On April 18, 1902, Farmer Burns failed to throw Professor M.J. Dwyer twice in an hour in New Haven. Burns won the first fall in 37:20, but couldn't win a second. Dwyer won a $100 side bet. In New London, Connecticut on May 8, 1903, Tom Sharkey beat Duncan McMillian in a catch-as-catch-can match at the Opera House. On Thursday, May 21, 1903 in Bridgeport, Tom Jenkins beat Adam Mueller in two-straight falls. Jenkins announced after the match that he would wrestle Frank Gotch for $1,000, and on behalf of the latter, Professor James Atlas accepted. Some rather odd happenings occurred in Hartford in January 1911 pertaining to a women's wrestler who was given permission to wrestle men, but when the concept was changed to her grappling a women - all hell broke loose. Ruth Americus was going to perform against a man at the Hartford Opera House, and this seemed fine enough. City officials took the time to debate whether or not Ruth's clothing was going to be appropriate, then changed their tune completely when talk of her wrestling a woman began. The officials prohibited Americus from performing at all, and the Hartford Police Chief went to the opera house to make sure she didn't appear. Reportedly, the theater promoter Jack Gardiner, who didn't have a license to promote the affair to begin with, had Ruth sell tickets in the theater's box office instead. On February 2, 1911, the Connecticut Legislature debated a bill that would legalize "limited" boxing matches in the state, and would place regulation under city control. The stranglehold was going to also be allowed in wrestling matches. On April 16, 1929, Freddie Verrillo beat Pete Colonius to capture a claim to the World Welterweight Title in Meriden, Connecticut, taking possession of the "diamond-studded" championship belt. Verrillo was from Meriden. His real name was Fred Daniel Verrillo and he was born on February 27, 1899. He wrestled, at least from the early-to-mid 1920s until the early '30s, and was a policeman in Meriden. He was a strong influence in the local community and taught wrestling and other sports. Research by Tim Hornbaker, Don Luce |
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