The Boxer and the Doctor: Fun Discovery
Dr. Albert H. Macbeth: 1862-1947
FamilySearch sent me a note today about a new record
relating to one of my ancestors, so I logged in. As I skimmed my home page, I
paused to examine some new photos of various ancestors that fellow researchers
had posted. To my surprise, two were newspaper clippings about my maternal
great-granduncle, Dr. A. H. Macbeth--clippings that I had never seen before.
The clippings included a photo of Dr. Macbeth with a
middle-weight boxing champion by the name of Charles “Kid” McCoy. According to
the accompanying article, Kid McCoy was visiting Dr. Macbeth’s hometown of Fort
Wayne, Indiana and had looked up Dr. Macbeth, as they had become acquainted
back in New York in 1898.
The article stated:
“Two old friends whom
McCoy looked up on his arrival in Fort Wayne were George Biemer, who promoted a
fight for McCoy…back in 1898 and Dr. A. H. Macbeth, who was medical attendant
at the Rider Hotel in Syracuse, N. Y., in the same year, when McCoy was
training there for his fight with Gus Ruhlin. When Dr. MacBeth and the old
champion met here the doctor was wearing a pearl stickpin which McCoy had
presented to him in appreciation for his services before the Ruhlin fight.”
I knew Albert Macbeth had received his medical training in
New York, but I had not realized that he had practiced medicine there before
moving to Fort Wayne. And I certainly had no idea that he had served as the
medical attendant for a Syracuse hotel!
 |
| Kid McCoy |
I had to look up the McCoy/Ruhlin fight. It was a
twenty-round slugfest! Despite being outweighed by 30 pounds or so (McCoy was a
middle-weight while Ruhlin, known as the Akron Giant, was a heavyweight), McCoy
prevailed at last.
I’m curious about what sort of services Dr. Macbeth provided
that made such a strong impression on Kid McCoy—so strong that he wanted to see
Macbeth again twenty-five years later! Dr. Macbeth must have proved to be an
exceptionally helpful doctor to have warranted both a pearl stickpin and a
visit! Helping a famous sports figure apparently had its perks! Thank you to
Julie Nissen for posting this find!
Sources:
FamilySearch.org. https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/memories/MZL2-BPT
Los Angeles Herald, 21 May 1898. McCoy Mounts Upward. https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1898/03/10/102087136.html
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