Bella was married to boxer (and bank robber, see OldTimeMusicHall) Dick Burge. They took on the lease of the Surrey Chapel, an ex-chapel which had become a boxing ring in 1910. Renamed "The Ring" it became one of the first indoor venues for working class boxing. Bella and her female friends attended the boxing bouts, which was very unusual at that date. Dick died in 1919 and Bella carried on the Ring, expanding into all-in wrestling in 1932. Bombs in 1940 and 1941 destroyed the building and the site was redeveloped, most recently into the Palastra Building. This information all comes from the wonderful Nickel in the Machine, where you will find some fascinating pictures.
This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
Bella Burge
Commemorated ati
Other Subjects
Lloyds Coffee House
Edward Lloyd first opened his coffee house on Tower Street in 1687 but had to move to larger premises in Lombard Street in 1691. It was a meeting place for businessmen where information was exchan...
1 memorial
Phoenix Fire Office
Bryan Mawer says "In 1782, the Phoenix Fire Office was established by sugar refiners for sugar refiners, prompted by objections to the excessive rates charged by the existing insurance companies, i...
1 memorial
Bearman's Department Store
Opened by Frank Bearman on the site of a former vicarage. By 1906 he had purchased a nearby furniture shop, and in 1910 opened an arcade to match the larger department stores in London. It claimed ...
1 memorial
Smithfield Poultry Market
The original poultry market by Horace Jones was opened in 1875 but destroyed by fire in 1958. Our page for that fire has an image of the original building. The new building has a concrete elliptic...
1 memorial
Col. Sir Horace Brooks Marshall, K.C.V.O., LL.D.
Very successfully pioneered bookshops on railway stations with the business name Horace Marshall and Son. The son being Horace Brooks Marshall, Jnr. Snr. was a Commoner on the Bridge House Estates...
1 memorial
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