Jake KilrainJohn Joseph Killion was born on February 9, 1859, in Green Point, Long Island, New York. For reasons that have been obliterated by the passing of time, his boyhood pals dubbed him Jake Kilrain -- a pseudonym that later became his professional name.As a teenager, Kilrain worked in the rolling mills of Somerville, Massachusetts. He described himself as "a gawky country boy" who had to learn to stand his ground among the rough mill workers. He learned the basics of fighting, and by the age of twenty, he stood 5 feet, 10 inches, weighed 190 pounds, and had been proclaimed boxing champion of the mill. Kilrain also became proficient in the sport of rowing, and in 1883, under his birth name (John Killion), he won the National Amateur Junior Sculling Championship in Newark, New Jersey. However, officials learned that he had fought for money (as Jake Kilrain), and stripped him of the title. In the winter of 1883, he left the mill to pursue a career as a professional fighter. Always in
good condition, he became known for his remarkable stamina, and remained undefeated through at
least Kilrain continued to fight after his bout with Sullivan, but his only other significant bout was on March 13, 1891, with George Godfrey, whom he knocked out in forty-four rounds. Kilrain lived in Baltimore, Maryland with his wife, Elizabeth, and their two children. A prudent man, devoted to his family, he had bank accounts for each of his children, and a life insurance policy, with his wife as beneficiary. He also supported his aging parents and a younger sister. He owned and operated a saloon in Baltimore, where John L. Sullivan stopped off when he was in town (the two fighters became good friends after their famous match. In fact, Kilrain served as an usher at Sullivan's funeral in 1918). After the saloon burned to the ground, Kilrain secured employment with the Parks Department in Somerville, Massachusetts, but at the height of the Great Depression, he was cut from the city's payroll, due to his age (he was in his seventies). He then accepted work as a nightwatchman at a Quincy, Massachusetts shipyard, where he remained until his death, of diabetes, on December 22, 1937, at the age of seventy-eight. Kilrain became a well-loved figure, and a great storyteller. He enjoyed telling his grandsons about his fight with John L. Sullivan, because win or lose, just going into the ring with the Great John L. made one a hero. |
twenty fights. His most prestigious fights were a 106 round draw with Jem Smith, and his
famous