New Liverpool Chess Club website launched

Historical knowledge and information regarding our great game.
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JamesGallagher
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New Liverpool Chess Club website launched

Post by JamesGallagher » Thu Jul 21, 2016 11:10 am

Liverpool Chess Club New Website
http://www.liverpoolchessclub.co.uk
The New website provides an in-depth look at the club since its foundation in 1837 through to life in the club today with much more detail to be added as research continues

Please provide any additional information you have re individuals or events at the club that may be relevant to the clubs history or indeed if you yourself were a previous member or visitor to the club?

Enjoy!
Would be good to get your feedback!
James Gallagher
President of Liverpool Chess Club
07789 924983
www.facebook.com/Liverpoolchessclub/

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Gerard Killoran
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Re: New Liverpool Chess Club website launched

Post by Gerard Killoran » Thu Jul 21, 2016 2:50 pm

Here's a game between two club members I've mentioned elsewhere:



In the BCM the game is analysed by J. H. Blake.

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Gerard Killoran
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Re: New Liverpool Chess Club website launched

Post by Gerard Killoran » Fri Mar 17, 2017 7:39 pm

Here's something for the Liverpool Chess Club website.
Liverpool Echo, Wednesday June 3, 1942.jpg
Liverpool Echo, Wednesday June 3, 1942.jpg (94.45 KiB) Viewed 2272 times
Also of interest could be my latest blogpost

http://ilkleychess.blogspot.com/2017/03 ... moted.html

Where I ask, 'What happened to Walter Chandler, John Evans and George Hadfield?'

David Robertson

Re: New Liverpool Chess Club website launched

Post by David Robertson » Fri Mar 17, 2017 9:10 pm

Nice find.

Which prompts the question for me: when, or better why, did the likes of P R England, senior company/professionals, stop being members of chess clubs? Perhaps they didn't elsewhere, though I can think of none in the Liverpool area over the past four decades: senior academics, a few; commercial sector, none.

Did something change about the game, making it less attractive for them? Did something change about the nature of work at this level? Or the image/credibility of the game? Clearly something changed that rendered something pleasant, credible and worth doing at one time (1950/1960s?), no longer worth doing.

I muse

David Williams
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Re: New Liverpool Chess Club website launched

Post by David Williams » Sat Mar 18, 2017 12:41 pm

I never realised you knew what we all did for a living.

But you have a good point. Is it that in the olden days chess clubs were comprised mainly of people like that? Of a certain class and largely of a certain age. And then chess became a lot more inclusive, with a good spread of the whole (male) population. Certainly a great influx of young people. And, of course, in those days the Chairman of Royal Insurance finished work at five o'clock.

And isn't it good to see Liverpool Chess Club, by some claims the oldest in (I forget exactly), and with a tremendous history, back from the brink.

Bob Clark
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Re: New Liverpool Chess Club website launched

Post by Bob Clark » Sat Mar 18, 2017 8:19 pm

George Hadfield mentioned above worked at the Vauxhall Motors plant in Ellesmere Port.
He also played for their chess team for many years in the local leagues prior to his death in the late eighties / early nineties.

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Gerard Killoran
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Re: New Liverpool Chess Club website launched

Post by Gerard Killoran » Sun Mar 19, 2017 11:49 am

From 1975-77 G. Hadfield is listed as a President of the Chester & District Chess League

http://www.cdchessleague.org.uk/presidents.php

Richard James
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Re: New Liverpool Chess Club website launched

Post by Richard James » Sun Mar 19, 2017 12:33 pm

Gerard Killoran wrote:From 1975-77 G. Hadfield is listed as a President of the Chester & District Chess League

http://www.cdchessleague.org.uk/presidents.php
I think this is him:
George Edward Hadfield: born West Derby, Liverpool 12 Dec 1924
Death registered in Chester & Ellesmere Port, May 1989

A photograph of him as a young man in an online family tree seems to confirm this.

There's also:
Walter Robert Chandler: born West Derby, Liverpool 22 Nov 1924
Death registered in Liverpool Jul 1994

There are multiple births for John Evans in West Derby at the right time. Evans, a very common Welsh surname would also have been very common in Liverpool.

Richard James
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Re: New Liverpool Chess Club website launched

Post by Richard James » Sun Mar 19, 2017 12:47 pm

David Robertson wrote:Nice find.

Which prompts the question for me: when, or better why, did the likes of P R England, senior company/professionals, stop being members of chess clubs? Perhaps they didn't elsewhere, though I can think of none in the Liverpool area over the past four decades: senior academics, a few; commercial sector, none.

Did something change about the game, making it less attractive for them? Did something change about the nature of work at this level? Or the image/credibility of the game? Clearly something changed that rendered something pleasant, credible and worth doing at one time (1950/1960s?), no longer worth doing.

I muse
A year or two ago I tried to track down some of the players representing Twickenham Chess Club in the 1890s. Most of those I could locate appeared to be middle class: accountants, civil servants and so on, and, very often, unmarried. Perhaps not a lot different from today.

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