What's New
Boston College Celebrates Fighting Irish
Boston Herald
By David Exum, August 3, 2008
There
is a certain artifact on display at Boston College that has plenty of
reach when it comes to connecting Irish folklore to the “sweet
science” of boxing.
It
might seem macabre, but the mummified right arm of Irish boxing legend Dan
Donnelly rests inside a large glass case at the school’s Burns Library,
part of “The Fighting Irishmen: A Celebration of the Celtic Warrior”
exhibit.
Donnelly’s
arm is among a treasure trove of boxing memorabilia that brings to life an
era when such brawlers as James J. Braddock, Jack Dempsey, John L.
Sullivan and Gene Tunney dominated the ring at the turn of the 20th
century. The exhibit is on loan from the Irish Arts Center in New York
City.
“Celebration”
spans two floors of the library. About the only thing missing is the roar
of the crowd, the smell of stale beer and a haze of cigar smoke. “It
took a good month to put it all together,” said Burns librarian Robert
K. O’Neill.
Among
the pugilistic memorabilia - including boxing gloves Liam Neeson used
fighting in Ireland before he became a Hollywood star (and honorary
chairman of the exhibit) - Donnelly’s mummified arm has been a top
attraction.
After
his death in 1820, the fighter’s body was snatched by grave robbers to
be sold on the black market. According to library curator James J.
Houlihan, Donnelly’s corpse was traced to a surgeon in Dublin. Once
discovered, the surgeon agreed to return Donnelly’s body if he could
amputate the right arm and keep it - for that was the limb that defeated
English champion George Cooper in 1815.
Donnelly’s
appendage was dipped in red lead to preserve it, and it spent years in a
medical college in Scotland. The arm then appeared in a traveling circus
in Ireland and a pub before crossing the Atlantic.
Donnelly
“became a national hero after defeating the English champion, and you
can imagine the situation of Ireland at that time,” O’Neill said.
“The defeat of a British champion held a special enjoyment for the Irish
people, and when he died 70,000 came into the streets to pay their
respects.”
The
exhibit is not just about boxing. It offers a testament to how Irish
immigrants such as Braddock, Dempsey and Tunney realized that earning a
living in their homeland was next to impossible.
For
them, becoming a boxer in America was a way to put food on the table.
“This
exhibit isn’t just about boxing - it’s about life in America,” said
O’Neill, who cited boxer Braddock as an example of someone “trying to
raise a family in Depression-era America.”
He
noted the film “Cinderella Man,” in which Braddock and his wife are
portrayed by Russell Crowe and Renee Zellweger.
“Braddock
and his wife at one time thought of giving their children up to family
because they couldn’t afford to raise them,” O’Neill said. “Boxing
became a way for others to improve their financial lot in life. Some, like
Jack Dempsey and Gene Tunney, did very well for themselves.”
While
the exhibit focuses on Irish boxers, it pays homage to Boston fighters
regardless of nationality or ethnicity.
Former
Italian-American boxer and current state auditor Joe DeNucci took part in
the exhibit opening, along with former boxer Wilbur McClure, an
African-American fighter and Olympic champion at the Summer Games in Rome
in 1960. There are photos of former boxing great Tony DeMarco, who grew up
in the North End, Micky Ward of Lowell and Brockton heroes Marvin Hagler
and Rocky Marciano.
“It
is a very interesting exhibit,” said DeNucci, who amassed a 54-14-4
record as a prizefighter and was thrilled to meet Tunney’s son, Jay
Tunney, at the exhibit opening.
“The
Irish had their time in boxing, just like the Jewish people and then the
Italians,” he said. “Boxing really portrays the evolution of
immigration in America, especially the Irish, and I think that’s what is
best about that exhibit.”