William Perry

William Perry (1819 – 24 December 1880), known as "The Tipton Slasher" after his native town of Tipton, was a British heavyweight prize fighter of the 19th century and claimed the championship of England, with some dispute, for two periods between 1850 and 1857. His fighting career began in London in 1835 and after fighting a number of highly rated championship contenders, he first claimed the English heavyweight championship by defeating Tom Paddock in twenty-seven rounds on 17 December 1850. In 1851 he lost the English heavyweight title in a controversial referee's decision to Harry Broome which he strongly disputed. After the leading contenders of the day refused to fight him, Perry reclaimed the English title until Tom Sayers defeated him in a championship bout in 1857. Early life Perry was born in Tipton (then in Staffordshire, now West Midlands) in 1819. His parents were Timothy, a miner, and Sarah Perry. He was the third of five children, and baptized at St Martin's, Tipton on 1 August 1819. At the time of the baptism, his parents were living in the Lea Brook area of Tipton. At the age of 16 he was reportedly working as a navvy in London. Boxing career