Americans love their sports entertainment. And there’s something about rooting for the little guy that captures the heart of an audience. When wrestling and boxing were gaining popularity in the United States during the first decade of the 20th century, two boys from Osage City, Kansas, were showcasing their skills in both sports, many times defeating boys older than themselves.
Floyd and Loyd Zimmerman were born in 1906, the sons of Walter and Josephine Zimmerman. As soon as they started walking, the boys were taking playful jabs at or would tackle each other. By the time they were three years old, the boys enjoyed roughhousing so much that their father bought them each a pair of boxing gloves as toys.
Walter was a sports enthusiast, a former bowling champion in his own right, and he encouraged Floyd and Loyd’s roughhousing passion – taking them to a local gymnasium and clubs where they could take classes in boxing and wrestling moves. The twins thrived on the cheers of the crowd. When they started showing their skills for the public, the Zimmerman fights often featured the boxing match followed by a round of wrestling.
Wrestling had gained in popularity throughout the latter part of the 19th century, but early matches were accused of being staged, a supposition that wrestlers had to fight as they sought to legitimize the sport. Likewise, boxing was also fighting its own battle for legitimacy because it was illegal in most states if prize money was awarded or admission charged. The state of Kansas had a ban on boxing in the early 1900s, and that ban was not lifted until 1925 when the sport was regulated.
Performers like the Zimmerman twins found ways around these laws by accepting money given in donation, thrown into the ring at the end of the match or with the passing of a hat. As the boys grew in their training, it wasn’t long before they were being promoted as boxing and wrestling prodigies. Performing was a family affair. Their older brother, Charles, served as referee for their matches, their father was the manager, and younger sister Catherine loved to mimic their moves on the sidelines. Floyd and Loyd had a firm grasp of boxing basics from their daily practices: upper cuts, swings, haymakers for boxing, and half and full Nelsons, scissors, and hammerlocks also used for wrestling.
The Zimmerman twins’ first official fight was in January 1911, in Salt Lake City, opening as the preliminary round for the world middle class championship. They boys fought three rounds, eliciting laughter and applause from the crowd. This fight was received so enthusiastically, it wasn’t long before they were being represented by a well-known Salt Lake City sports promoter, and performing additional matches to increasing thunderous applause. Floyd and Loyd appeared as the introductory fight for world champion wrestler Frank Gotch. Gotch is credited with popularizing professional wrestling during the period.
The Zimmermans moved to Osage City in 1912, as the twins were entering the height of their popularity. The boys boasted impressive measurements: a chest expansion of 4 inches and weighing approximately 40 pounds each. They again opened for Frank Gotch and performed in Burlingame and Quenemo against local boxers.
The twins delighted in switching sides so that the audience never really knew who won the match, it was often declared as “the boy in the northeast corner.” No one really cared though because the matches were so entertaining. The matches were profitable for the family. Money cascaded onto the mat after a match, or a passed hat received a “liberal collection.”
The twins’ regional success culminated in the chance to showcase their abilities at the Kansas State Fair, in Hutchinson, in the fall of 1913. Their anticipated performance at the fair, however, drew harsh criticism from their greatest adversary yet – William O’Brien, the newly appointed State Labor Commissioner.
William O’Brien had been appointed as labor commissioner in February of that year. He was commended for being considered a logical choice for the position with his previous experience. O’Brien was enthusiastic about enforcement of labor laws – to put it mildly, particularly about children used for labor. This even extended to performances for charity.
Commissioner O’Brien became aware of a children’s play being put on as a benefit in Topeka during his second month in office and fought to have the play shut down. He posited that it set a bad precedent for children performing for adults’ use, and he was very concerned that “no one seemed to care.” In order for the show to go on, firemen had to be stationed at the ready and children were taken from the building immediately after their parts concluded.
So, when Commissioner O’Brien heard of the Zimmerman twins’ anticipated performance at the state fair, he jumped into action. He declared that they would be in violation of labor laws if they stepped on the mat or performed in the “Old Mexico 1847 Extravaganza” which was a huge production detailing life during the Mexican American War for American soldiers.
Undoubtedly, the negative spotlight that had been put on them was not going to go away until O’Brien’s term was up, so the Zimmermans made a counter move. Walter Zimmerman contacted Grant Harrington, a former acquaintance who had become the secretary for the governor. In order to redeem their reputation and influence lawmakers to allow for their continuation as what they said was a recreational activity, a plan was made with Harrington and Attorney General John Dawson for the boys to perform for the Kansas Legislature.
The match was held in the Representative Hall of the State House in September 1913. The chairs were cleared, and a canvas was spread on the floor and state officials watched in amusement as the boys performed. After the match, the Attorney General reserved his opinion, but Labor Commissioner O’Brien held to his original ruling and defeated the hopes of the Zimmermans.
With no outlook for leniency in Kansas, Walter promptly moved his family to Missouri, where the child labor laws were not as stringent. From Missouri they moved to Tennessee, where they continued to perform for another five years, but they did not see the enthusiasm or popularity as they did when they lived in Osage City.
Nationwide, wrestling waned after Frank Gotch’s retirement in 1913, and no new wrestling superstar emerged to captivate the audience’s attention for quite some time as the sport went through a period where its legitimacy was questioned heavily.
Author’s note: both boxing and wrestling are used interchangeably in this article because the boys performed a hybrid of the sports in their shows.
Wendi Bevitt is owner of Buried Past Consulting LLC. She lived in Osage County for 20 years and her research interests include Osage County Civil War veterans and Osage County history.
