Name:  James E. Owens
Hometown:  Fairfield, Vermont

Owens was the son of a farmer near St. Albans, Vermont and was a cousin of McMahon
and Edward Cox of Fairfield, two wrestlers.  He stood 5'8" and weighed 185 pounds.

Born on a Fairfield, Vermont farm in 1850, Owens must have had wrestling in his blood. He was the cousin of one of the biggest names of the early 20th century, John McMahon, and another well known Collar & Elbow star, Edward Cox. Due to his upbringing on a farm Owens had the advantage that the work on a farm provided a much rounder work-out than could be achieved by any other form of exercise, building muscles and endurance with every day on it. 

Most likely he received some training from one of his two cousins, if not both, but that is not confirmed. Whether he was or not he became a big star in Vermont before ever receiving national spotlight and would stay that way for several years. Exactly when he decided to step up to the big names within Collar & Elbow is not known. 

On December 28, 1876 though Owens pulled off the unthinkable: Being the younger, less experienced wrestler, as well as having a size disadvantage he still managed to defeat McLaughlin and started his first reign as the American Collar & Elbow Champion. It took place in the Boston Music Hall in front of up to 4,000 people in a contest that lasted five-and-a-half hours with Owens scoring two straight falls. 

 

On December 27, 1876, a "titanic struggle" occurred in Boston at the Music Hall between James Owens and Colonel James H. McLaughlin for the Collar and Elbow championship of the World.  McLaughlin won the title in a Detroit tournament in 1870.  For the match, there would be two committees, one for each wrestler, and two umpires, in addition to a referee, Dr. John P. Ordway of Boston.  The title would be on the line and a $1,000 side bet.  They followed the rule of Edwin James' Sporting Manuel.  McLaughlin held a distinct advantage in terms of weight and height, standing 6'2" to Owens' 5'8" and weighing 230 to his opponent's 185.

During the first fall, there was no winner, but McLaughlin took the second.  Owens won the third.  Again in the fourth fall, there was no winner declared.  During the fifth fall, the
referee said the grapplers were too tired to continue and stopped the match.  The crowd voiced its displeasure and an angry protest was launched.  McLaughlin and Owens
agreed to continue at that point, and Owen won a "square back fall," and won the match two falls to one.  The fans cheered the finish.

After the match, McLaughlin said that his foot was sore, and prevented him from doing certain moves.  Owens' win was considered a huge upset at the time.

His reign although recognized by the majority of people was not unified by any means. McLaughlin would still claim the championship where possible and other versions of the title cropped up also during this time. Of the four men who were vying for the crown, Owens would be the first one eliminated when on June 11, 1879 he lost at the Howard Antheum in Boston to a relatively young Henry Moses Dufur. It was kind of poetic really, Owens losing in a match to the upcoming lion, mirroring what had happened in the winter of 1876. 

 

Owens, in November 1878, was called the American champion at the collar and elbow style.  He accepted the challenge of Charles Connor on November 20.

 

A controversial match occurred at Boston's Atheneum between Owens and H.M. Dufur of Marlboro for the C&E championship, plus a $500 side-bet.  James' rules were in place to govern the bout.  The referee was Judge Fasset of Nashua, New Hampshire.  Dufur scored the first fall, using his size advantage to dominate aspects of the bout.  Then, during the second fall, Owens apparently took a fall, but the judges couldn't tell if it really was a fall or not.  Fans cried out that it hadn't been one.  The referee stated that Dufur
won the fall, which the fans disagreed with, and then disappeared.

Dufur had his two falls and won the match.  Owens addressed the crowd, protesting the decision, and wanted to meet Dufur again.  He also wanted the stakeholder, Colonel
Morse, not to pay his opponent, and Morse agreed not to pay up.  After the match, Dufur claimed the championship, however, he understood if Owens didn't want to pay the $500.

As of July 1879, there were at least four individuals claiming the Collar and Elbow wrestling championship: Owens, Dufur, McLaughlin and McMahon, and a tournament was being considered.

At the New York City St. James Opera House on August 6, 1879, John McMahon beat Owens in two-of-three-falls, eliminating Owens from contention for the disputed Collar and Elbow championship.  McMahon won the American title claim and a $2,000 side-bet.  600 people saw the match and Harry Hill was the referee.  McMahon won the second and third falls after Owens annexed the first.

In 1880 Owens seems to disappear completely from the public eye other than an add mention that he was an "ex-champion who had been thrown by McMahon." 

Sadly on December 24, 1880 James E. Owens passed away in his home in Fairfield of a bronchial infection. He had contracted it in late November/earl December and could not fight it off. He may not have been in the spotlight a long time and he was only thirty years old when he died, but his name was permanently etched in the annuals of history when he defeated the Colonel for the belt, and he gained the respect of everyone with it. 

I'll finish this with the final sentence of an obituary written a couple of days after his passing as it provides a look at how he was perceived by the sporting world, "He bore the reputation of a real gentleman, and was noted for his honesty and fair dealing."