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May 26 1953
The Gazette and Daily, York, Pennsylvania, Tuesday, May 26, 1953
Horst Bottstein Is Chess Tourney Winner
Horst Bottstein, 624 Roosevelt avenue, won first place Sunday in the York City and County Chess championship, rather than Herman Bottstein, as reported incorrectly yesterday.
Herman Bottstein, who also competed in the tournament, is the father of the winner.
June 12 1956
York Daily Record, York, Pennsylvania, Tuesday, June 12, 1956
Chess Champions—Horst Bottstein, seated center, examines a trophy which he retired this year by winning the championship of the Y Chess club for the third time in four years. Other winners in the five-month round robin tournament shown Thursday at the club's annual meeting at the YMCA are from left, seated, Rabbi Amos Edelheit, last year's winner, who took third place this year; Bottstein, and John M. Schultz, who has been second for the past three years; standing, Jay Bortner, 11, son of Mr. and Mrs. John Bortner, 1325 East Philadelphia street, who won the junior title; J. H. Anderson, who received a book, “Why You Lose at Chess,” for placing last in the tourney; and Paul Vines, 13, son of Mr. and Mrs. Raymond Vines, 10 Hill street, who was awarded a wallet for placing second in the junior tournament.
December 22 1999
The York Dispatch, York, Pennsylvania, Wednesday, December 22, 1999
Horst Bottstein, Manchester Township
Horst Bottstein of Manchester Township died at 4:12 p.m. December 20 at Rest Haven-York. He was 71.
Mr. Bottstein was a tool and die maker at Lyon Metal Co. for 33 years and at Cole Steel Co. for seven years. He retired in 1990.
He was a member of Zion Lutheran Church.
He was a member of Alpenrose German Club.
Born in Berlin, Germany, October 17, 1928, he was a son of the late Hermann and Freida Mueller Bottstein.
He leaves his wife, Mary Sue Mummert Bottstein; three daughters Katharina Laskowsky of Baltimore, Susanna Faust of York and Sarah Faust of St. Joseph, Mo.; two sons, Horst Bottstein of Billings, Mont., and Donald Bottstein of Denver, Colorado; four grandchildren; and six great-grandchildren.
A daughter, Monica Bottstein, is deceased.
Visitation is 9:30 to 10 a.m. tomorrow at Zion Lutheran Church, 2215 Brandywine Lane. The service is at 10 a.m. tomorrow at the church with the Rev. Stanley W. Combs and the Rev. Christine Babey-Jones officiating.
Burial is in Greenmount Cemetery.
Memorial contributions may be made to Zion Lutheran Church Building Fund, 2215 Brandywine Lane, York 17404; or to Visiting Nurse Association Hospice, 218 E. Market St., York 17403.
Robert F. Koller Funeral Home Inc., 2000 W. Market St., is in charge of arrangements.
June 15 1898
The Cincinnati Post, Cincinnati, Ohio, Wednesday, June 15, 1898
On The Iowa.
Cadet Beckner, of Winchester, KY., Who Is Still Under 20.
(Post Special Service.)
Lexington, KY., June 14.—Cadet John Taliaferro Beckner, is a son of Judge W. M. Beckner, of Winchester, Ky. He was born Sept. 20, 1878, entered the Naval Academy at Annapolis May 20, 1895; assigned to active duty on the Iowa June 1, 1898; has distinguished himself at the academy in mathematics; is 6 feet 2 inches tall and is quite an athlete and gymnast. His brother Seth is the First Lieutenant of Company C, Second Kentucky Volunteer Infantry, now at Chickamauga.
1899
July 07 1899
Lexington Herald-Leader, Lexington, Kentucky, Friday, July 07, 1899
PRAISE FROM DEWEY
For Naval Cadet “Tot” Beckner, of Clark County.
Work In The Philippines.
The proudest happiest man in Winchester on the Fourth was undoubtedly Judge W. M. Beckner, says the Winchester Democrat who on that day received information for the first time that his son Naval Cadet John Taliaferro Beckner had had special mention from Admiral George Dewey for “bravery and skill” in action. It seems that a gunboat expedition in charge of Lieut. Ellicott, an officer on the U.S.S. Baltimore was sent up the Pasig river on which Manila is situated to drive out some bodies of insurgents along its banks who had been quite troublesome. Our sailor boy, of whom we are all so proud was one of the officers sent with the expedition and in a fight that took place received a flesh wound. When the boats returned the commander of the Baltimore sent to Admiral Dewey a report of their operations. In acknowledging the receipt of this communication the great hero wrote the following letter:
No 1201-S.
United States Naval Force,
on Asiatic Station,
Flagship Olympia,
Manila, P. I., April 2, 1899.
Sir:
1. The receipt is acknowledged of your letter of the 30th ultimo enclosing Lieut. Ellicott's report of a boat expedition. Your activity and judgment are commended.
2. The Commander-In-Chief desires to commend also the bravery and skill shown by Lieut. Ellicott, Naval Cadet Beckner and the officers and men in the boat expedition.
Very respectfully,
GEORGE DEWEY,
Admiral United States Navy,
Commanding U.S. Naval Force
on Asiatic Station.
Like all that Admiral Dewey does, this letter is direct and clear and uses no superfluous words. It is certainly a great compliment that such a man should single out from the officers and men in the expedition and specially mention by name Lieut. Ellicott and Cadet Beckner. Taliaferro is so modest and unassuming that he had not even written home about the matter. Like his noble grandfather, for whom he was named, he detests the very appearance of bragging. A cop of Dewey's letter was sent to his father by a friend who happened to see it. His wound received on the above expedition has entirely healed. He is attached to the Baltimore, which is the flagship of Rear Admiral Watson, who has succeeded Dewey as commander of our naval forces on the Asiatic Station.
May 15 1932
The Cincinnati Enquirer, Cincinnati, Ohio, Sunday, May 15, 1932
Captain J. T. Beckner, formerly of Winchester, Ky., and for a time a resident of Cincinnati, Ohio, is now residing in Miami, Fla. The Captain was regarded in this vicinity as a “near” chess master and, next to Showalter, the most powerful player ever turned out in “Old Kentucky.”
Captain Beckner often frequented the Cincinnati Chess Club rooms and has many admirers and friends in this vicinity who will be delighted to learn that the Captain is entertaining a new future world's chess champion at his home, who has been christened John T. Beckner Jr.
October 20 1944
The Courier-Journal, Louisville, Kentucky, Friday, October 20, 1944
Lt. John T. Beckner, Aide To Admiral Dewey, Dies
Lt. John Taliaferro Beckner, 66, retired Navy officer and a former automobile dealer here, died early yesterday at St. Petersburg, of an illness resulting from Spanish-American War wounds.
A brother of Col. Lucien Beckner, Louisville geologist, he also was a writer and chess expert. Lieutenant Beckner was graduated from Annapolis in 1898. He served first on the battleship Iowa in the Battle of Santiago, then with Admiral Dewey on his flagship, the Baltimore, in the Philippine Insurrection. He suffered a shattered right arm and internal injuries during an engagement in the Gulf of Lingayen.
Before coming here in the 1920's, he was an editorial staff member of The New York Times. From Louisville he moved to Miami and later to St. Petersburg.
Lieutenant Beckner was a volunteer officer with Capt. Bowman McCalla during the siege of Tien Tsin in China's Boxer Rebellion and later marched to Pekin, where he saw the looting of that ancient Manchu capital by the Chinese.
He was the son of the late U. S. Representative William M. Beckner and Elizabeth Taliaferro Beckner, Winchester, Ky.
In addition to his brother, he is survived by his wife, the former Margaret Lee Fitter of Louisville; a son, John T. Beckner, Jr., a daughter, Miss Lillian Beckner; a stepson, Lt. William Gordon Bryant; another brother, Col. William H. Beckner, York, Penn., and two sisters, Mrs. Edward Clark and Mrs. Phoebe B. Worth, both of Lexington.
October 22 1944
Tampa Bay Times, St. Petersburg, Florida, Sunday, October 22, 1944
Funeral services for John T. Beckner, who died Thursday at Bay Pines, will be held Tuesday morning at 10:30 o'clock at Bay Pines. Mr. Beckner was one of two men to receive citations from Adm. Dewey in the Battle of the Philippines in the Spanish-American war and received the highest marks ever given a student of mathematics at Annapolis. He was a world famous chess player and was a member of the local club. Wilhelm's are in charge of arrangements.
November 07 1948
The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, Brooklyn, New York, Sunday, November 07, 1948
Fritz Brieger, 70, Banker, Ex-City Official, Foe of Harvey
Funeral services for Fritz Brieger, 70, prominent Queens banker and builder and former Queens Superintendent of Street Cleaning, who died of thrombosis Thursday night while riding home in an automobile, will be held at 1:30 p.m. today at the Urban Funeral Home, 69th St. and Queens Boulevard, Woodside. Cremation will be at Fresh Pond. He lived at 5302 63rd St., Woodside.
Mr. Brieger, who built a $300 printing business into a wealthy enterprise and then became interested in banking and real estate, was appointed by the late Borough President George U. Harvey as Superintendent of Street Cleaning in December, 1928. He conducted an investigation into the department, using his own funds to pay private investigators. The inquiry, which resulted in the removal of three bureau officials, turned from holdovers to Harvey appointees and expended to other branches of the Harvey administration.
Mr. Brieger resigned in March, 1929, saying he was disillusioned with the Harvey administration. He later made three unsuccessful attempts to have Mr. Harvey removed from office, filing charges with the then Gov. Franklin D. Roosevelt and twice with Gov. Herbert H. Lehman. Each time the charges were dismissed.
Mr. Brieger, a native of Glatz, Silesia, was an actor with a wandering troupe of players in Germany before coming to America in 1897. He ran his printing business in Manhattan for 22 years before branching out into real estate and building enterprises in the early 1920s. He built the Woodside National Bank, of which he was vice president and a director; Loew's Woodside Theater, and 89 houses in Woodside.
An expert chess player, Mr. Brieger was influential in chess circles here and abroad. His business interests in Woodside covered a wide range. He was president of the Juber Real Estate and Insurance Agency, owner and president of the Woodbury Wine and Liquor Company and owner and president of the Elmboro Realty Company.
He was a member of the Steuben Society, the Ancient Lodge, F & A. M. and was active in Queens Democratic circles and numerous Queens civic and social organizations, including the Woodside Lions Club and the Queens Elks Club. He was vice president of the New York State Chess Association.
Surviving are his widow, the former Renate Schoen, and three daughters, Mrs. Clara Haddad, Mrs. Margaret Juber and Mrs. William Butler, and seven grandchildren.
August 31 1954
The Buffalo News, Buffalo, New York, Tuesday, August 31, 1954
Miss Dolley Bride of Chess Expert
Dr. and Mrs. William Lee Dolley Jr. of Heim Rd., Getzville, announce that the marriage of their daughter, Florence M., to Robert E. Byrne, son of Mrs. Elizabeth Byrne of New York, took place Aug. 24 in their home.
The bride was graduated from Vassar College where she received a B.A. degree. She spent a year in Washington as Defense Department aide and received a Master of Education degree in elementary teaching from the University of Buffalo in June.
Mr. Byrne received a B.A. degree from Yale University and is a graduate student in philosophy at Indiana University. He was a member of the chess team representing the United States in the recent matches with Russia in New York.
February 23 1970
The Indianapolis Star, Indianapolis, Indiana, Monday, February 23, 1970
City Resident Holds High Spot Among World's Chess Players
By Thomas R. Keating
Robert Byrne of Indianapolis played 20 games of chess last week at New York City, winning 17 and playing to a draw in the other three.
While this showing seems no more than should be expected of Indiana's only International Grand Chess Master, it might be pointed out that Byrne played all 20 games at the same time against skilled members of the prestigious Manhattan Chess Club.
The games were part of “simultaneous exhibitions” that the 41-year-old Byrne puts on occasionally around the world.
BYRNE, WHO lives with his wife, Florence, and their 8-year-old son, Benjamin, at 3369 Meadows Court, is a full-time, professional chess player.
He is one of only seven International Grand Chess Masters in the United States today and is currently No. 5 in the national rankings.
Byrne's ability at the chess board has taken him around the world several times. He has been a member of the United States team in the World Chess Olympiad five times. He also is one of the few men to ever beat Bobby Fisher, the New Yorker who is ranked No. 1 in the world.
Byrne started his chess career at the Brooklyn Children's Museum at the age of 8. Soon after learning the game, he and his 6-year-old brother, Donald, were regularly beating the woman who taught them.
DONALD, a professor of English at Pennsylvania State University currently is No. 10 in the national rankings.
“Chess was a big thing in the New York high schools in the 1940s,” Byrne said. “There were 250 members in my high school chess club and the competition between schools was very keen.”
During his senior year Byrne won the individual high school chess city championship and about the same time began playing at the Manhattan Chess Club.
“The best players in the country were playing there at the time,” Byrne said, and the games would attract huge crowds. That was where I got used to playing before an audience and under pressure.
“MOST PEOPLE don't realize that competition chess is a very tense and exhausting game. I suppose putting in golf would be the closest parallel. You are under great pressure not to make the slightest mistake and there is no physical release for the tension.
“Even in golf, you can take a healthy cut at the ball and release some of the tension.”
World competition chess has a time limit of 2½ hours per game. Forty moves must be made by each player in that period. If a game is still dead locked at the end of 80 moves, the positions of the chessmen are recorded and the player who has the next move must write out this move and seal it in an envelope to be opened the next day.
“The reason for this,” Byrne explained, “is that if the move were not put down on paper, the player would have all night to consider his move.”
ALL SUBSEQUENT sessions have a time limit of four hours, with 16 moves per player required each hour.
Most top chess tourneys around the world have 16 players in the lineup. As an International Grand Master, Byrne gets more invitations to play in tourneys than he can accept. He will leave Thursday to play in a three-week tourney in Switzerland.
First prize for a major tourney will range anywhere from $1,000 to $5,000. Prize money usually is awarded through the first eight places.
On top of this, a player of Byrne's caliber is paid a fee for appearing, the amount depending on his ranking, and all travel and living expenses are picked up by the tourney sponsor. Byrne's fee usually is around $300. His top single prize was $1,500.
TO AUGMENT his tourney income, Byrne lectures on the game for several magazines. “Just as in other games or sports, chess is becoming more complex all the time,” Byrne said. “For example, some matches are now being filmed for scouting purposes. It can prove invaluable to see how a player reacts to various situations on the board and which ones he finds most difficult.”
Byrne said that while U.S. chess players are among the best in the world, they run into difficulty when playing in some Communist countries.
Communist countries subsidize their chess players just like they do their athletes, Byrne said. “The Russians have sought out and promoted their chess masters for a long time. Whenever they colonize, such as in Cuba, their chess masters are among the first people they send in.
“I WOULD RANK Russia first in the world today in chess, with either the U.S. or Yugoslavia second. But, we Americans have great difficulty in ever getting our best team together for world competition, because the Chess Olympiad lasts for five weeks and many of the players can't be gone that long.”
The World Chess Olympiad is held every two years. Since 1952, Byrne has played in the Olympiad in Finland, Bulgaria, East Germany, Switzerland and Cuba.
“The Cuban world tournament in 1966 is one I'll never forget. The Cuban press treatment of the United States Team was unbelievable. When Russia clinched first place; the Cuban papers carried the story in big headlines and when Yugoslavia finished third the same thing happened. But, there was never a mention that the U.S. finished second.”
BYRNE, A YALE University graduate, is working on a doctorate in philosophy at Indiana University. When he gets it, he plans to greatly curtail his tournament chess.
Before he does, however, he has one more goal. “I've never won the U.S. championship. I've been runnerup four times to Bobby Fischer. That's one I really want to win.”
November 26 1971
Mr. Byrne (left, playing Boris Spassky in Moscow in 1971), was cagey and patient at the table. - The Boston Globe, Boston, Massachusetts, Monday, April 15, 2013
October 14 1977
The Marion Star, Marion, Ohio, Friday, October 14, 1977
Robert Byrne, chess columnist for the New York Times, ponders the board before moving a piece Thursday in the final round of the U.S. Championships in Mentor. Byrne was champ in 1972 but failed to repeat Thursday. (AP)
Chess Title Decided
MENTOR, Ohio (AP)—Walter Browne, 28, captured his third straight United States Chess Championship when his opponent conceded less than 12 moves into the game.
Going into Thursday's final round defending champion Browne was locked in a tie for first place with New York Times chess columnist Robert Byrne, Ossining, N.Y. Byrne won the championship in 1972.
Byrne, 49, walked quietly into the game room, wearing a gray coat, white shirt and tie. He studied the board quietly for several minutes before sitting down, even though no pieces had moved yet.
Browne, of Berkeley, Calif., broke the quiet, storming into the room, wearing a black leather jacket. He slapped a white piece down as his first move and frantically began scribbling notes.
The 14 competitors settled into hours of slow, deliberate moves and hushed whispers as a crowd of spectators behind the dividing ropes craned to see every decision.
July 11 1935
The Tampa Times, Tampa, Florida, Thursday, July 11, 1935
Hernandez in Tie For Chess Meet Lead
Knoxville, July 11.—(AP)—James Walker of Barnesville, S.C., and Nestor Hernandez, of Tampa, Fla., were leading today in the class A division of the fourteenth annual tournament of the Southern Chess Association.
In class B competition, Russell Chauvenet of Staunton, and H. W. Johnson of Knoxville, were out in front.
New officers of the association elected yesterday are: Charles Roberts of Jacksonville, Fla., president; H. M. Woodbury of Birmingham, Ala., vice president; W. W. Gibbs, of Staunton, Va., second vice president, and Arthur S. Harris, of Savannah, Ga., secretary.
The name of the association also changed from the Southeastern Chess Association to the Southern Chess Association.
September 03 1946
Richmond Times-Dispatch, Richmond, Virginia, Tuesday, September 03, 1946
Russell Chauvenet (right), Charlottesville, Defending His Chess Title
The Champion Swaps a Pawn With His Final Victim, Haines Dalmas, Roanoke. Staff Photo.
Chauvenet, Winner of State Chess Tourney, Retains His Title Under Trying Conditions
By Richard Morris
“A champion chess player” suggests an elderly grey-haired gentleman with a long flowing beard—or at least with a mustache of some proportions. But that's not the case in Virginia.
The Virginia State champion is a quiet, unassuming and clean-shaven young man of 26 years—Russell Chauvenet, of Charlottesville, who successfully defended the title he won in 1942 against the cream of the State's chessmen at the Hotel John Marshall yesterday. His defeat of Haines Dalmas, of Roanoke, in the seventh and final round of the 1946 round-robin tournament made him the undisputed chess champion of the Old Dominion.
Mr. Chauvenet, the son of Louis Chauvenet, a well-known Charlottesville Democratic leader, defended his title under singularly trying circumstances.
When asked if it were true than his wife, the former Jane Barrett, of Baltimore, is expecting the stork soon, he replied, “Soon? Today!”
“But I want you to understand,” he continued smilingly, “that I didn't leave her just to play chess. I had to come down to Charlottesville from Bound Brook, N. J., to take an examination in calculus for admittance to the university so I may begin work on my master's degree.”
He Started Early
Mr. Chauvenet, who learned to play chess at the age of 9 under the tutelage of his father, first made news in Virginia competition at the age of 16, when he won the class A title.
“But I wasn't able to win the championship until 1942, which was called the ‘duration’ title because we had no more competition during the war,” he said.
The 1946 titleholder jokingly remarked that an Atlanta newspaper dubbed him “an Hungarian deaf mute.”
“I am certainly not Hungarian,” he insisted. “I'm just an ordinary American, since my family has been in this country for more than 100 years.”
He went on to explain that an attack of spinal meningitis when he was 10 years old left him completely deaf and with an impediment in his speech, but the latter infirmity is now hardly discernible to the unknowing. His only hesitancy in speaking is apparently prompted by his modesty in matters concerning himself.
Born in Tennessee
Mr. Chauvenet was born in Knoxville, Tenn., in 1920, but says he is a Virginian, having moved to Charlottesville at an early age. He graduated from the University of Virginia with a B. S. in biology in 1943, and then went to work for the Calco chemical division of the American Cyanimid Company at Bound Brook.
“I was working on accelerators, used in making synthetic rubber,” he said, “and since we were at it 56 hours a week, I didn't have much time for chess. In fact, I'm very stale, because I haven't played in almost four years.”
Mr. Dalmas, the champion's final victim in the current tournament and one of the leading contenders for the crown, paid tribute to his conqueror's ability on the checkered board when he remarked during the course of their match, “He was beating me 10 years ago, and he's still at it.”
So it would seem that Mr. Chauvenet was a top-notch player even before he was able to grow a beard.
Chauvenet, who successfully defended his title as State chess champion, won five games and drew one.
E. M. Knapp, Richmond champion, and A. T. Henderson, top-ranking Lynchburg contestant, were tied for the runner-up spot in the championship bracket. Their final game, which was not completed before the time set for the tourney to end, will be adjudicated by John N. Buck, Lynchburg chess expert, who will determine which player's game was superior.
Results in other groups, with games won and lost, are as follows:
Group A—
Private L. A. Helman, Fort Eustis, Va., first 6½-1½
K. C. Peck, Richmond, runner-up, 6-2.
Group B—
C. S. Boggess, Richmond, runner-up, 8-2.
Mr. Boggess and Mr. Cleek were tied for this place, and the winner was determined by the Sonnenborn-Berger system of superior play.
The Virginia State Chess Federation decided at its meeting this week end that the 1947 tournament will also be held in Richmond next Labor Day week end.
November 24 1946
The Roanoke Times, Roanoke, Virginia, Sunday, November 24, 1946
Champion Chess Player Will Battle All Comers
Russell Chauvenet, chess champion of Virginia, will meet all comers in a simultaneous match next Friday night at 8 o'clock at the Elk's club under the auspices of the Roanoke Chess club, officers of the club said yesterday.
May Meet 14
Up to the present time some fourteen Roanoke chess players have expressed their desire to compete against Virginia's top-ranking expert and Roanoke Chess club officials sponsoring the exhibition expect that by game time approximately two dozen challengers will be seated outside the circle within which Chauvenet will tour the boards of his competitors.
The exhibition is open free to the public as a part of the Roanoke Chess club's promotional campaign to interest localities in the game.
Chess players desiring to test their skill against that of the expert may do so by calling the club's program director, Nelson Bond, between now and Friday morning, it was said yesterday.
Chauvenet, a 26 year old student in the graduate school at the University of Virginia became Virginia's first-ranking player in 1942, held the title automatically throughout the war years when no contests were held, and proved his right to it by crushing all competition at the 1946 championship matches held in Richmond last September.
Despite his conclusive superiority over other players of the Old Dominion the champ is modest about his own ability.
“There are,” he says, “in the hierarchy of chess many classes: Grandmaster, Master, Expert; then the many classes of Amateurs, Class A, B, C, etc. My knowledge of chess is quite limited, and I am no real authority. I have occasionally defeated or drawn with lower-ranking Masters, but as a general thing I almost always lose to those in the Master's class, and I'm not worth a Grandmaster's waste of time.”
December 01 1946
The Roanoke Times, Roanoke, Virginia, Sunday, December 01, 1946
City Champ Meets State Champ—Russell Chauvenet, young University of Virginia graduate and Virginia chess champion (left), is shown planning his next move against Roanoke city chess champion, Haines Dalmas, right. In a simultaneous match against 22 members of the local club at the Elks club Friday night, Chauvenet won 18 (including his five-hour match against the local champ), three draws, and lost his sole game against 16-year-old Robert Dalmas, the city champ's son, who has been playing the royal game since he was ten years of age. Chauvenet has also been playing since he was 10. Chess club officials said last night that the public interest and response aroused by the simultaneous match conducted Friday night indicates that additional features will be planned to further interest in the game locally.
Youngster Is Only Winner Against State Chess Champ
Lone victor against the Virginia chess champion, Russell Chauvenet, young graduate student of the University of Virginia, in a simultaneous match conducted among 22 members of the Roanoke Chess club turned out to be 16-year-old Robert Dalmas, a junior member of the Roanoke Chess club who's been playing chess since he was 10 years of age.
City Champ Loses
Contrary to expectations, the top ranking players of the local chess club—more specifically City Champion Haines Dalmas, young Bob's father—fared worse than the youngsters. The matches began Friday evening in the Elks club at 8 o'clock. At eleven, when closing time for the club arrived, the group literally picked up their boards and adjourned to the mezzanine floor of the Patrick Henry hotel where the longest match—the one against the elder Dalmas was conceded by the local champion at 1 o'clock Saturday morning.
Approximately 50 persons—visitors and players—attended the first simultaneous match to be sponsored in the Magic City by the Roanoke Chess club. Eighteen of the matches turned out to be victories for the state champion. Three “draws” were recorded by Nelson Bond, runner-up to Haines Dalmas for the city championship and Merkel and Frank Brennan.
As a prize for his playing ability, young Dalmas was presented with a fine plastic chess set presented by the sponsoring club, and a statement by Chauvenet that “you've played the best game tonight.”
Congratulates Officers
Following the match, the state champion congratulated officers of the local chess club, declaring that he was “agreeably” surprised at the quality of chess playing shown in the Magic City. He stated that all of the games were “extremely interesting” and expressed the opinion that “the number of wins by no means indicates that the simultaneous match was any pushover.”
This is the third exhibition match put on by the state champion who has been playing chess since he was nine years old. He will appear in a similar simultaneous match in Richmond the week after next.
A spokesman of the local club declared last night that the public's interest in the match had been “gratifying” and that plans were being made to bring other interesting chess features to the Magic City in order to promote interest in the game. Six new members were reported at the meeting Friday night.
1942
July 07 1942
The News and Observer, Raleigh, North Carolina, Tuesday, July 07, 1942
JOSEPH BALINT WINS CHESS CHAMPIONSHIP
Atlanta July 6 —(AP)— Sergeant Joseph Balint of New York, won the 21st annual Southern Chess Association tournament today.
Balint, former Panama Canal Zone champion succeeded to the title won by Russell Chauvenet of Esmont, Va., who placed third this year W. N. Woodbury of Birmingham a former champion, won second place.
Finishing in order behind the top three were Paul Cromelin of Savannah, Nestor Hernandez of Tampa, Ed Woody of Atlanta, Jack Palmer of Norfolk, Martin Southern of Knoxville and A. T. Henderson of Lynchburg, Va.
Alfred Barnard of Atlanta won the Class A crown with Elijah Brown and M. H. Tavis, both of Atlanta, next in that order.
Henderson was elected president of the association succeeding Woodbury and Woody was named secretary and treasurer. Hernandez and Davis were chosen vice-presidents.
September 08 1942
The Richmond News Leader, Richmond, Virginia, Tuesday, September 08, 1942
Chauvenet Chess Victor
Charlottesville Man Wins State Tourney
Louis R. Chauvenet, of Charlottesville, took top honors in the three-day chess tournament for the State championship which ended at the Hotel John Marshall last night eliminating Ernest Knapp, of this city, in the final playoff.
Mr. Chauvenet, representing the Staunton club, of the State Federation of Chess Clubs which sponsors the annual tourney, had a final score of seven and one-half out of a possible of eight points. One draw game spoiled his chances for a perfect score. The runner-up had five wins, two ties and one loss, giving him a total of six points.
H. H. Schiffman, of Richmond, won the non-championship “A” class matches by a margin of only one-half point. He scored eight wins and a draw against one loss, while R. H. Snellings, Jr., also of this city, had eight points by virtue of eight wins against two losses.
Mr. Chauvenet was presented the Wilbur Moorman Cup and the State Federation plaque for his victory by Harold A. White, of Richmond, retiring president of the federation. The Class A winner received a medal.
Yesterday afternoon, Mr. Chauvenet gave an exhibition playing 14 games at one time. He won 10 of them, tied two, and lost two.
The play-by-play record of the championship playoff follows:
Louis Russell Chauvenet (white) vs. Ernest Malcolm Knapp (black)
Slav Defense: Exchange Variation
When asked if he cared to comment on the game, Mr. Chauvenet said: “I don't think so. What could I say? If I'd lost, I'd gladly point out my various blunders, etc., but—”
February 03 1948
The Roanoke Times, Roanoke, Virginia, Tuesday, February 03, 1948
Chess Champion Plays Group Simultaneously
Russell Chauvenet (standing), Virginia's champion chess player, is shown playing members of the Roanoke Chess Club simultaneously in an exhibition match at the Community Fund headquarters last night. Part of the group is shown seated while others “look on.” They are, left to right: Haines Dalmas, Jack Godfrey, Howard Montgomery, Arthur Abbott and Nelson Bond.
October 31 1948
The Courier-Journal, Louisville, Kentucky, Sunday, October 31, 1948
Our Game of the Week was played in the Virginia State Tournament last year and emphasizes the importance of diagonal control.
William R. Triplett (white) vs. Louis Russell Chauvenet (black)
Dutch Defense: Queen's Knight Variation
June 26 2003
Winston-Salem Journal, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Thursday, June 26, 2003
Chauvenet
Mr. Louis Russell Chauvenet “Russ” of Clarebridge/Alterra Winston-Salem died peacefully in his sleep on the night of June 24, 2003. Russ was born in Knoxville, Tenn., Feb. 12, 1920, and was raised near Charlottesville, Va., the oldest of six children of Louis and Caroline Chauvenet. At the age of 10 he became deaf as a result of bacterial meningitis. He graduated from the Belmont High School in Belmont, Mass., and attended Harvard University, Boston College and the University of Virginia. He held a bachelor of arts degree in biology and a master's degree in chemistry from the University of Virginia. He worked in the computer field as a civilian employee of the U.S. Defense Department from 1948 until his retirement. Outside of work, Russ was well known in several areas. He was a founder of science-fiction fandom as a member of “The Stranger Club” in the Boston area and invented the word “fanzine” since used to describe private fan publications in areas of interest. He was for many years a member of the Fantasy Amateur Press Association (FAPA) and a published poet in the state of Maryland.
From an early age Russ took an interest in chess. He was a lifetime member of the U.S. Chess Federation and was the 1959 U.S. Amateur Champion. He won numerous other chess honors and awards and was the several-time champion of Virginia, two-time champion of Maryland and also won the Southern Championship, Delaware Championship and Washington, D.C., Championship. He was the highest-rated deaf player in the U.S. and won the U.S. Deaf Championship every time he entered it, never losing a game in the tournament. He represented the U.S. in the world deaf team and individual competition and was twice the runner-up in the world individual tournament.
Russ had a great love of sailing and was devoted to the Windmill Class Sailing Association. He built one of the first Windmills and attended regattas from Maine to Florida. He was the high-point Champion of the Chesapeake By Yacht Racing Association in 1975. His activities in the Windmill Class led to his being one of only four people elected to honorary membership in the class association. After he retirement, Russ resumed his college running career with the Montgomery County (Maryland) track club. He was honored in the D. C. area and recognized as a “1000K Man” when he completed his 100th 10K race (all between the ages of 62-75).
Russ was devoted to his family. His wife, the former Sarah Jane Barrett, died in June 2001 and Russ died on what would have been their 59th wedding anniversary. They had one child, Allen, a pediatric oncologist at Brenner Children's Hospital/Wake Forest University. Their daughter-in-law, Julia Cruz, is a medical oncologist at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center. Their two grandchildren are Nicolas Cruz Chauvenet, a 2003 graduate of Reynolds High School and Christina Anna Chauvenet, a member of the class of 2004 at Reynolds High School. Russ is survived by two of his sisters, Calise Conley of Kansas and Roberta Marie Hopkins of Minnesota. He is also survived by numerous nieces and nephews. His ancestors included William Bradford (Governor of Plymouth Plantation) and William Chauvenet (the leading American mathematician of the mid-19th century and a founder of the U.S. Naval Academy). Russ was a brilliant yet modest man, always fair and honest, who was loved, appreciated and respected by all who had the opportunity to cross paths with him in this life. Burial will be at Riverview Cemetery in Charlottesville, Va., at 11 a.m. Friday, June 27. In lieu of flowers or others gifts, the family would be pleased for contributions in Russ' memory to be made either to: Children's Cancer Fund, c/o Dr. Marcia Wofford, Department of Pediatrics, Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center, Medical Center Boulevard, Winston-Salem, NC 27157-081 or to the Windmill Class Association, 417 Gold Drive, Hoover, AL 35226. (Arrangements by Russell Funeral Home.)
January 03 1944
The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, Brooklyn, New York, Monday, January 03, 1944
Moscowitz Takes Final Chess Match
Jack Moscowitz, winning his adjourned game with Dr. Joseph Platz yesterday, completed his schedule in the annual tournament for the championship of the Manhattan Chess Club with a score of 6½-2½. Moskowitz thus moved close to Arnold S. Denker, leading with 7-1, and Robert Willman, 6-1.
Willman was engaged with Edward S. Jackson Jr., but after an interesting struggle, with honors even, the match stood adjourned. Harold M. Phillips defeated L. Walter Stephens. An adjourned game between Dr. Platz and Jackson was drawn.
October 25 1943
The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, Brooklyn, New York, Monday, October 25, 1943
Jackson, Dr. Platz Victors at Chess
Edward S. Jackson Jr. and Dr. J. Platz were victors in the opening round of the tournament for the championship of the Manhattan Chess Club yesterday. Two games were drawn and one adjourned.
The summaries:
Jackson 1,
H. M. Phillips 0;
Dr. Platz 1,
L. W. Stephens 0;
Arnold S. Denker ½,
Jack Moscowitz ½;
Weaver W. Adams ½,
Albert S. Pinkus ½;
Shainswit vs. Chauvenet, adjourned.
December 23 1937
The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, Brooklyn, New York, Thursday, December 23, 1937
Harvard Unbeaten In College Chess
Harvard captured the H.Y.P.D. Chess League Championship for the third year when the combination of John L. Foster, of Jackson Heights, John J. Fernsler and William M. Murphy, both of Flushing and Louis Chauvenet, of New York, defeated Dartmouth at the Marshall Club yesterday. The victory completed a Crimson sweep of the series in which no game was lost.
December 03 1950
Evening star, Washington, District of Columbia, Sunday, December 03, 1950
Chess Notes by Donald H. Mugridge
After three rounds of the Washington Divan's championship tourney, Nathan Robins leads with three straight wins. In round 2 he won the exchange from Hugh C. Underwood after 15 moves of a Queen's Indian Defense, and won the end game some 30 moves later. Against John R. Rice, who played a Cambridge Spring Defense, Robins castled on the queen's side and attacked sharply on the king's. He sacrificed a knight on move 26 and forced Rice's resignation three moves later.
Ernest M. Knapp stands in second place with 2½ points. His second-round game with Russell Chauvenet had become extremely critical, with Chauvenet attacking on the king's side and Knapp seeking counterplay in the center, when Chauvenet missed the purport of a knight move and resigned after his queen was trapped. In round 3, Knapp won the exchange from Martin C. Stark, but agreed to a draw in a position in which he could well have continued to play for a win.
Hans Berliner won his second-round game from Rice after the latter, in time pressure, has transposed from a favorable position into a hopelessly lost rook end-game. He has a theoretical chance of catching up with the leaders, but stands unfavorably in his adjourned game with Thomas, where he has given up a piece for small compensation. Three players have scores of 2-1; Florence M. Campomanes, Chauvenet, and Eugene Sadowski. Campomanes won his adjourned first-round ending from Thomas, and defeated Comdr. Charles D. Mott, also after an adjournment, in the second. In the third he won a pawn from Chauvenet, but failed to achieve a coherent development, and the White pieces ganged up on his pathetically isolated king. In round 2, Sadowski won from Thomas, who had left his king in the center, by a neat combination involving the pin of several white pieces. In round 3, Sadowski accepted Nash's offer of two pawns in the opening, and put up a solid defense against which the White pieces beat in vain. Nash eventually tried a bishop sacrifice, but resigned soon after.
Nash and Stark drew a hard game in round 2, and each have one point composed of two draws. Comdr. Mott's point was earned in the third round, when his heavy blows demolished Underwood's close position. Rice has half a point, and Thomas and Underwood have yet to score.
Russell Chauvenet's games are regularly very interesting, since he combines a modern knowledge of the openings with an aggressive style and great tactical ingenuity. Of the two that follow, the first was played in round 1 of the Divan Championship, and the other in the Navcom-Divan match.
June 11 1959
Courier-Post, Camden, New Jersey, Thursday, June 11, 1959
L. R. Chauvenet Winner of Amateur Tournament
Louis R. Chauvenet, well-known Silver Spring, Md., star was the winner of the national amateur chess tournament at Asbury Park. He was the only player in the tournament to finish with a perfect score of 6 victories and no defeats.
Dr. Erich W. Marchand, of Rochester, N. Y., finished second with a score of 5½ to ½. Following at 5-1 each were Dr. Michael Rotov, of Hammonton, recent winner of the South Jersey Chess Association championship; Harold C. Evans, Edgar T. McCormick, Dr. David Hamburger, of Brigantine, Larry Snyder, of Philadelphia, Boris Garfinkel, and Thomas W. Benham, of Trenton. Miss Lisa Lane, also with a score of 5-1, won the women's championship.
As will be noted, the South Jersey contingent at the tournament made an excellent showing. Dr. Rotov's only loss was to Chauvenet.
July 07 1941
The Atlanta Constitution, Atlanta, Georgia, Monday, July 07, 1941
Youth Baffles Experts, Wins Title at Chess
Defeats 8-Times Champion in 'Sensational' Game.
By CHARLES GILMORE.
Playing in his first important I match, a 21-year-old deaf youth from Esmont, Va., won the Southern Open chess tournament here yesterday after he had defeated an eight-time champion in a game that experts described as “sensational.”
His victory was planned during the first few moves of the crucial game when he suddenly astounded veterans by sacrificing a pawn with apparently no reason. The move, an utterly new tactic in chess, paved the way to success.
He is L. R. Chauvenet, and he entered the tournament as an underdog. But during the strenuous play he lost only one game, that to J. R. Jackson, an accountant of 660 Virginia avenue, who was Georgia's only representative in the championship division of chess. This game was lost after he had clinched the championship.
Battle of Wits.
To win the match Chauvenet beat Nestor Hernandez, of Tampa, Fla. Neither man had lost a game when they met, and their battle of wits attracted the attention of experts from all parts of the nation who attended the event.
After the preliminary moves of the deciding game, the match went into a Sicilian defense, which means, roughly, that both players agreed to fight it out to the end and eliminate the possibility of a draw or stalemate. Experts called it a “dangerous, cut-throat” defense, at which Hernandez was a master.
Indeed, when after a few moves Chauvenet “threw” away a pawn, it appeared to observers that Hernandez had again won a victim. But the master only fell into a well-laid trap, and when he captured the sacrificed piece, he gave Chauvenet the initiative that developed into an irresistible attack.
Many Atlantans competed in the tournament, held at the Biltmore hotel. Contestants played each other at long tables, marked with the familiar checkered boards.
Atlantan Wins.
One Atlantan, J. E. Woody, of 483 Wabash avenue, won the class A division title. He was the only player to go through the tourney without the loss of a single game. He was not competing in the championship division, however.
Woody was drawn twice, once by Peter G. Cranford, of 156 Waverly way, and once by D. B. Bryan, of Durham, N. C. Cranford and Alfred Barnard, of 790 Ponce de Leon place, along with J. M. Palmer, of Norfolk, Va., were tied three ways for fourth place. Joseph Taylor, of Chattanooga, Tenn., was second in the class A group and Bryan was third.
The championship play, however, drew most of the attention and it built up naturally to the climax between the youth who lost his hearing at the age of 9, when stricken by infantile paralysis, and the master of Tampa, Florida.
So complicated was the game, and so subtle was Chauvenet's master pawn move and his crashing check which forced Hernandez to resign at the end, that it is now being annotated by the winner so that chess fans can actually determine what happened.
Pawn Sacrifice.
The pawn sacrifice occurred near the outset of the game. In the customary “Forsyth Notation,” the board was set up at the time as follows, with Black played by Hernandez and White by Chauvenet:
FEN 4rnkq/1p3p1p/p4P2/4p1P1/1P1pQ3/2rB2R1/2P4P/R6K b - - 1 32
From this arrangement, with Hernandez moving, his bishop captured a knight at queen's bishop's 3. Chauvenet, with a pawn, captured the attacking bishop. Then it was that Hernandez took the fatal pawn with his pawn at king's 5.
The move gave the young Virginian the initiative, and later the game.
The check was arrived at with a board as follows:
FEN 4r1kq/1Q3p2/p4PR1/4p3/1P1p1n2/2rB4/2P4P/R6K b - - 0 35
White to move:
At this stage, if Hernandez had captured the checking bishop with a rook, Chauvenet would have moved his rook to his knight's spot and checked again. The only answer would be the motion of the king to rook's 2, which Chauvenet could counter by capturing the rook with his queen and checking again, setting up two lines.
With Hernandez placing second in the championship division, third place went to A. T. Henderson, of Lynchburg, Va., W. W. Gibbs, or Staunton, Va., and W. N. Woodbury of Birmingham, tied for fourth place.
In the Class B division, J. T. Stallings, of Winston-Salem, N. C., defeated Francis F. Shurling, of 1230 Piedmont avenue, in the playoff.
In a business meeting, W. N. Woodbury was elected president of the Southern Chess Association; J. E. Woody was named vice president, and W. W. Gibbs was chosen secretary and treasurer.
A Georgia state champion will be selected on Labor Day in a tournament sponsored by the Atlanta Chess League, which is one of the largest in the south with its 75 members.
July 08 1941
The Atlanta Journal, Atlanta, Georgia, Tuesday, July 08, 1941
Virginian, 21, Cops Southern Chess Crown
L. R. Chauvenet, brilliant 21 year-old chess expert from Esmont, Va., became Southern champion Sunday by winning a crucial game from N. Hernandez of Tampa, Fla., and drawing the final game with ex-champion W. N. Woodbury, of Birmingham, Ala. Chauvenet lost only one game, and that to J. R. Jackson, of Atlanta, Georgia's lone representative in the championship division.
Chauvenet has been playing since he was 9 years of age, and was good enough to be the first freshman to play a Harvard chess team. Due to an attack of spinal meningitis, he is deaf but not seemingly handicapped. The Southern championship is his first major victory. Hernandez placed second. A. T. Henderson of Lynchburg, Va took third. W. N. Woodbury, of Birmingham, and W. W. Gibbs, of Lynchburg, tied for fourth.
J. E. Woody, of Atlanta, won handily in the Class A section with no losses in seven games against D. B. Bryan, of Durham, N. C., and Peter G. Cranford, of Atlanta. By virtue of his victory, Mr. Woody automatically qualifies for the championship flight next year. Joseph Taylor, Chattanooga, took second place. D. B. Bryan was third. Alfred Barnard and Peter G. Cranford, both of Atlanta, were in a three-way tie for fourth place, with J. M. Palmer, Norfolk, Va.
J. T. Stallings, Winston-Salem, N. C., expert, defeated Francis F. Shurling, well-known Atlanta political figure, for the Class B title in a play-off. Stallings lost one game to Elijah Brown, Atlanta attorney. Mrs. J. R. Harrison, Macon, placed fourth.
In the business session which preceded the awarding of prizes, W. N. Woodbury was elected president of the Southern Chess Association. J. E. Woody, Class A titleholder, was elected vice president, and W. W. Gibbs secretary-treasurer.
October 01, 1941
Evening star, Washington, District of Columbia, Wednesday, October 01, 1941
Southern Chess Championship, 1941.
Louis Russell Chauvenet (white) vs. Nestor Hernandez (black)
Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation
If 35. … NxR; 36. BxN R-KB; 37. BxPch! and wins.
This was the crucial game of the 1941 Southern Chess Association championship tournament at Atlanta. Russell Chauvenet of Esmont, Va., gained the title by outplaying A. T. Henderson and Nestor Hernandez, sometime titleholder.
'til the world understands why Robert J. Fischer criticised the U.S./British and Russian military industry imperial alliance and their own Israeli Apartheid. Sarah Wilkinson explains: Tweets by swilkinsonbc |
 “What a sad story Fischer was,” typed a racist, pro-imperialist colonial troll who supports mega-corporation entities over human rights, police state policies & white supremacy. |
To which I replied: “Really? I think he [Bob Fischer] stood up to the broken system of corruption and raised awareness! Whether on the Palestinian/Israel-British-U.S. Imperial Apartheid scam, the Bush wars of ‘7 countries in 5 years,’ illegally, unconstitutionally which constituted mass xenocide or his run in with police brutality in Pasadena, California-- right here in the U.S., police run rampant over the Constitution of the U.S., on oath they swore to uphold, but when Americans don't know the law, and the cops either don't know or worse, “don't care” -- then I think that's pretty darn “sad”. I think Mr. Fischer held out and fought the good fight, steadfast til the day he died, and may he Rest In Peace. Educate yourself about U.S./State Laws -- https://www.youtube.com/@AuditTheAudit/videos After which the troll posted a string of profanities, confirming there was never any genuine sentiment of “compassion” for Mr. Fischer, rather an intent to inflict further defamatory remarks. |
This ongoing work is a tribute to the life and accomplishments of Robert “Bobby” Fischer who passionately loved and studied chess history. May his life continue to inspire many other future generations of chess enthusiasts and kibitzers, alike.
March 9, 1943 - January 17, 2008The photograph of Bobby Fischer (above) from the March 02, 1956 The Tampa Times was discovered by Sharon Mooney (Bobby Fischer Newspaper Archive editor) on February 01, 2018 while gathering research materials for this ongoing newspaper archive project. Along with lost games now being translated into Algebraic notation and extractions from over two centuries of newspapers, it is but one of the many lost treasures to be found in the pages of old newspapers since our social media presence was first established November 11, 2017.
