Frank Parks
Frank Parks | |
|---|---|
 Parks circa 14 May 1911 | |
| Born | March 1875 |
| Died | 22 May 1945 (aged 70) |
| Known for | British amateur heavyweight champion |
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (180 cm) |
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Francis George Parks (March 1875 – 22 May 1945) was a British amateur heavyweight boxer.[1] He joined the Polytechnic Boxing Club in 1892 and won the Studd Trophy in 1902.[2] He also won a bronze medal at the 1908 Summer Olympics.[3][4]
Biography
He was born in March 1875 in London, England, to George Parks and Eliza Ann Barrington.[5][6] Around 1896, he married Ada Sarah Waller in London, and they had the following children: Maud Lilian Parks (1897–1983), Francis George Parks (1898–?); Rose Gladys Parks (1900–?), Ivy Mary Parks (1904–?), and Olive Eva Parks (1907–1991).[7] He was the ABA Heavyweight Champion in 1899, 1901, 1902, 1905 and 1906.[8][9]
In 1911, he and Reuben Charles Warnes went to the United States with the Amateur Boxing Association of England to fight in Madison Square Garden in a series of exhibition bouts.[9] In one of the 1911 matches in the United States he lost to William Spengler in three rounds on a referee's decision.[10]
He died on 22 May 1945 in Hampstead, in a car crash.[2]
Championships
- Amateur Boxing Association of England heavyweight championships in 1899, 1901, 1902, 1905 and 1906.[8][9]
- French Boxing Championship in 1905.[2]
Legacy
A plaque in the shape of a laurel wreath was dedicated to Frank Parks by the Polytechnic Boxing Club "as a token of admiration by his many friends for his high example and untiring effort for the welfare of the this [sic?] club for 52 years". The plaque is dated 7 November 1946.
See also
- Manifest with Frank Parks arriving in United States
- Back of manifest with Frank Parks arriving in United States
References
- ^ Sources tend to confuse and conflate the two brothers. There is a "Frederick Mostyn Parks" listed in Sports Reference as the Olympic medalist. There is "F. Parks" and "Frank Parks" listed in The New York Times for the exhibition matches in the US. The obituary by the Polytechnic Boxing Club is about "Frank Parks". Other sources use a pastiche of information on each in their records.
- ^ a b c "Frank Parks". Polytechnic Magazine. 1 June 1945. Retrieved 20 December 2010.
- ^ "Frank Parks". Olympedia. Retrieved 20 March 2021.
- ^ "Olympic Boxing". Sporting Life. 28 October 1908. Retrieved 29 December 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ George Parks and Eliza Ann Barrington in the 1881 England census
- ^ "Frank Parks (1875-?) aboard the SS St. Louis". 13 May 1911. Retrieved 21 December 2010.
- ^ Francis George Parks (1875–1945) at Ancestry.com
- ^ a b "ABA Heavyweight Champions". BoxRec. Retrieved 17 December 2010.
- ^ a b c "English Champions Arrive. Quintet of Amateur Boxers Ready for Bouts of Pastime A.C." The New York Times. 14 May 1911. Retrieved 17 December 2010.
- ^ "English Boxers Show Up Strongly. Only One Britisher Fails to Outpoint His Opponent in Special Tournament". The New York Times. 28 May 1911. Retrieved 21 December 2010.
