Martin Burns
Martin Burns (February 15, 1861 – January 8, 1937), nicknamed
Farmer Burns, was an American
catch wrestler, wrestling coach, and teacher. Born in
Cedar County, Iowa, he started wrestling as a teenager and made money traveling around the Midwest wrestling in carnivals and fairs. As a
professional wrestler, he claimed the
American Heavyweight Championship by defeating
Evan "Strangler" Lewis in 1895 and held the title for two years, during the time when contests were legitimate. At this time, Martin Burns himself claimed to have wrestled in more than 6,000 matches and is said to have lost only seven. After the end of his active wrestling career he started a successful wrestling school in
Omaha and later coached
Cedar Rapids' Washington high school to the first Iowa high school state wrestling tournament title. He died in
Council Bluffs in 1937. In 2001 Martin "Farmer" Burns was inducted into the International Wrestling Institute and Museum
Hall of Fame. He was also inducted into the
Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame in 2002. The Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame inducted Martin Burns in 2003 and Burns was inducted into the WWE Hall Of Fame in 2017. In 2024 he was inducted into the Nebraska Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame.
Provided by Wikipedia