The Fight of the Century

The Fight of the Century

On July 4, 1910, in a makeshift wooden boxing arena in Reno, Nevada, a white man named Jim Jeffries climbed into the ring to fight a black man named Jack Johnson, and the nation held its breath. Taking place in an era of Darwinian thought and murderous racial anxieties, the outcome of the “Fight of the Century” caused the death of dozens of Americans and sparked the first nationwide race riot in American history.

Bibliography:

Jack Johnson, My Life: In the Ring and Out (Chicago: National Sports Publishing Co., 1927).

Randy Roberts, Papa Jack: Jack Johnson and the Era of White Hopes (New York: Free Press, 1983).

Jeffrey Sammons, Beyond the Ring: The Role of Boxing in American Society (Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 1990).

Geoffrey C. Ward, Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson (New York: Random House, 2004).

What is American Sport?

Americans love sports. We are fanatics who dress in team colors, root, root, root for the home team, and live and die with the success and failure of our favorite athlete. But if we take the time to look beneath the surface and beyond the simple factual question of who won and who lost, we are also presented with some of the most fascinating stories from our nation’s past.

In this new podcast series Professor Matt Andrews goes beyond telling entertaining tales of races won, touchdowns scored, players rounding the bases, and highlights the historical significance of sports in the United States. He explains to us why sports have mattered so much in this country and he reveals how sports have actually changed the course of American history.

Sports are a highlight reel of history. Join us as we explore the stories that are more than just exciting tales of athletic competitions. ​American Sport ​is about some of the most compelling moments and significant turning points in American history.

American Sport is created by Professor Matt Andrews and is an original podcast by Trailblazer Studios, Executive Produced by Katye Rone, and Co-produced by Aurelia Belfield and Casey Helmick.