Aurelio Herrera

American boxer

• Born: June 17, 1876
• Birthplace: San Jose, California
• Died: April 11, 1927
• Place of death: San Francisco, California

Herrera was the most prominent Mexican American boxer at the dawn of the twentieth century and is credited with helping to popularize cultural identity and involvement with the sport as Southern California became home to large communities of Spanish-speaking immigrants.

Early Life

Aurelio Herrera (oh-RAY-lee-oh huh-REH-rah) was born in San Jose, California, on June 17, 1876, the fourth of six children of Anselmo and Asencion Herrera. Herrera and his brothers helped his father, who operated a saloon and worked as a street vendor in Kern City. However, Herrera soon became interested in more active pursuits and found early success in boxing. He was able to develop a local reputation and received support from the Mexican American community. Prominent among his supporters was Frank Carillo, who set up a training facility in the basement of his dance and gambling hall and offered to assist Herrera.

Despite his early successes, Herrera lost a match that temporarily caused him to abandon the sport he had loved. He returned home to be a card dealer, working for five dollars a night. His dedication to enforcing the rules of the house caught the attention of the city marshal, who appointed Herrera a deputy marshal.

Herrera was drawn back to boxing in 1893, three years after his mother’s death. He soon became the dominant featherweight fighter in southern California, though he was untested in matches beyond regional competitors.

Life’s Work

In 1896, Herrera began a boxing career that would last for more than thirteen years, losing only 14 times in 94 professional bouts, including 57 knockouts. Interestingly, from his earliest bouts, Herrera was described variously as “a white man,” an “Indian,” an “Iberian,” and a “Mexican,” which may have been a part of his appeal to those who followed boxing locally. Now managed by Carillo, Herrera fought and won or tied all of his bouts through 1900, most of which were still in Southern California. In 1901, Herrera lost a controversial eight-round bout to Terry McGovern, world featherweight champion, and soon began to manage himself for future bouts. Herrera trained and fought regularly for the next two years, regularly sparring with his brother, Mauro, but moved away from California in 1903 shortly after their father died. His win that year over the previously undefeated Kid Broad in Butte, Montana, gave him widespread recognition. He was now fighting exclusively outside of California and under the tutelage of Biddy Bishop, from whom he developed a “crouch” style of boxing. Herrera also packed a powerful right punch within his 5-foot, 4-inch frame.

Herrera married Bertha Martensen on May 23, 1904, and continued to tour extensively. He defeated former world featherweight champion Young Corbett II in January, 1906, in Los Angeles before five thousand fans. After he parted ways with Bishop, the manager circulated disparaging stories about Herrera’s card-playing, smoking, and drinking habits as he prepared for his fights. Nevertheless, his popularity soared and he was embraced as a hero. However, his image was severely tarnished when a scheduled bout for $20,000 with reigning champion Battling Nelson failed to materialize because of weigh-in protocol; thousands of spectators already were present. In the aftermath, Herrera was cast as the villain in the press.

By July, 1906, Herrera was fighting intermittently and purchased a local saloon, which burned down within a year. Following a short-lived attempt at promoting boxing in Bakersfield, he resumed training and divorced his wife in 1908. He temporarily retired that year and returned to his business interests. However, at age thirty-six, Herrera made one last attempt before officially retiring just as California banned professional boxing. He spent his remaining years farming and involved in occasional scrapes with the law.

Arrested at least twice for vagrancy, Herrera died destitute in San Francisco, California, on April 12, 1927. By that time, Southern California had absorbed thousands of immigrants from Mexico and boxing was recognized as a part of Mexican American cultural identity, due in no small part to Herrera’s notoriety and legendary image.

Significance

Herrera was a pivotal figure in the emergence of Mexican Americans in boxing and the development of racial stereotypes of early twentieth century Southern Californians. Although born in California to American parents, Herrera was publicly identified with his Mexican heritage. In a sport where few Hispanics found a place, much less success until the mid-twentieth century, Herrera gained national recognition. His career in the ring was quite successful, although his reputation as a self-promoter with casual training habits often overshadowed his achievements in the ring. Nevertheless, his thirteen-year professional career, tumultuous as it may have been, served as an inspiration for many and he is recognized as the first great fighter of Mexican heritage.

Bibliography

Nicholson, Kelly Richard. Hitters, Dancers, and Ring Magicians: Seven Boxers of the Golden Age and Their Challengers. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland, 2010. Describes Herrera’s career in the context of other great fighters of his era.

Rodriguez, Gregory. “Aurelio Herrera: Southern California’s First ‘Mexican’ Boxing Legend.” The Arizona Report 4 (1999): 2-4. Chronicles the accomplishments, impact, significance, and last days of Herrera.

VanCourt, DeWitt. The Making of Champions in California. Los Angeles: Premier, 1929. The author was a prominent sportswriter and developer of boxing talent in Southern California and includes commentary on Herrera’s career.