Chess in 1874
by Bill Wall
In 1874, William Henry Hicks (1817-1899) won the 2nd Canadian Championship, held in Montreal.
In 1874, A. de Lelie (1827-1899) won the 2nd Netherland Ch in Amsterdam.
On mar 2, 1874, Carl Schlechter was born in Vienna. He was German champion in 1900, 1904, and 1910. He was world chess challenger in 1910.
On June 22, 1874, Howard Staunton died in his library chair, London, of a heart attack. He was 64 years old. The Royal Bounty Funds donated 200 British pounds to his widow after his death.
In July 1874, the American Chess Association was transformed into the National Chess Association. James Congdon was elected President. (source: New York Times, July 17, 1874)
On July 7, 1874, the 3rd American Chess Congress began in Chicago. There were only 8 players. The players had to pay a $20 entry fee.
On July 16, 1874, George Mackenzie took 1st at the 3rd American Chess Congress and won $225.
On Aug 20, 1874, Thomas Barnes reduced his weight by 130 pounds in 10 months and died.
On Oct 1, 1874, Hans Fahrni was born in Prague. He was the first person to play 100 games simultaneously, which he did in 1911.
In Dec 1874, Van der Linde publishesd his 1st book on history of chess, Geschichte und Litteratur des Schachspiels (History and Literature of Chess) with 1118 pages and 4098 names in the index.