Gouge and Bite ... "Sport on the American Frontier"

Southern backwoods brawling was a vicious forerunner of modern American prize fighting.

In class, we will learn of the evolution of pugilism rules - from Figg Fighting to Broughton and London Ring Rules and finally to Queensbury Rules. However, these frontier free-for-alls only resembled a boxing or prize fighting match at the start of a contest. Once the fight began, they became much more brutal and few of the rules of sport applied.

For an excellent scholarly article on frontier and backwoods fighting, please see Elliot Gorn's "Gouge and Bite, Pull Hair and Scratch."