Colma, prizefighting center of the Peninsula

If San Francisco was going to clean itself up and outlaw prizefighting and all the peripheral activities, the organizers of these enterprises needed to scramble to exit the city and step over the line into the new county where they would not be subject to the new laws. Just barely over the county line, "Sunny Jim” Coffroth, a shady promoter if there ever was one, built a large boxing arena on Sickles Avenue, just 50 feet south of the San Francisco County border, turning Colma into a kind of border town.

The 1906 Earthquake did more than shake up San Francisco. It shook out a cast of characters. Following "Sunny Jim’s” lead, other boxing arenas and gyms were built, including Joe Millett’s Training Quarters which became one of the main facilities, with a practice ring and a workout track. Many of the young fighters went off-track and did their roadwork in the farmers’ fields, running between the rows of cabbages and cauliflowers.

Early prizefighting matches were held outside, frequently at the Union Coursing Park at Mission and School Streets (now the Jefferson High School area). Choice seats for the events went for as much as $25, but flatcars on the nearby railroad tracks were free for the people able to climb up on them. Fight fans rode the #40 electric trolley south from San Francisco and north from San Mateo to meet in Colma for what would become a decade-long prizefighting capital of the western world.

Big-name boxers, many beginning their training and perfecting their game in Colma, included James J. Corbett, the "California Dandy,” Abe Attell  and Willie Richie. One of the first major fights in Colma was held Sept. 9, 1905, when Nelson knocked out Jimmy Britt in the 18th round of a scheduled 45-round bout. During the following decade, some of the country’s most noteworthy fights, including several world championships, were held in Colma’s arenas.

Another big name in boxing, Stanley Ketchel, a middleweight, plowed through a line-up of other middleweights, leaving his pulverized opponents in his wake. Having claimed the world middleweight crown and having run out of opponents, Ketchel looked to the heavyweight class for a match. He found Jack Johnson, known as the "Galveston Giant.” A 25-round bout was scheduled for Oct. 16, 1909, in Colma. Some 3,400 tickets were sold to fans who traveled here from all up an down the West Coast. Johnson, considered the best all-around heavyweight since James Corbett, outweighed Ketchel by 60 pounds, but Ketchel  possessed almost super-human strength. He persevered through eleven bloody rounds and caught Johnson off-guard in the 12th, with a powerful blow to Johnson’s chin, dropping Johnson to the floor. Johnson was on his feet again in seconds, slugged Ketchel in the mouth and the fight was over. Johnson had retained his heavyweight title.

But long after the roar of the Colma crowd had faded following the Ketchel-Johnson bout, the repercussions echoed across the nation. Jack Johnson was an African-American and he had knocked out Ketchel , one of the many "Great White Hope” contenders for his title. Not only was Johnson black, but he was flamboyant, taunting and teasing his opponents and the public alike. Born in Galveston, Texas, in 1878, the son of former slaves, he fought his way up in life and turned to boxing as a means to an end. He stood over 6 feet tall, had a 74-inch reach and a distinctive fighting style. He would start cautiously, conserving his energy, then build until his opponent made a mistake. The white boxing world was outraged that a black man was holding the heavyweight title, considered by them to be a symbol of white superiority. Efforts were made to de-throne him by forcing him to fight a succession of white contenders, including Ketchel in 1909 in Colma.

In 1910, the former undefeated white heavyweight champ, James Jeffries, came out of retirement, saying he felt obligated "to the sporting public to reclaim the heavyweight championship for the white race.” He had been urged on by many, including the writer Jack London, to be the definitive "Great White Hope.”

The "Fight of the Century” took place in Reno, Nev., on July 4, 1910. More than 20,000 people crowded into the arena. By the 15th round, after Jeffries went down for the second time (the first knock-down in his entire career), his handlers threw in the towel to prevent Johnson from knocking Jeffries out and further humiliation.

Later that July 4 evening, race riots broke out all over the country. More than two dozen people died and hundreds were injured. Johnson would defend his title again in a series of nondescript bouts, eventually losing it in 1915 to Jess Willard. Once again the heavyweight title belonged to a white contender. Not until 1937 would the title be reclaimed by an African-American: Joe Louis, the Brown Bomber. And it would take more years than that for cooler heads and kinder hearts to re-evaluate the social and human implications of racism. One hundred years later, on July 4, 2010, there is renewed hope for both white and black Americans.