Jack Carkeek
Jack Carkeek, (January 22, 1861 – March 12, 1924) was an American Cornish champion wrestler, from Rockland, Michigan. His parents were from Cornwall. He died March 12, 1924, in Havana, Cuba.[1]
| Jack Carkeek | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | January 22, 1861 Rockland, Michigan, United States |
| Died | March 12, 1924 (aged 63) Havana, Cuba |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Billed height | 5 ft 10 in (178 cm) |
| Billed weight | 180 lb (82 kg) |
| Debut | July 5, 1877 |
He made his first appearance at Michigamme, Michigan, on July 5, 1877, at age 16. There, he won the fourth prize in a tournament of 64 entries. Jack Carkeek and John Pearce (the Cornish champion from Cornwall for five years) met for the World Championship of Cornish Wrestling in Redruth, Cornwall.
Wrestling career
Up until 1882, he wrestled just in Michigan, and then afterwards in Wisconsin, Iowa, Montana. At the beginning, he wrestled only in ordinary tournaments, with a dozen or so other wrestlers, while later only wrestling in challenge matches for side money.[2]
1884
- March 4, defeated Nels Stone at Peterson, Iowa, for $100 each
- September, defeated William Harrison, at Kinsley, Iowa
- December 10, Carkeek defeated James Pascoe, the champion Cornish wrestler of the Pacific Coast, for a purse of $500, in Butte, Montana.
1885
- January 1, defeated Sam Snell in the Cornish style for $100
- January 10, Carkeek defeated D A McMillan of Bodie, California, in a mixed match of five styles, for $250 a side at Butte City.[3]
- February 28, he defeated H C Bell in Darlington, Wisconsin, for $500 a side, in the Cornish style.
- April 26, in San Francisco, California, Carkeek was defeated by Tom Cannon, the great champion, in mixed matches consisting of six styles.
- June 20, he defeated O H Ingraham in Antioch, California, in the "catch-as-catch-can" style for $100 a side.
- July 4, he won first prize in a tournament against 34 competitors at Grass Valley, California.
- November 25, beat J D Cudihee of Leadville, Colorado for $250 a side.
1886
- February 6, at Leadville, he defeated R Holcombe of Grass Valley, California in collar and elbow for $100 a side.
- July 14, in Dodgeville, Wisconsin, Carkeek wrestled Sorakichi Matsuda, from Japan, for $500 a side (in both Greco-Roman wrestling and catch-as-catch-can wrestling) and won in 54 minutes.
- July 29, defeated Sorakichi Matsuda, a second time for $250 a side in Milwaukee.
- August 21, beat Ben Roddle in catch-as-catch-can for $250 at Sioux Falls, South Dakota
- November 7, at Ishpenning, Michigan, beat J Stephens in Cornish wrestling for the gate receipts.
- December 1, defeated Pat McHugh in catch-as-catch-can at Iron Mountain.
- December 20, defeated Joe Trudell in Cornish wrestling.
1887
- January 2, at Hurley, Wisconsin beat J P Donnor in catch-as-catch-can for $100 a side.
- January 12, wrestled J P Donnor, agreeing to throw him five times in an hour, but lost having thrown him four times.
- May 9, defeated Bert Schiller at catch-as-catch-can in Milwaukee.
- 4 July, fought John Pearce of Wendron, Cornwall, at the Recreation Ground, Redruth, Cornwall for £100 a side. The result is disputed as to whether Carkeek won or the match was a draw. On 8 July, they quarrelled in Redruth with Carkeek biting Pearce's ear and Carkeek cut on the face by a broken glass.[4][5]
- 1 August, wrestling match for 'the championship of the world' at Redruth Recreation Ground against Hancock. The result was two falls each and no result. Many of the crowd entered the ring accusing the wrestlers of ″faggoting″, i.e. match fixing.[6]
- 20 August, defeated Thomas Bragg, the 'champion of England' at St James's Hall, Plymouth.[7] Carkeek injured his thumb and broke a rib. A match against Rundle on 3 September was postponed.[8]
Championships and accomplishments
- Catch wrestling
- American Catch-as-Catch-Can Championship (1 time)
- European Catch-as-Catch-Can Championship (1 time)
- World Catch-as-Catch-Can Championship (1 time)
- Cornish wrestling
- World Cornish wrestling champion: 1886[9]
- World Cornish wrestling champion: 1887[10][11][12]
- American Cornish wrestling champion: 1887[13]
- World Cornish wrestling champion: 1889[14]
- World Cornish wrestling champion: 1901[15]
- World Cornish wrestling champion: 1904[16]
- World Cornish wrestling champion: 1905[17]
Arrest for match fixing
Carkeek was a member of a swindling crew known as the Mabray gang.[18] In 1910, he was arrested for participation in the fixing of wrestling matches.[19] Carkeek spent two years in prison before the case was ultimately dismissed.[20]
References
- "Cc". Encyclopedia of Chicago. Retrieved December 30, 2022.
- "The Champion Wrestling Match. Carkeek's Record". The Cornishman. No. 468. June 30, 1887. p. 3.
- "A Successful Cornish Wrestler". The Cornishman. No. 342. February 5, 1885. p. 7.
- "Great Wrestling Match at Redruth, between Jack Carkeek, of America, and John Pearce, of Wendron, for £100 a side". The Cornishman. No. 469. July 7, 1887. p. 4.
- "Quarrel Between Wrestlers At Redruth". Cornishman. No. 470. July 14, 1887. p. 7.
- "The Wrestling Championshp of the World. Faggoting or not!". The Cornishman. No. 473. August 4, 1887.
- "Wrestling Match at Plymouth. Carkeek v. Bragg". The Cornishman. No. 477. August 25, 1887.
- "Wrestling at Plymouth". The Cornishman. No. 478. September 1, 1887. p. 6.
- Great Wrestling match at Ishpenning Michigan, Cornishman, 2 October 1890, p3.
- ,The Wrestling Championship of the world, Cornish & Devon Post, 09 July 1887, p3.
- Wrestling match at Plymouth Carkeek vs Bragg, Cornishman, 25 August 1887, p5.
- Wrestling, The Sydney Mail and New South Wales Advertiser (NSW), 20 August 1887, p411.
- Carkeek, Cornishman, 21 July 1887, p4.
- The championship of the world, The Cornish Telegraph, 4 July 1889, p5.
- Wrestling that disables, Boxing World and Mirror of Life, 5 June 1901, p14.
- Western Australia, Cornishman, 3 November 1904, p3.
- News from foreign mining camps, Cornishman, 16 November 1905, p3.
- Smith, Jr, Raymond A. (July 1, 1983). "John C. Mabray: A Con Artist in the Corn Belt". Iowa Research Online. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 2, 2021. Retrieved February 27, 2023.
- Stevens Point WI Journal, September 3, 1910
- Cox, Sarah Elizabeth (September 23, 2019). ""Wannop walked on his head in a most extraordinary manner"". Grappling With History. Retrieved September 16, 2020.
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