The Bastille of the Bowery". By 1885, he had opened several gambling houses and was known to give sparring exhibitions. Following the death of his father, Geoghegan slipped into a severe depression. He died soon after, in

Hot Springs, Arkansas Hot Springs is a resort city in the state of Arkansas and the county seat of Garland County, Arkansas, Garland County. The city is located in the Ouachita Mountains among the U.S. Interior Highlands, and is set among several natural hot springs ...

. Geoghegan was said to have left behind upwards of $100,000.

Boston Herald The ''Boston Herald'' is an American conservative daily newspaper whose primary market is Boston, Massachusetts, and its surrounding area. It was founded in 1846 and is one of the oldest daily newspapers in the United States. It has been awarde ...

, 21 January 1885

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Geoghegan, Owney 1840s births 1885 deaths Irish emigrants to the United States American male boxers American bare-knuckle boxers Boxers from New York City Lightweight boxers

Boxing career

Later life

See also

Notes