I remember reading an article a long time ago about John L. Sullivan and some of the other last bare knuckle boxers around the turn of the century. According to the article, many people mistakenly believe that the invention of the boxing glove came about to protect fighter's heads. According to the article the glove was originally invented to protect the fighter's hands. They felt like too many fighters were injuring/breaking their hands during fights.
I may try to look some of it up on YouTube. Thanks for the tip. It might be interesting to see some of that old-school stuff...