Tom Jenkins

Known by monkikers ranging from "The Rolling Mill Man" early in life to "The Man from Benny Havens Tavern" during his West Point career, Tom Jenkins first public wrestling exhibitions came during the daily breaks while he was a young man working as a steelworker. Jenkins excelled in wrestling despite an accident that occurred during his childhood when an explosion during a fourth of July celebration left him blind in his right eye. He was said to have possessed large, rough hands and a natural strength that often overwhelmed his opponents. His first major wins came over the legendary Farmer Burns, trainer of Frank Gotch and the acknowledged master of the catch-as-catch-can style of wrestling. Although Burns was well past his prime and apparently still taking matches just for the payday, the victories brought Jenkins into the national spotlight and helped to elevate wrestling to a higher profile with the American public at large.

Jenkins battled the international stars like George Hackenschmidt and the trio of "Terrible Turks" during his career, but his most high profile series was against Frank Gotch. They traded the Americas title on several occasions and the rivalry got so heated that on one occasion Jenkins was actually disqualified between rounds. As legend has it, Jenkins had claimed Gotch was using illegal tactics during the match (a common complaint among Gotch's opponents), jabbing at Jenkins' weakened eyes with a "v" like finger poke as they grappled for position. Gotch apparently made a snide remark and Jenkins decked him with a series of punches to prompt the disqualification. A rematch was later signed with "fouls allowed", a precursor to today's no disqualification matches. Jenkins was later quoted as saying about Gotch, "A gent what gouges out a gent's eyes ain't no gent". Whether this story is based in truth or simply an embellishment of the actual facts is matter for conjecture, but it remains part of the legend of the Jenkins/Gotch series nevertheless.

In 1905 President Theodore Roosevelt appointed Tom Jenkins the first boxing and wrestling instructor at the West Point military academy, a position Jenkins held for 37 years until 1942.