Armstrong was one of the few fighters to win in three or more different divisions: featherweight, lightweight, and welterweight. Audiobook also available on iTunes here: http://bit.ly/ATLASbook **** THE FIGHT T-SHIRTShttps://teddy-atlas.myshopify.com/TEDDY'S SOCIAL MEDIATwitter - http://twitter.com/teddyatlasrealInstagram - http://instagram.com/teddy_atlasTHE FIGHT WITH TEDDY ATLAS SOCIAL MEDIAInstagram - http://instagram.com/thefightWTATwitter - http://twitter.com/thefightwtaFacebook - https://www.facebook.com/TheFightwithTeddyAtlasBig thanks to VHS collection for intro music. Unknown +6.3 lbs After three amateur fights, he turned professional in 1931 under the name "Melody Jackson." The Ring, a boxing magazine, named Armstrong Boxer of the Year for 1938. Armstrong and his managers realized that they needed to attract attention away from the rising fame of boxer Joe Louis. Having competed as a featherweight at 126 pounds, Armstrong had to increase his weight to 138 pounds in order to qualify to fight in the welterweight division. Some of our partners may process your data as a part of their legitimate business interest without asking for consent. Armstrong is a Hall of Famer. Father Charles Godfrey Armstrong. His debut as an 18-year-old pro was inauspicious, as he was knocked out in the third round by Al Iovino on July 27, 1931, in Pennsylvania. Armstrong began his professional career on July 28, 1931, in a fight with Al Iovino, in which Armstrong was knocked out in three rounds. Because the purses were small, Armstrong fought often, usually at least 12 times a year, and supplemented his income by operating a shoe shine stand from 1931 to 1934. Armstrong successfully defended his NBA and Ring Magazine welterweight titles. Standing five feet five and one half inches tall, Armstrong fought in the featherweight class. Armstrong's streak of 27 knockout wins in a row qualifies as one of the longest knockout win streaks in the history of boxing, according to The Ring magazine. The Ring magazine named him Fighter of the Year in 1937. Click here to subscribe to our newsletter. On August 22, 1939, he lost his lightweight title in a rematch with Ambers, and in 1940 he defended his welterweight crown six times before losing the title to Fritzie Zivic on October 4, 1940. Boxing as a featherweight, he gained quite a bit of experience from 1933 to 1935, fighting 46 times, mostly in California and Mexico. December 5, 1938: Armstrong successfully defends the NBA and The Ring welterweight titles against Al Manfredo, winning the fight via 3rd round TKO. Henry Jackson Jr. (December 12, 1912 - October 24, 1988) was an American professional boxer and a world boxing champion who fought under the name Henry Armstrong.Armstrong was one of the few fighters to win in three or more different divisions: featherweight, lightweight, and welterweight. By his last professional fight on February 14, 1945, Armstrong's boxing record stood at 151-22-10 (100 KO wins, 2 KO losses). Floyd Patterson was born on January 4, 1935 in Waco, North Carolinathe third of 11 children. We encourage . sensational; However, when he hit stride Encyclopedia of World Biography. (You will need to register / login for access). In 1932, Armstrong moved to Los Angeles, where he lost two four-round decisions in a row to Eddie Trujillo and Al Greenfield. American boxer Armstrong appeared on the TV game show I've Got a Secret with his simultaneous triple championship as his secret. There he became involved in boxing. "Henry Armstrong," Notable Black American Men, Gale Research, 1998. http://www.galenet.com(December 13, 2000). He first won the featherweight (126-pound) title by knocking out Petey Sarron in six rounds on October 29, 1937. Within the Cite this article tool, pick a style to see how all available information looks when formatted according to that style. ESPN ranked Armstrong as number 3 on their list of the 50 greatest boxers of all time. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. //]]>. 1913-1998 His first title came in 1937 when he wrested the Featherweight Championship from Petey Sarron via 6th round. 1716-1914: New York State Religious Records at Findmypast; images only ($) 1809-1850: 10,000 Vital Records of Western New York at Ancestry; index & images, ($) 1875-1916: New York, Yonkers, Birth and Death Registration and Indexes at FamilySearch . By his last fight, his KO ratio was at 54.6%. For other people named Henry Armstrong, see, Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, Civic Auditorium, San Francisco, California, Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, Municipal Auditorium, Kansas City, Missouri, Convention Hall, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Memorial Auditorium, Sacramento, California, Billed as a World Middleweight Title fight recognized only by California, Municipal Audiotrium, Saint Louis, Missouri, Harringay Arena, Harringay, London, England, Municipal Audtiorium, Saint Louis, Missouri, Madison Square Garden Bowl, New York City, New York, International Amphitheatre, Chicago, Illinois, University of Detroit Stadium, Detroit, Michigan, Dexter Park Arena, Woodhaven, New York City, New York, Municipal Auditorium, Saint Louis, Missouri, Retained world featherweight title (CaliforniaMexico), Won world featherweight title (California-Mexico), Retained USA California State featherweight title, Civic Auditorium, Watsonville, California, Bakersfield Arena, Bakersfield, California, Pismo Beach Arena, Pismo Beach, California, Main Street Athletic Club, Los Angeles, California, Culver City Stadium, Culver City, California, Meyers Bowl, North Braddock, Pennsylvania, "BoxRec ratings: world, pound-for-pound, active and inactive", "Boxing Hall of Fame names first inductees", "IBRO All-Time Ratings - Pound For Pound Results", "IBRO All-Time Ratings - Featherweight Ratings", "IBRO All-Time Ratings - Welterweight Ratings", "IBRO All-Time Ratings - Lightweight Ratings", "Henry Armstrong: Goes for Four Divisions", "Ceferino Garcia vs. Henry Armstrong (2nd meeting) BoxRec", Armstrong, seated, posing with a title belt, National Boxing Association's Quarterly Ratings: 1938 BoxRec, National Boxing Association's Quarterly Ratings: 1939 BoxRec, National Boxing Association's Quarterly Ratings: 1940 BoxRec, The Ring Magazine's Annual Ratings: Lightweight--1930s BoxRec, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Henry_Armstrong&oldid=1135310555, World colored welterweight boxing champions, International Boxing Hall of Fame inductees, 20th-century African-American sportspeople, 20th-century Baptist ministers from the United States, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles with unsourced statements from September 2016, Pages with login required references or sources, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, In 1987, he was among those inductees from, In 1995, Armstrong was posthumously honored for his boxing career by being inducted into the, The story of his life is retold in the radio drama ", This page was last edited on 23 January 2023, at 22:13. function act(imgName) { He defended it in eight fights in a row, the last of which was a nine-round knockout win over Puerto Rico's Pedro Montaez. } Taking away Lou Ambers' lightweight crown on Aug. 17, 1938 in Madison Square Garden proved more difficult. Other honors include his being ranked 2nd on "The Ring's 2002 list of the 80 Best Fighters of the Last 80 Years." Henry Armstrong is a boxer from Mississippi and a world phenomenon in boxing. He kayoed Baby Casanova in three rounds, Belloise in four, Joe Rivers in three, former world champion Frankie Klick in four, and former world champion Benny Bass in four.