Charles Hadley
Born(1846-09-30)September 30, 1846
Nashville, Tennessee
DiedJune 28, 1897(1897-06-28) (aged 50)
Spokane, Washington
NationalityAmerican
Statistics
Weight(s)Heavyweight
Height5 ft 9.5 in (1.77 m)
Boxing record
Total fights45
Wins20
Wins by KO10
Losses16
Draws6
No contests3

Charles Hadley (September 30, 1846 – June 28, 1897), nicknamed "The Professor", was an African American boxer who was the third World Colored Heavyweight Champion, reigning from January 14, 1881, to February 23, 1883. The 5′9½″ boxer fought out of Bridgeport, Connecticut as a heavyweight.[1]

Fights with Morris Grant

Hadley won the colored heavyweight championship from Morris Grant, whom he fought twelve times between 1881 and 1883. Their first recorded match was January 14, 1881, when Hadley won points in a three-rounder and claimed the Grant's title.

Hadley fought Grant a 10 more times while he was the colored champ, beating him eight times. In their seventh fight, held on May 4, 1882, in New York City, their four-rounder was declared a no-contest. Their next fight, on June 20 of the same year, saw Morris finally beat the undefeated Hadley (whose "official" record was 12-0-2 at the time), besting the champ on points in a four rounder. Hadley apparently did not put his belt at stake for the fight, for he continued as champion until 1883, when he was finally bested by George "Old Chocolate" Godfrey.

Morris lost three more fights to Hadley during his championship reign and one after Hadley lost his title to Godfrey. The last time they battled while Hadley was the colored champ was on December 7, 1882, when they fought in New York City for the Police Gazette Medal Championship of America. Hadley KO-ed Morris in the third round. Their last fight was on December 8, 1883-12-08, exactly one year and one day after they had last met in the ring. Morris apparently was outpointed by the ex-champ and retired from pro boxing.

Record

In a career that lasted from 1869 to 1891, Hadley racked up a record of 25 wins (14 by knock-out) against 13 losses (being KO-ed five times) with six draws.[2]

Legacy & Honors

In 2020 award-winning author Mark Allen Baker published the first comprehensive account of The World Colored Heavyweight Championship, 1876–1937, with McFarland & Company, a leading independent publisher of academic & nonfiction books. This history traces the advent and demise of the Championship, the stories of the talented professional athletes who won it, and the demarcation of the color line both in and out of the ring.

For decades the World Colored Heavyweight Championship was a useful tool to combat racial oppression-the existence of the title a leverage mechanism, or tool, used as a technique to counter a social element, “drawing the color line.”

Professional boxing record

45 fights 20 wins 16 losses
By knockout 10 5
By decision 9 10
By disqualification 1 1
Draws 6
No contests 3
No. Result Record Opponent Type Round Date Age Location Notes
45 ND 20–16–6 (3) Tommy Cleary ND ? Aug 1, 1891 N/A Amsterdam, New York, US Police intervened;
Date uncertain
44 Draw 20–16–6 (2) Tommy Cleary PTS ? Apr 1, 1891 N/A Albany, New York, US Date uncertain
43 Loss 20–16–5 (2) Jack Senrab PTS 4 Jan 4, 1891 44 years, 96 days Barnes Road House, Spokane, Washington, US
42 Loss 20–15–5 (2) Dave Campbell PTS 4 May 29, 1890 43 years, 241 days American Resort, Spokane Falls, Washington, US
41 Loss 20–14–5 (2) Harris Martin KO 1 (6) Aug 31, 1888 41 years, 336 days Theatre Comique, Minneapolis, Minnesota, US
40 Draw 20–13–5 (2) Harris Martin PTS 8 Aug 10, 1888 41 years, 315 days Theatre Comique, Minneapolis, Minnesota, US
39 Win 20–13–4 (2) Strong Boy KO 3 (?) Feb 1, 1888 N/A Donaldson, Louisiana, US Date uncertain
38 Loss 19–13–4 (2) Harris Martin PTS 10 Apr 15, 1887 40 years, 197 days Olympic Theater, Saint Paul, Minnesota, US
37 Loss 19–12–4 (2) Harry Woodson PTS 10 Apr 11, 1887 40 years, 193 days Olympic Theater, Saint Paul, Minnesota, US
36 Loss 19–11–4 (2) Harris Martin PTS 8 Mar 25, 1887 40 years, 176 days Comique Theater, Minneapolis, Minnesota, US
35 Win 19–10–4 (2) Frank Taylor PTS 11 Feb 25, 1887 40 years, 148 days Theatre Comique, Minneapolis, Minnesota, US
34 Loss 18–10–4 (2) Frank Taylor KO 10 (10) Jan 14, 1887 40 years, 106 days Olympic Theater, Saint Paul, Minnesota, US
33 Draw 18–9–4 (2) Frank Taylor PTS 15 Dec 31, 1886 40 years, 92 days Theatre Comique, Minneapolis, Minnesota, US
32 Loss 18–9–3 (2) Frank Taylor PTS 5 Dec 2, 1886 40 years, 63 days Exposition Rink, Saint Paul, Minnesota, US
31 Win 18–8–3 (2) Ed Moehler KO 5 (8) Jun 6, 1886 39 years, 249 days Silver Lake, Minnesota, US
30 Loss 17–8–3 (2) Patsy Mellen PTS 5 May 16, 1886 39 years, 228 days Market Hall, Saint Paul, Minnesota, US
29 Win 17–7–3 (2) Peter Follett TKO 3 (?) Mar 6, 1886 39 years, 157 days Saint Paul, Minnesota, US
28 Win 16–7–3 (2) Billy Wilson DQ 6 (?) Jul 19, 1885 38 years, 292 days Saint Paul, Minnesota, US
27 Loss 15–7–3 (2) Billy Wilson PTS 4 May 30, 1885 38 years, 242 days White Bear Lake, Minnesota, US
26 Loss 15–6–3 (2) Billy Wilson KO 3 (?) Mar 21, 1885 38 years, 172 days Market Hall, Saint Paul, Minnesota, US
25 Loss 15–5–3 (2) Harry Woodson KO 4 (?) Dec 23, 1884 38 years, 84 days Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
24 Win 15–4–3 (2) Jack Keefe PTS 5 Mar 14, 1884 37 years, 166 days Cleveland, Ohio, US
23 Loss 14–4–3 (2) Charles C. Smith DQ 2 (?) Feb 2, 1884 37 years, 125 days East Saginaw, Michigan, US
22 ND 14–3–3 (2) Charles C. Smith ND 4 Dec 15, 1883 N/A East Saginaw, Michigan, US Date uncertain
21 Win 14–3–3 (1) Harry Woodson PTS ? Dec 8, 1883 37 years, 69 days New York City, New York, US
20 Win 13–3–3 (1) Harry Woodson PTS ? Jul 1, 1883 N/A New York City, New York, US Won vacant black heavyweight title;
Date uncertain
19 Loss 12–3–3 (1) George Godfrey KO 6 (6) Feb 23, 1883 36 years, 146 days Cribb Club, Boston, Massachusetts, US Lost world colored heavyweight title
18 Loss 12–2–3 (1) Harry Woodson PTS 3 Feb 7, 1883 36 years, 130 days New York, New York City, New York, US
17 Draw 12–1–3 (1) George Godfrey PTS 6 Jan 18, 1883 36 years, 110 days New York, New York City, New York, US
16 Win 12–1–2 (1) Harry Woodson KO 2 (?) Jan 10, 1883 36 years, 102 days New York, New York City, New York, US
15 Win 11–1–2 (1) Morris Grant KO 3 (4) Dec 7, 1882 36 years, 68 days Harry Hill's, New York, New York City, New York, US Retained Police Gazette Medal Championship of America
14 Win 10–1–2 (1) Morris Grant KO 1 (?) Dec 1, 1882 N/A New York City, New York, US Date uncertain
13 Win 9–1–2 (1) Morris Grant PTS ? Nov 7, 1882 36 years, 38 days New York City, New York, US Won inaugural Police Gazette Medal Championship of America
12 Win 8–1–2 (1) Frank Johnson PTS 4 Jul 26, 1882 35 years, 299 days New York City, New York, US
11 Loss 7–1–2 (1) Morris Grant PTS 4 Jun 20, 1882 35 years, 263 days New York City, New York, US
10 ND 7–0–2 (1) Morris Grant ND 4 May 4, 1882 35 years, 216 days New York City, New York, US
9 Win 7–0–2 Morris Grant KO 2 (?) Apr 26, 1882 35 years, 208 days New York City, New York, US
8 Win 6–0–2 Morris Grant KO 2 (?) Apr 6, 1882 35 years, 188 days New York City, New York, US
7 Draw 5–0–2 George Godfrey PTS 4 Jan 26, 1882 35 years, 118 days Harry Hill's, New York City, New York, US
6 Draw 5–0–1 Morris Grant PTS 3 Jan 12, 1882 35 years, 104 days Harry Hill's, New York City, New York, US
5 Win 5–0 Morris Grant PTS 1 Jan 1, 1882 N/A New York City, New York, US Date uncertain
4 Win 4–0 Morris Grant PTS 3 Dec 1, 1881 N/A New York City, New York, US Date uncertain
3 Win 3–0 J.H. Brown KO 3 (?) Jun 3, 1881 34 years, 246 days Bridgeport, Connecticut, US
2 Win 2–0 Professor Anderson KO 18 (?) May 17, 1881 34 years, 229 days Bridgeport, Connecticut, US
1 Win 1–0 Morris Grant PTS 3 Jan 14, 1881 34 years, 106 days New York City, New York, US Won vacant world colored heavyweight title

References

  1. ↑ "(Professor) Charles Hadley - BoxRec".
  2. ↑ Boxing record for Charles Hadley from BoxRec (registration required)
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