Earliest English Chess Clubs

Historical knowledge and information regarding our great game.
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John Clarke
Posts: 711
Joined: Sat Apr 30, 2011 1:07 pm

Re: Earliest English Chess Clubs

Post by John Clarke » Sat May 12, 2018 1:02 am

Roger Lancaster wrote:
Wed May 09, 2018 9:24 am
I can only sympathise with Michael and Kevin on the evident decline in English chess standards.
Put me down as one who helped accelerate the decline. As a schoolboy, I sometimes wrote moves like N-Kt5 just to be different.

A fellow team-member used to employ his own set of initials for the pieces (B = "Building" = rook; C = "Clergyman" = bishop, etc).
"The chess-board is the world ..... the player on the other side is hidden from us ..... he never overlooks a mistake, or makes the smallest allowance for ignorance."
(He doesn't let you resign and start again, either.)

raycollett
Posts: 231
Joined: Wed Jun 25, 2008 1:54 pm

Re: Earliest English Chess Clubs: Kidderminster

Post by raycollett » Fri Apr 15, 2022 3:19 pm

John Wrench (Kidderminster CC) has sent me a note that the Illustrated London News 1845 published in Staunton's column 'the birth of a Chess club' in Kidderminster - 'a pleasant little town, under the auspices of Mr Knight MP member of St George's'. The subscription was announced to be 20s which, according to the Bank of England inflation calculator, equates to just under £130 money today. John also forwarded another story from the Chess player's Chronicle (Sat 11 Sep 1847) giving the score of a game between G Simpson (Hon Secy Huddersfield CC) and Mr Creswell (Hon Secy Kidderminster CC)