South Carolina's Chess History: A Chronology
By John McCrary
Periodically, I like to remind new SCCA members of our state’s chess
history. The following facts are all authenticated in original
historical sources.
1795: Paul Morphy, who became the first true world
champion in 1858, was of Charleston lineage. His grandfather, Don Diego
Morphy, moved to Charleston to become Spanish Consul in 1795. Paul’s
future father was born in Charleston in 1798. Paul’s future uncle,
Ernest Morphy, was born in 1807, also in Charleston; he was destined to
become a major national figure in chess in his own right before becoming
eclipsed by his nephew’s world fame. The family lived on King Street and
then Meeting Street, before moving to New Orleans in 1809. The headstone
of a Morphy grave still stands in Charleston. It is located in the
cemetery of the old Catholic Church on Hasell Street behind the Omni
Hotel.
1800-1909: Four of the first five known women
chessplayers in the US were playing each other in Charleston. The only
other known American woman player that early was the wife of Aaron Burr.
There is a plausible link between one of these Charleston lady players
and the Morphy family there at that time.
1814: Alexander B. Meek, who became the first national
president in American chess, was born in Columbia. Meek became the
president of the First American Chess Congress in 1857. He moved to
Alabama as an infant, and became a famous political figure and judge who
helped found public education in that state.
1834: The "great chess automaton," billed as the
world’s first chessplaying machine, was exhibited in Charleston starting
on Dec.1. The "machine" actually had a man hidden inside so cleverly
that he was never detected, despite the machine’s interior being opened
to public view just before each exhibition. The exhibitor died on a
voyage not long thereafter, and was buried at sea somewhere "off
Charleston."
1846-1847: South Carolina was first mentioned in chess
literature, in a complimentary reference to the growth of chess in our
state appearing in The American Chess Magazine.
1859: The first US chess magazine published outside of
New York appeared in Charleston. Called The Philidorian, it was a flop
after two issues. However, one of its editors went on to found
Presbyterian College in Clinton, SC. The first recorded tournament in
our state was held at Charleston Junior College that same year.
1880: (approximate date) The first recorded SC
tournament of more than local significance occurs in Spartanburg. Isaac
Orchard, who played in the event, is called "the champion of South
Carolina," and later the "champion of the Carolina’s." Orchard was a
Columbia native who became nationally prominent, being mentioned in
Steinitz’s magazine. A variation of the king’s gambit is briefly dubbed
"the Palmetto gambit" (by a Philadelphia columnist) in honor of
Orchard’s success with it.
1926: The South Carolina Chess Association was founded
on July 26 at the Columbia YMCA, which is still standing and in use.
Five of the eight founders had a Spartanburg connection. The first state
championship was held on that date, and won by Spartanburg player, W.H.
Morton. The organization lasted until 1933.
Early 1940's: The Palmetto Chess Club in Columbia was
founded.
1948: The SC Chess Association was re-founded, and has
lasted to the present.
1959: The SCCA starts an uninterrupted series of its
magazine, continuing right on to this issue. Around 1977-1978, the SCCA
was published as part of a regional magazine, with Georgia and other
states. Professor Robert Brand of the Citadel was the first editor.
Ironically, the first issue appeared almost on the exact centennial
month of The Philodorian mentioned above.
Early 1960's: Columbia was the chess capital of the
southern US, as the president and secretary of the Southern Chess
Association resided on Greene Street by the University of South
Carolina. The Southern Chess Association, which included a number of
states, once rivaled the USCF in significance, and one of its
tournaments was won by Dr. Hans Berliner of Washington, DC. Dr. Berliner
later entered the US Chess Hall of Fame because of his convincing
victory in the World Correspondence Championship, and his pioneering
work in computer chess. He helped establish the academic lineage of Deep
Blue. Lanneau Foster was president, and Professor Shaw secretary, of the
Southern Chess Association; Professor Shaw was also one of its
champions.
1974: The South Carolina Chess Association
co-sponsored, with the USCF, FIDE, and Georgia, the quarter-final match
for the World Championship between Korchnoi and Mecking. The match was
held in Augusta, but was the result of tireless effort by Dr. M. Lee
Hyder and the late Bill Dodgen.
1975: Dr. M. Lee Hyder became the first and (so far)
only South Carolina resident to be elected to the USCF Policy Board, as
national secretary.
1983: The first correspondence chess championship of
South Carolina was held, being the brainchild of David Williams, with
support from Don Lemaster and SCCA president Bill Floyd. The tournament
was won by John McCrary, just ahead of Wayne Williams, Mickey Bush, and
Bill Floyd. David Williams and Wayne Williams published a book of the
games of that event; that book is one of only a handful of tournament
books ever published of a state chess championship. (According to
standard chess bibliographical sources.) Later, Wayne Williams became
the first person to hold the state correspondence and OTB titles
simultaneously.
1989-1990: The US Women’s Chess Championship was held
two consecutive years at Converse College in Spartanburg. Spencer
Mathews and David Williams were instrumental in staging this event.
South Carolina Chess Champions: 1926-Present
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