Born in Norfolk, the great pugilist was British heavyweight champion for most of 1861-71 and in effect the first world champion; he travelled Britain and the world the world giving exhibitions. The Jem Mace Circus visited Sunderland and Middlesbrough in May 1863. He also visited an old sparring partner near Bishop Auckland and drank at The Swan in Evenwood. Mace has been called the greatest of all the British boxers, and father of modern scientific (gloved) boxing, though he himself preferred the bare-knuckle sport. He earned vast sums in his lifetime but spent the lot on women and gambling; he ended up selling handshakes for coppers. Mace got a great reception at St James Hall in Newcastle a few months before his death, and he was touring in Jarrow with a showman when he collapsed and died at 6, Princess Street of ‘senile decay‘.