Manhattan Chess Club facts for kids

The Manhattan Chess Club was a famous chess club located in Manhattan, New York City. It was one of the oldest chess clubs in the United States. The club started in 1877 with about 36 members. Over time, it grew to include hundreds of chess players. Women were also allowed to join the club starting in 1938. The club moved to different places during its history. It finally closed its doors in 2002.

Important Chess Events at the Club

The Manhattan Chess Club was a very important place for chess. It hosted many big tournaments and matches.

Major Tournaments and Championships

The club organized two major international chess tournaments in New York. These were held in 1924 and 1927. The 1924 tournament was won by Emanuel Lasker. The 1927 tournament was won by José Raúl Capablanca.

The club also often hosted parts of the U.S. Chess Championship. This started in the 1930s. It was also the location for two World Championship matches. These important matches happened in 1886 and 1891.

Club Champions and Famous Players

The club had its own championships. These were some of the toughest tournaments in the United States. Famous grandmasters like Frank Marshall and Isaac Kashdan each won the club championship three times.

Many other strong players won the club championship multiple times:

• Abraham Kupchik won it eleven times.
• Arthur Bisguier won it seven times.
• Alexander Kevitz, Arnold Denker, and Walter Shipman each won it six times.
• David Graham Baird and Pal Benko each won it five times.
• Géza Maróczy also played in several championships and won in 1927.

Developing Chess Talent

Many talented chess players improved their skills at the Manhattan Chess Club. Some of these players include:

• Arnold Denker
• Arthur Feuerstein
• Bobby Fischer
• I. A. Horowitz
• William Lombardy
• Samuel Reshevsky
• Gata Kamsky

Gata Kamsky played in many tournaments at the club after he moved from the Soviet Union in 1989. In 1970, Bobby Fischer played in a blitz tournament there. He had an amazing score of 21½ wins out of 22 games.

A Sad Day at the Club

On March 7, 1942, former world chess champion José Raúl Capablanca was at the club. He was watching a casual game when he became very ill. He passed away the next day.

Life at the Club

Before the internet made it easy to play chess online, the Manhattan Chess Club was a main place for top chess players in New York City. It was always busy. The club was located on the tenth floor of Carnegie Hall.

The club had popular "Four Rated Games Tonight" tournaments on Thursday evenings. These events in the late 1980s attracted many strong players. They also held "insanity" tournaments a few times a year. These overnight events started on Saturday nights and finished after sunrise on Sunday.

The book The Bobby Fischer I Knew And Other Stories by Denker and Larry Parr shares many interesting stories about the Manhattan Chess Club.

See also

• Marshall Chess Club