NELSON, BATTLING ORIGINAL ANTIQUE PHOTO (1918-MOCKING THE GERMAN KAISER)

Battling Nelson (Oscar Matthew Nielson), The Durable Dane, was born on June 5, 1882 in Copenhagen, Denmark. He began his professional career on September 3, 1896 with a 1 round KO of Wallace's Kid in Hammond, Indiana. He fought for over 20 years retiring after his bout with Freddy Welsh on April 17, 1917. He won the World Lightweight Title on July 4, 1908 stopping the great Joe Gans in 17 rounds. He defended the title 4 times before losing it to Ad Wolgast by TKO in 40 rounds on February 22, 1910. His final career mark was 67-31-25 with 7 no decisions and 1 no contest. He posted career victories in addition to Gans over Dick Hyland, Terry McGovern and Young Corbett. Offered here is a rare, first generation, antique photograph of Nelson taken at Fort Myer, Virginia in 1918 depicting Nelson posing with a punching bag made up to look like the highly disliked German Kaiser Wilhelm II during World War I.
This is an original, first generation photo with pencil caption on back. Bold, clear image. Not creased or torn. Clean front and back. Minor edge wear. 8" x 10."