Farmer Burns Event a Big Success

Wednesday, July 10th, 2024 | Wrestling

The event held in tiny Big Rock, Iowa, on June 22 to honor the life and career of legendary wrestler and trainer Martin “Farmer” Burns was a big success, with Dan Gable being the main attraction. Over 150 people came, and Dan worked the crowd to perfection when he and his wife Kathy arrived, shaking hands and posing for photos. Mike gave him a big introduction and people began standing and clapping as he walked to the podium (which was a large rain barrel). He gave a powerful talk, saying how important it is to keep alive the legends of great wrestlers like Burns and his most famous pupil, Frank Gotch.

After the ceremony, Dan, Mike and Wes Fox, the man who came up with the idea, walked to the large display board and pulled down the curtain as people gathered around and cheered. There are two large boards, the top one which has a photo of Burns and a brief bio, and the bottom one which lists the names of the many donors who helped make the project possible. Wes has lived in the Big Rock area all his life.

Burns is credited with having competed in 6,000 matches with just six losses. He ran a very successful wrestling school and mail-order wrestling business for many years. He was born and raised in Big Rock and died in 1937. He is buried in Toronto, Iowa, just ten miles away,

Curran Jacobs, who has won several top-level catch tournaments and starred in and directed the documentary “For the Love of Catch”, came from Michigan to record the event for a podcast.

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