Joe Louis

Joe Louis was an American professional boxer who held the world heavyweight championship from 1937 to 1949, the longest single reign in the division's history. Born Joseph Louis Barrow on May 13, 1914, in Lafayette, Alabama, he was the son of sharecroppers and moved with his family to Detroit, Michigan, as a child during the Great Migration.

Louis attended Bronson Vocational School in Detroit, where he studied cabinet-making. He took up amateur boxing at the Brewster Recreation Center and dropped his surname when registering for fights, becoming "Joe Louis" to keep the activity hidden from his mother.

He won the National AAU light heavyweight title in 1934 and turned professional that year. His first-round knockout of former champion Primo Carnera in 1935 made him a national figure, and his rematch victory over German boxer Max Schmeling on June 22, 1938, knocking Schmeling out in two minutes and four seconds at Yankee Stadium, became a touchstone in American sports history on the eve of World War II.

Louis won the heavyweight title from James J. Braddock on June 22, 1937, and made twenty-five successful defenses. He served in the U.S. Army during World War II, fighting exhibitions for the troops. He retired as champion in 1949, attempted a comeback that ended with a loss to Rocky Marciano in 1951, and finished with a record of 66 wins and 3 losses with 52 knockouts. He died on April 12, 1981.

The name Joe is a short form of Joseph, from the Hebrew Yosef, meaning "he will add" or "may God add," from the verb yasaf (to add).