LES DARCY : THE MAITLAND WONDER
PAG E . 1 .
BY C H E RY L FA R R E L L
A S T O R Y O F D E T E R M I N AT I O N , AT H L E T I C I S M A N D S T R E N G T H , F A M I LY A N D F A I T H , M O N E Y A N D F A M E , W A R A N D C O N S C R I P T I O N , T R E A C H E R Y A N D R E V E N G E , L O V E A N D A T R A G I C D E AT H .
Les Darcy T H E STO RY O F L E S DA RCY ‘THE MAITLAND WONDER’ IS O N E O F A N E L I T E AT H L E T E , A WORLD CHAMPION BOXER, WHO DIED BEFORE HIS FULL POTENTIAL COULD BE REALISED. IN HIS SHORT BUT STELLAR CAREER AS A PROFESSIONAL BOXER, LES DARCY FOUGHT A S TA G G E R I N G F I F T Y B O U T S , WINNING ALL BUT FOUR AND HE NEVER LOST B Y K N O C K O U T.
In this cabinet are objects from the Maitland Regional Art Gallery Collection that tell some of his story. More of the story of Les Darcy can be found in the Shadow Boxer exhibition catalogue which includes an illustrated essay about the life of Les Darcy and items from the Maitland Regional Art Gallery Les Darcy Collection.
Drawer 1: Career highlights Les Darcy’s first professional bout was in Maitland in 1911 when he was only 15. The photograph, top left, is one of the earliest taken of the young boxer. Since then he became so popular that there were hundreds of photographs taken of the handsome young man and these images reproduced and distributed in newspapers, books and magazines, postcards, promotional material, souvenir badges and plaques and boxing tent walls. Of his many bouts Darcy’s World Championship win against American Eddie McGoorty was one of the highlights of his career. In the centre of the drawer are items that tell the story of this fight
including the gold fob watch given to Les Darcy by his trainer Dave Smith. A short film of this bout is featured on screen in the hallway. There is a Dave Smith boxing card to the left of the watch and the large photo of a victorious Darcy (lower left) shows the end of a bout between Dave Smith and his protégé. Film of this fight is also featured on screen in the hallway.
LES DARCY : THE MAITLAND WONDER
Drawer 2: More than a boxer There was more to Les Darcy than just boxing. He was a loving son who supported his struggling family from a very young age. He was a blacksmith, but it was his much larger earnings as a professional boxer that paid for his family’s new home in East Maitland, his violin and his Buick motor car. He was well mannered and clean living and his prayerbook is a symbol of his devout Catholic faith. He was loyal to his friends – and Mick Hawkins, pictured in the double portrait with Darcy’s hand on his shoulder, was one of Darcy’s closest and was beside Les Darcy from the early days right up to Darcy’s dying moments. While too young to enlist, without parental permission, he played his part in the war effort: completing compulsory militia training, giving boxing exhibitions for war charities and volunteering support for the war effort. In the photo, lower left, Les can be spotted in the front row of a large group of men (most from the boxing fraternity) all of whom were clearing land in French’s Forest for the building of homes for returned wounded soldiers. In October 1916, on the eve of his 21st birthday and the referendum calling for compulsory conscription, Les Darcy illegally stowed away on a ship from Stockton to travel to America, to avoid conscription and compete in America to secure a financially safe future for himself and his family.
PAG E . 2 .
He arrived in New York in December 1916 to local fanfare but also to claims that he had deserted his country. During his time in America he wrote many letters and cards back home - the three postcards in the cabinet are addressed to his Dearest Mum.
Drawer 3: The Competition Between 1911 and 1917 Les Darcy competed in fifty professional fights. His opponents were Australian and international champions and he defeated most – losing only four matches out of fifty. His success was put down to his natural physique, strength and stamina, the training, his boxing intelligence and even temperament. Each of the photographs and coloured boxing cards feature some of Les Darcy’s opponents. The boxing cards were promotional material to advertise upcoming bouts at Baker’s Stadium, Rushcutters Bay, with a photo of the competitor on the front and details of the fight and the boxer’s statistics and boxing record on the reverse. There is one boxing card in the lower right corner - who was not a competitor of Les Darcy – it is Frank Darcy - Les Darcy’s brother. Frank was four years younger than Les and he began a professional career aged sixteen. He had promise, but sadly he died just two years after Les, succumbing to the Spanish Flu pandemic in May 1919.
BY C H E RY L FA R R E L L
Drawer 4: His Legacy In the five months he was in America Les Darcy was prevented from competing in any professional fights, due to a complex web of political and personal agendas. News of Les Darcy’s trials during this period shared front page coverage with the growing losses of young lives on the fronts of World War One. In May 1917 Les Darcy’s death, at age 21, was the headline. Thousands attended the memorial processions and funerals that were held for him in Memphis, San Francisco, Sydney and Maitland. After his death Les Darcy’s life and boxing career have been published in numerous books, articles, and ballads. His image has been reproduced on commemorative coins and stamps, and popular ephemera including chewing gum and cigarette collector cards. Maitland Regional Art Gallery is custodian to many such objects, some of the most precious are personal items that belonged to Les Darcy that were donated to the gallery’s collection by Les Darcy’s family.
JUNE 2021
MAITLAND REGIONAL ART GALLERY