July 4, 2017
You are reading “Our Past Is Present” from the Geary County Historical
Society.
Today’s story is about a unique sports event
that took place in Junction City on July 4, 1921 and at the same time in Jersey
City, New Jersey. There was a big fight between two boxers. Their names were Dempsey and Carpenter. A
large scale fight party was arranged by the “Daily Union” newspaper. An 18 foot arena, which was the same size as
the actual ring the fighters would use in New Jersey, was erected in the front
of the newspaper office at 108 W. Eighth Street. A direct telegraph line was installed to
Kansas City. Two boxers representing Dempsey and Carpenter were to reenact the
blow by blow account of the actual fight in New Jersey, but do it in Junction
City as the information was received by way of the telegraph line and relayed
to the boxers by Doc Reid, a local boxing enthusiast and trainer. The blows would be as fast as Doc Reid could
read and pass on the information. In the
case of a knockout, the blow by blow report and demonstration was to be stopped
long enough to tell the crowd that the fight had been won. Then the blows leading up to the victory
would be shown by the actors in a kind of instant replay. A special bulletin board was erected in front
of the Central National Bank on which the returns from the big fight would be
posted.
Long before
television a large crowd in Junction City was able to celebrate the 4th
of July by seeing how Jack Dempsey won the big fight….. well sort of.
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