North End celebrates Tony DeMarco Championship win in 1955.
A landmark event will take place in Boston’s North End on Saturday October 20, 2012. There, at the corner of Hanover Street and Cross Street, at 1 p.m., a bronze of Welterweight Champion Tony DeMarco will be unveiled.
A favorite son of the city of Boston, Tony DeMarco grew up on Fleet Street in the North End, and with the encouragement of his family, friends, and neighborhood rose to the heights of the boxing world when he became undisputed Welterweight Champion of the World on April 1, 1955 with his defeat of Johnny Saxton at the Boston Garden. The city celebrated that win for days. The kid from the neighborhood, “The Flame and Fury of Fleet Street,†was the Champ.
On October 20th, the city and neighborhood with celebrate again in recognition of Tony DeMarco’s championship win and his very successful boxing career in which he fought eight World Champions, including two epic battles with Carmen Basilio.
The culmination of four years of planning, the bronze was commissioned by the Massachusetts Chapter of the National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame, and sponsored by the Privitera Family Charitable Foundation. Created by renowned sculptor Harry Weber, whose body of work includes the iconic Bobby Orr and Doug Flutie bronzes, the new Tony DeMarco statue is a fitting tribute to one of the greatest and most beloved athletes ever to come out of the city of Boston.
The very active 80-year-old former Champ will be on hand to take part in the unveiling ceremony which will take place at 1 p.m. at the site of the statue on the corner of Hanover Street and Cross Street, the Gateway to the North End.
The public is invited to attend the ceremonies for the unveiling of the DeMarco bronze, where remarks will be made by dignitaries and members of the boxing world. At the conclusion of the ceremonies, Tony DeMarco will take the podium to speak to his family, friends and fans in attendance.