Tiger Flowers: Boxing’s Black Pioneer
By Joe Guzzardi
Tiger Flowers was a pioneering African American boxer who made history in 1926 when he became the world’s first black middleweight champion. Born Theodore Flowers on August 5, 1895, in Camilla, Georgia, he earned his nickname “Tiger” through his fierce, left-handed fighting style and relentless aggression in the ring. His world title belt came during an era of intense racial segregation and discrimination which made his accomplishment even more remarkable.
Flowers grew up in the Deep South during the Jim Crow-era when he faced racism’s harsh realities from an early age. He began his boxing career in the early 1920s after moving to Philadelphia, where he quickly developed a reputation as a skilled and determined fighter. Standing at 5’11” and fighting at around 160 pounds, he possessed an unusual combination of speed, power, and technical ability which made him a formidable opponent.
What set Flowers apart from many of his contemporaries was not just his boxing prowess but his character outside the ring. A deeply religious man who neither smoked nor drank, Flowers read the Bible before his fights. This earned him the additional moniker “The Georgia Deacon.” His clean living and moral conduct made him a role model in the African American community and helped challenge prevailing racial stereotypes of the time. Tiger fought with dignity and carried himself with grace, becoming an ambassador for sport and his race.
Flowers’ path to the championship was rocky and fraught with seemingly insurmountable roadblocks. Boxing’s color line remained an imposing barrier, and many white fighters and promoters were reluctant to give black boxers opportunities for title shots. Harry Wills, “The Black Panther,” was the three-times Black World Colored Champion and top-ranked challenger but never got his shot. Wills twice attempted to sue Jack Dempsey for breach of contract when the champion refused to fight him.
When Jack Johnson, a black, defeated Jim Jeffries in the “Fight of the Century,” waves of racial violence spread across the country in New York, Washington, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Omaha, Columbus, St. Louis, and Wilmington, Wilmington, Delaware. Johnson, Flowers and Beau Jack, the great two-time lightweight champion of the 1940s, fought in “Battle Royales,” a demeaning circus-like sideshow that often pitted ten or more blindfolded blacks in the same ring swinging against each other without a break—a free-for-all. Jack said that once he heard “the last kerplunk, I knew I had won.” The audience threw coins at the winner, his pittance that severed as a purse.
Despite racial obstacles, Flowers compiled an impressive record, defeating quality opponents and building an undeniable case for a championship opportunity. His persistence and undeniable skill eventually forced the boxing establishment to recognize his claim at a title shot. Tiger’s unprecedented 136 wins, 56 by knockout, in a career that spanned less than 10 years, proved to many skeptics that blacks could not only compete at the highest level but triumph.
On February 26, 1926, in New York City, Tiger Flowers faced Harry Greb for the middleweight championship of the world. Greb, known as “The Pittsburgh Windmill,” is one of the greatest fighters of any era and had never been knocked out. In a closely contested fifteen-round bout, Flowers won a controversial split decision to claim the title. During the fight, “The Fighting Deacon,” a steward in Atlanta’s Butler Black Methodist Church, recited a verse from the 144th Psalm: “Blessed be the Lord, my strength, which teacheth my hands to war and my fingers to fight.” Many observers disputed the decision, but Flowers had achieved his goal. He became only the second black boxer to win a world title in the modern era, following Johnson’s heavyweight championship victory nearly two decades earlier.
Flowers defended his title successfully against Greb in a rematch later that year, this time winning more convincingly. He continued to fight frequently, as was common in that era, taking on all challengers and maintaining an active schedule that often included two fights a month. However, Flowers’ reign as champion would be brief. On December 3, 1926, he lost his title to Mickey Walker in Chicago, again by a controversial decision that many believed favored his white opponent.
Tragedy struck Flowers just weeks he lost his championship. On November 16, 1927, Flowers died at the age of 32 following what should have been a routine surgery to remove scar tissue from his face. The exact circumstances of his death remain mysterious, with some accounts suggesting complications from anesthesia while others point to possible medical negligence. His sudden and unexpected death shocked the boxing world and the African American community, which had embraced him as a hero.
Flowers’ legacy extends beyond his boxing record. He fought during an era when African American athletes faced enormous obstacles and discrimination. His success in the ring, combined with his dignified conduct outside of it, helped pave the way for future generations of black boxers like Joe Louis, Henry Armstrong, Sugar Ray Robinson, Muhammad Ali, Archie Moore, Jersey Joe Walcott and Floyd Patterson.
Though his time as champion was relatively short, Flowers left an indelible mark on boxing history, and he deserves to be remembered along with other black groundbreakers like MLB’s Jackie Robinson, the NBA’s Earl Lloyd and the NFL’s Kenny Washington. Flowers, and the other more well-known black athletes, proved that talent, determination, and character could overcome even the most entrenched prejudicial barriers.
Joe Guzzardi is a syndicated national columnist who opinion op-eds have appeared in publications for more than 30 years.