​For decades, Bobby Crabtree has followed a steady routine: tending to his long-standing auto body shop by day and slipping into the gym as his evenings begin. On July 21, that familiar rhythm will pause briefly as the City of Fort Smith pays tribute to the former professional boxer with a street naming ceremony at 1110 S. 12th Street. The event kicks off at 1 p.m. with food from JC’s Bar-B-Q Place, and the street unveiling is slated for about 2:30 p.m.
“We want to invite all of Fort Smith, Van Buren, to the Arkansas River Valley and Oklahoma,” Crabtree said. “They all supported us for years as we traveled this journey.” The honor recognizes Crabtree’s two-decade boxing career and his nearly 40-year tenure running his auto body shop at the same location, a period that included balancing business with training and frequent travel for fights. Fort Smith’s tribute will celebrate not only his boxing success but also his enduring ties to the community and his hometown roots.
Crabtree’s daily routine has remained remarkably consistent. He spends his days at his longtime Towson Avenue shop before heading to the gym, where he alternates between weight training and sharpening his boxing skills. That disciplined lifestyle powered him through a 20-year professional boxing career while he operated the one-man shop, sometimes closing the business for a week when his fights required him to be away. “I did it all the time,” Crabtree recalled. “I would close up shop if I had to go off for a while, for a week or something. People always knew I was doing that, so they gave me a little break sometimes.”
Born and raised in Lavaca, Crabtree admits he was headed down a troubled path in his youth. After being suspended from school in the eighth grade for fighting, his father steered him toward the auto body trade. Even then, fights remained a constant presence in his life. “I used to go to the bars with my brothers and get into fights,” he said.
A turning point came through a chance encounter with Fort Smith police officer Bob Ross. “He was the influence,” Crabtree said. “I was heading down a bad street, and he was the one who got me to work out.” Ross, along with Bob Fields, introduced Crabtree to boxing, and they set him on a path that has defined his life. “They both got me into the boxing-fighting game. So I’ve stayed with it ever since,” Crabtree said. “Working out was the main key. If it wasn’t for Bob Ross, I might have wound up in the penitentiary. So Ross and Fields got a hold of me and got me out of all that stuff.”
Crabtree believes boxing imparted the self-discipline necessary to balance a professional fighting career with running a body shop. “I’m a loner. I like to work out by myself, which a lot of people won’t do,” he explained. “You’ve got to have self-discipline. If you’re going to play the game, you’ve got to work on it.”
As Fort Smith prepares to honor a figure who embodies perseverance, community, and a strong work ethic, Crabtree remains grateful for the support that carried him through the years. The street naming ceremony on July 21 will be a testament not only to his athletic achievements but also to his enduring connection to Fort Smith and the people who stood beside him on his journey.