Young Mitchell
(Jonathan L. Herget)

BORN   January 30 1868; San Francisco, California
(Some sources report 1867)
DIED 1945; San Francisco, California
HEIGHT 5-6 1/4 (Some sources report 5-6 3/4)
WEIGHT 125-154 lbs

 

Mitchell was a good boxer who was quick and carried a stiff punch; He was also game and durable; He was called "Young Mitchell" because his style of fighting was similar to that of Charlie Mitchell; He was one of only nine men to retire unbeaten over his entire career; The others were Jack McAuliffe, Jimmy Barry, Rocky Marciano, Laszlo Papp, Terry Marsh, Ji Won Kim, Ricardo Lopez and Sven Ottke

His first important battle was with Jack Campbell, at Harry Maynard's, for the Featherweight Championship of the Pacific Coast; Mitchell won in ten rounds

Mitchell never lost a fight from 1884 to 1893; During his life, he became an intimate friend of "Nonpareil" Jack Dempsey

Mitchell was a retired employee of the city of San Francisco and living there when he celebrated his 75th birthday in 1943

1884
Jun  7 Jack Campbell              San Francisco, Ca                EX  4
Jun 14 Jack Campbell              San Francisco, Ca                WF 10
          -Featherweight Championship of the Pacific Coast
Jun 20 Jack Campbell              San Francisco, Ca                EX  3
Jun 27 Tom Carroll                San Francisco, Ca                 W   
Jul 12 Tom Carroll                San Francisco, Ca                KO  4
Jul 27 Jack Campbell              Berkeley, Ca                     EX  3
Aug    Jim Johnson                San Francisco, Ca                KO  3
       Jack Campbell                                                D  8
Sep    Charles Kohler             San Francisco, Ca                KO  1
Oct 24 Frank Frayne               San Francisco, Ca                KO  3
          -Some sources report Lightweight Championship of the Pacific Coast
Nov 17 Jack Campbell              San Francisco, Ca                EX  4
Dec 16 Jack Campbell              San Francisco, Ca                EX  4
Dec 30 Jack Campbell              San Francisco, Ca                EX  4

1885
Jan 21 Jack Campbell              San Francisco, Ca                EX  4
Jan 26 Jack Campbell              San Francisco, Ca                EX  4
Jan 30 Jack Campbell              San Francisco, Ca                EX  4
Feb 14 Jack Campbell              San Francisco, Ca                EX  4
Mar 10 Jim Boyd                   San Francisco, Ca                KO  4
Mar 13 Jack Campbell              San Francisco, Ca                EX  4
Apr  3 Jim Carr                   San Francisco, Ca                EX  4
Apr 22 Pete O'Brien               San Francisco, Ca                KO  8
May 29 Robert "Cocky" Turnbull    San Francisco, Ca                KO  7
Jun 22 Jack Keenan                San Francisco, Ca                KO 35
          -Featherweight Championship of the United States;
           Featherweight Championship of the Pacific Coast;
           Some sources report 7/22/1885
Nov 29 Billy Hamilton             San Rafael, Ca                  SCH   
          -This bout was scheduled but postponed; Police intervened
Nov 30 Billy Hamilton             Berkeley, Ca                     KO 11
          -Police intervened; Some sources report "ND 11"
Dec  1 Billy Hamilton             Alviso, Ca                       KO 23

1886
Mar 13 Billy Hamilton             Berkeley, Ca                     KO  9
Sep 10 Tom Cleary                 San Francisco, Ca                KO  7
          -Reports vary - "KO 7" - "KO 12"
Nov    Jack Keenan                                                  W   
          -Perhaps, this is the same as the 6/22/1885 bout?
Dec  3 Billy Hamilton             San Francisco, Ca               SCH   
          -This bout was scheduled; The outcome is not known

1887
Jan 23 Martin "Buffalo" Costello  Honolulu, Oahu, Hi               EX  4
Jan 31 Dago Frank                 on board the ship, Alameda       KO  4
Mar 14 "Torpedo" Billy Murphy     Sydney, NSW, Aus                 KO  5
          -Some sources report "KO 4" on 3/18/1887
Apr 12 Jack Hall                  Sydney, NSW, Aus                  D 47
          -Lightweight Championship of Australia;
           A "draw" was agreed upon after 47 rounds
May 24 Jack Malloy                Sydney, NSW, Aus                  D 36
Jun    Sam Jones                  Newcastle, NSW, Aus              KO  3
Jun    Bill Powell                Wallsend, NSW, Aus               KO  3
Jul  4 Martin "Buffalo" Costello  Ballarat, Vic, Aus               EX  6
Sep  3 Peter Boland               Albury, NSW, Aus                  D 40
          -Some sources report 8/07/1887;
           Some sources report "D 4";
           The men fought in a blinding rain storm
Sep 24 Peter Boland               Melbourne, Vic, Aus              ND  6
          -Some sources report 8/27/87 and "D 6"
Oct 15 Peter Boland               Melbourne, Vic, Aus              ND  6
          -Some sources report "KO 4"
Nov  7 Barney Donovan             Auckland, NZ                     KO  4
          -Some sources report "ND 4"

1888
Jun 28 Tom Cleary                 San Francisco, Ca                KO 30
Jun 29 J.W. Geogan                San Francisco, Ca                EX  4
Jul 28 Tom Cleary                 San Francisco, Ca                EX  4
Dec  5 Paddy Gorman               San Francisco, Ca                KO 27
          -Welterweight Championship of the Pacific Coast
Dec 22 Billy Shannon              San Francisco, Ca                EX  4

1889
Feb  9 Billy Shannon              San Francisco, Ca                EX  4
Mar 13 Sailor Brown               San Francisco, Ca                KO 21
          -Middleweight Championship of the Pacific Coast
Mar    -Mitchell and Walter Watson opened the "Sportsman's Point"
           in San Francisco; A saloon in which they performed boxing
           instruction
Mar    George LaBlanche           San Francisco, Ca               SCH   
          -This bout was scheduled; The outcome is not known
May 27 Denny Kelliher             Boston, Ma                       ND  4
          -Some sources report "W 4"
May 31 -Mitchell seconded Jack Havlin vs Frank Griffin at Boston, Ma
Jul 15 Billy Shannon              San Francisco, Ca                EX  4
Oct 29 Johnny Reagan              San Francisco, Ca               SCH   
          -This bout was scheduled but not held; Reagan was ill
Nov  7 -Mitchell announced he wanted to fight "Nonpareil"
           Jack Dempsey; Dempsey taught Mitchell much of what
           he knew; They had been great friends

1890
       Tom Gleason                San Francisco, Ca                 D   
Aug    John "Jack" Burke          Seattle, Wa                      KO  3
Aug    Dan Murphy                 Seattle, Wa                      KO  3
Aug    Billy West                 Tacoma, Wa                       KO  3

1891
Feb 20 George LaBlanche           San Francisco, Ca                KO 12
          -This fight was determined to be a fake; 
           The purse was withheld; Prior to the bout,
           LaBlanche wrote to a friend to bet on Mitchell; 
           No evidence was found against Mitchell
Sep 23 Patrick "Reddy" Gallagher  San Francisco, Ca                KO 13
          -Some sources report a knock out because Gallagher was unable 
           to continue after thirteen rounds; Others say Gallagher was out 
           cold; Peter Jackson was the referee; The fight was for $5,000
           with $750 to loser
Oct 16 "Nonpareil" Jack Dempsey   San Francisco, Ca                EX  4
Nov  9 "Nonpareil" Jack Dempsey   Portland, Or                     EX  6
          -This bout was held during Nov 9-12 1891
Nov    Jim O'Brien                Portland, Or                     KO  3
Nov 16 "Nonpareil" Jack Dempsey   Brooklyn, NY                     EX   
Nov 16 "Nonpareil" Jack Dempsey   Brooklyn, NY                     EX   
          -The previous 2 bouts were held the same date
Nov 18 "Nonpareil" Jack Dempsey   Brooklyn, NY                    SCH   
Nov 19 "Nonpareil" Jack Dempsey   Brooklyn, NY                    SCH   
          -The previous 2 bouts were scheduled but not held;
           Dempsey was ill
Nov 19 "Brooklyn" Jimmy Carroll   Brooklyn, NY                    SCH   
          -Mitchell was scheduled to meet Carroll during
           Nov 19-21 1891 since Dempsey was ill; The 
           outcomes are not known
Nov 23 "Nonpareil" Jack Dempsey   Philadelphia, Pa                 EX   
Dec    Billy Dacey                Brooklyn, NY                     KO  2
Dec    Tom Leary                  Brooklyn, NY                     KO  4
Dec    "Brooklyn" Jimmy Carroll   Brooklyn, NY                     EX  4
Dec    Charlie Norton             New York, NY                     TK  1
          -Some sources report "Newark, NJ";
           Some sources report "W 1"
Dec    Ed Fitzgerald              Newark, NJ                       KO  3
Dec    Jack McGinn                Newark, NJ                       KO  3
Dec    Fred Woods                 Philadelphia, Pa                  W  1
          -Some sources report "KO 1"
Dec    Jim Broad                  Baltimore, Md                    KO  3

1892
Mar  8 Gus Herget                 San Francisco, Ca                EX  3
Mar 12 "Mysterious" Billy Smith   San Francisco, Ca                EX  3
Oct    Billy Leedom               San Francisco, Ca               SCH   
          -This bout was scheduled but postponed; It was eventually cancelled

1893
Jan 30 -George LaBlanche admitted he faked a loss to Mitchell 
           in San Francisco, Ca (1891)
Apr  1 Funny Jones                Philadelphia, Pa                SCH   
         -This bout was scheduled; The outcome is not known
Sep 26 Billy Shannon              San Francisco, Ca                EX  4
Dec  1 "Australian" Jim Ryan      Oakland, Ca                       D  8
          -Police intervened

1894
Feb  9 -Mitchell and Jack McAuliffe got into a street fight in San Francisco, Ca
       Joe Bernstein                                               TK  2
Dec 29 Fred Woods                 Philadelphia, Pa                 ND   

1897
Mar 21 -Mitchell got into a tavern fight with "Mysterious"Billy Smith

*** Photos And Much Data Provided By Bill Schutte ***

Review courtesy of Tracy Callis, Historian, International Boxing Research Organization