Cleveland's middleweight wrestling legend, Henry Gehring was born around 1883 in
Ohio, the son of German parents.

On Tuesday, March 15, 1910 in Cleveland, Gehring beat Chris Jordan and won the
World Middleweight Title, taking the match in two-straight falls.

There was major hype in Cleveland in December 1910 about an upcoming match
between Gehring and Walter Willoughby.  It was claimed that Gehring held "the
middleweight championship ever since he defeated Dan McLeod at the Empire Theater
two years ago." The match was going to be staged on December 28 at Grays Armory.

The January 15, 1911 edition of the Salt Lake City Tribune reported that Gehring was
sick during his youth, and his uncle took him to the "father" of Cleveland wrestling, Mark
Lamb.  He wanted Lamb to teach young Henry how to swing a club, and to develop his
strength.  Gehring was a quiet kid, and Lamb took a liking to him, putting him through a
rigorous program that transformed him mentally and physically.  It wasn't long before
Lamb was teaching Gehring wrestling, and Henry demonstrated an innate ability on the
mat, downing more experienced grapplers in the gym.  Gehring gained his health through
conditioning and wrestling, and was thankful for the help Lamb provided because it
carried him to the top of the middleweight wrestling class.

Gehring stood about 5'8" and weighed between 153 and 158 pounds.  His manager was
Tom Scanlon.

Upon returning to Cleveland after his trip west in January 1911, where he faced Mike
Yokel in Salt Lake City, Gehring was suffering from an injured side and seeing a doctor.  
It was said that these pains were actually hindering him in his match with Yokel.

Gehring and Yokel were matched again on Tuesday, February 27, 1912 in Cleveland.  At
this time, Gehring claimed the middleweight championship.  They had previously wrestled
in Salt Lake City with neither winning a fall.  Salt Lake promoters wanted the rematch, but
Gehring reportedly refused to wrestle there again, citing the high altitude as one of his
concerns.  The winner would receive 75 percent of the $1,500 purse and the loser
getting 25.

Gehring beat Yokel after three hours in Cleveland, winning the decision by three judges.  
He was the more aggressive wrestler in the match.

The feud continued on February 5, 1913 in Salt Lake City with Yokel taking a victory over
Gehring in two-straight falls.

There was also a baseball player named Henry Gehring.  He also went by Hank Gehring
and he was from St. Paul, MN.









Research by Tim Hornbaker
Henry Gehring Wrestling History