Yukon who is who

Nick Burley, aka Nicholas Barovich (1875 - 1911)

Nick Burley was born Nicholas Barovich in Auston, Texas. He was a heavyweight boxer who fought 83 bouts between 1890 and 1907. He fought Frank Slavin in Dawson in July 1902 and won.¹⁾ Slavin was beaten by the first round but he hung in until the fifth and gave a good show. He retired after that fight although the next year they fought in exhibitions at Caribou and Grand Forks. Starting in 1903, the Dawson Amateur Athletic Association (DAAA) hosted three major annual ring attractions to raise funds to keep the admission fee low. The organization maintained an enclosed rink surface, the only one west of Winnipeg. The 100' x 40' ice sheet had a regulation hockey rink and a two-sheet curling rink. The building was well-appointed with steam-heated dressing rooms and a private club upstairs. Joe Boyle, a director of the DAAA, helped to bring in the famous boxer “Chrysanthemum” Joe Choynski for the first fight. Burley objected to Boyle being a referee in front of the audience of 2,500. Boyle's brother, Charley, was helping to train Choynski at the Gold Bottom camp and Burley thought Boyle might be partial. However, no other referee was available and Burley had to accept Boyle. Burley defied the odds and beat Choynski in the second round.²⁾ Choynski won a rematch, also held at the DAAA, two months later.³⁾

In 1904, the DAAA annual fight was between Burley and Billy Woods. Woods was a black man, trained in Dawson and he had difficulty getting fights. Woods had beaten Millet, the Pacific Coast Amateur Champion, in Dawson. In 1904, Burley demanded a 60-40 split of the winnings. After the DAAA got involved, the split changed to 75-25 with the loser getting nothing if the fight was not decided on merit. Each fighter put up $500 and the DAA put up $1000. Biddy Bishop, Woods' manager, put up a $1000 to guarantee that Woods would not lose on a foul as Burley was bigger and taller than Woods. The Burley Woods fight lasted into the 18th round and Woods won. Burley waited for three days to let an inflamed eye heal and then won a fight against Millet.⁴⁾ Nick Burley then went to Fairbanks and won a match with Jack Crowley in December 1904.⁵⁾

In 1905, Burley lost against Jack “Twin” Sullivan at the DAAA. Sullivan was smaller but he had better technique. Joe Boyle then brought the Middleweight Championship of the World to Dawson for a fight between “Philadelphia” Jack O'Brien and Jack “Twin” Sullivan. The fight ended in a draw. A rematch was announced but never happened as a local clergyman threatened to sue, the DAA backed down, and the good boxers left Dawson. Slavin and Sullivan travelled the world giving exhibitions and lecturing on the importance of physical fitness.⁶⁾ In 1906, Burley lost two fights with Bill Bates in Fairbanks, and a fight with Jack Twin Sullivan. He won an exhibition fight with Slavin in Victoria in 1907 and lost the last fight of his career against Morgan Williams in Goldfield, Nevada in December 1907. Williams knocked Burley out in the first round.⁷⁾