Jailhouse Boxing is an African-American fighting system with roots that go back to the 19th century. During slavery, African warriors were captured and brought to the United States and with them came their traditional fighting arts. Pit fights were held between slaves for their masters' amusement. After slavery was abolished, laws were passed to entrap these former slaves. A law was even passed that prevented former slaves from leaving the state, so many of the freed slaves were imprisoned simply for trying to start a new life. Jailhouse Boxing is a result of the evolution of these African fighting arts within the United States prison system. Over the years techniques were added and customized.

In the 40's and 50's, African-American soldiers home from the war started entering the prison system. This introduced military hand to hand techniques to the system. Then, in the 60's the popularity of professional boxing reached an all time high and boxing programs began to emerge within penal institutions. This was the true birth of Jailhouse Boxing. It is similar to Capoeira, in that it was developed among an enslaved people and had to be taught in secret in order to survive. Whereas slaves were forced to disguise Capoeira as a dance to practice it in the open, prisoners honed their skills in prison boxing rings. Even though traditional boxing rules applied, many fighters would work their own techniques into the ring such as unique striking angles, slips, catches and footwork drawn from popular dances of the day. These skills carried over to life outside the ring where there were no rules... so elbows, headbutts, low blows and blades were thrown into the mix. This is when Jailhouse Boxing is most effective.