ABSTRACT
Plantation owners in the South of antebellum days employed Negro slaves not only in every working capacity, but also for their own amusement and recreation. There are no exact figures tabulating the number of organized fights that occurred in which neighboring owners pitted their stoutest slaves against each other. On record, though, is evidence of the practice and most likely it was widespread. Southern white males took great pride in possessing the finest horseflesh and man flesh around. If they were not racing the former, they prodded the latter into bare-knuckle fistfights with no rules to speak of. Wagering on the outcome of these rough-and-tumble affairs added spice to the spectacle of watching muscular field hands fight for the honor of their masters. The pugilists did not box, spar, and mix it up in a gentlemanly manner; they brawled, grappled, and collided. If the owner desired to make the contest even more interesting, he promised his slave freedom in exchange for thrashing the opponent. One such pact involved a slave, Tom Molineaux (1784–1818), the son of Zachary Molineaux, now credited with having founded boxing in the United States. Father taught son everything there was to know about heads-up boxing so he would not enter a fight flailing away to no advantage.
