Photographed February 16, 1915

Louis Wallach was born in February 1886 in New York’s Jewish Lower East Side. He grew up in a tough neighborhood and was often forced to fight in the streets. Wallach attended New York University in New York City where he studied dentistry. He only began boxing while in school to pick up a few extra dollars. In 1905, he fought his first fight in which he earned $6. He changed his name to Leach Cross in hopes his parents would not find out he was boxing. By 1908 he was an established champion boxer but still and practicing dentist and is called “The Fighting Dentist”. In December of 1911, Cross knocked out KO Brown’s teeth. Brown then went to get his teeth repaired by Dr. Louis Wallach.



Though not a sophisticated boxer, Leach has managed to take on more scientific boxers and hold his own.

On February 16, 1915 this publicity shot of Leach Cross was taken somewhere in New York City.