Scrapbook about the Death of Stanley Ketchel

Item — Box: MSSP-2006

Identifier: MSSP_2006

Staff Only

Content Description

A scrapbook of newspaper clippings about the murder of middleweight boxing champion Stanley Ketchel in Conway, Missouri, on October 15, 1910. Most clippings are annotated to indicate the source and date. The newspaper clippings derive from a large number of different American newspapers. The clippings range in date from October 15, 1910 to October 20, 1910, which was the date of Ketchel's funeral. Gilt lettering on the spine reads "Death / Stanley Ketchel / Clippings / Vol. 1 / 1910 / Battling Nelson." It is unknown if additional volumes were assembled or the exact relationship between this volume and boxer Battling Nelson.

Dates

Creation: 1910

Conditions Governing Access

There are no access restrictions on this collection.

Conditions Governing Use

Copyright status for collection materials is unknown. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.) beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owners. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user.

Biographical / Historical

Boxer Stanley Ketchel (1886-1910) was born Stanislaw Kiecal near Grand Rapids, Michigan. Ketchel began his professional boxing career in Montana in about 1903 and moved to California about four years later. Nicknamed "the Michigan Assassin," he was a well-regarded fighter, and Ketchel twice held the title of World Middleweight Champion between 1907 and 1910. In the fall of 1910, Ketchel was training at a ranch in Conway, Missouri, when he was killed during a robberty attempt on October 10th. He was buried five days later in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Ketchel was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1990.

Biographical / Historical

Oscar Matthew "Battling" Nelson (1882–1954) was professional boxer. Nelson was born in Copenhagen, Denmark, and immigrated with his family to southside of Chicago. He began his professional boxing career in 1896, and Nelson held the title of World's Lightweight Champion from 1908-1910. He retired from boxing in 1920 and was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1992. The relationship between Nelson and Stanley Ketchel is unclear, but, in 1908, Nelson was quoted in numerous newspapers praising Ketchel: "Stanley Ketchel is the greatest fighter in the world of his size" (San Francisco Call 21 June 1908, p. 51).