The Broome County Historical Society

 is pleased to present

“The History of Boxing in Broome County”

by George Basler, Local Historian

Wednesday, January 15, 2025, at 6:45 p.m.

with light refreshments at 6:30

The program will be held in the Decker Community Room of the Broome County Public Library, 185 Court Street, Binghamton, on Zoom at https://www.broomehistory.org/programs (opens in a new tab) , and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/broomehistory (opens in a new tab)

For a time in the 1930s, Broome County became a focal point for professional boxing when the German heavyweight Max Schmeling picked Vestal and Endicott as the sites for his training camp as he prepared for the heavyweight championship fight with Jack Sharkey.  This was a time when boxing was one of the top sports in the country, rivaled only by baseball.  Sports writers from major newspapers descended on Binghamton for the training sessions.  An interesting subplot is that Sharkey was a Binghamton native.

Speaker George Basler is a retired reporter for the Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin and a fan of boxing history.  He has co-authored two local history books with Gerald Smith,  Executive Director of the Tioga County Historical Society:  On the Seamy Side of the Street, and That Happened Here?  He has also co-authored Forgotten Broome with Broome County Historian Roger Luther.  He currently does freelance writing as well as blog postings for the Broome Arts Mirror, part of the Broome County Arts Council.

The meeting is free and open to the public.  For more information, contact the Broome County Historical Society at (607) 778-2076.