Stourbridge Chess Club was founded in 1852. This is an ongoing project to document the history of the club. If you have any information that you think may be relevant please send it to the webmaster.
AGM 1938
The club's AGM was held on 30th September.
The following members were present
| Position | Name |
|---|---|
| President | J.E. Boyt |
| Vice president and match captain | M.D.W. Wooldridge |
| Hon. Treasurer | Mr A. Grove |
| Hon. Secretary | Mr A.L. Homer |
| Hon. Secretary | T.E.L. Chataway |
| Member | B.C. Ashford |
| Member | R.E. Hooper |
| Member | J. Dovey |
| Member | G. Hodgkiss |
| New Member | M. Hale |
Points of interest
- Favourable progress of the club
- Thanks to Mr Watson for allowing the club to play matches at the grammar school
- Subs were 15/- (75p) per annum
- The president's trophy was presented to Mr R.E Hooper winner of the club tournament 1937-38
- Mr Chataway was elected secretary and Mr S.H. Willets was elected vice secretary.
- It was decided to enter the usual county competitions - the senior league and Cobham trophy
- The new north Worcestershire club would fill the gap left by Kidderminster
Worcestershire EGM 1938-39
Part way through the season, Malvern declared itself unable to play double rounds and persuaded the Director of competitions to revert to the old North South sections. Stourbridge protested and an EGM was held on November 19th 1938. The EGM compromised with a single section but only one round.
Birmingham league
As a result of the Worcestershire EGM, the club had insufficient matches. They therefore applied to join the Birmingham league and were elected into division 2 for the 1939/40 season. Unfortunately, with the outbreak of war, the Birmingham league program was cancelled.
Friendly matches 1938-39
The club played several friendlies throughout the season with up to 16 boards.
The club won against Wolverhampton (twice), West Bromwich and Worcester City.
They drew with College for the blind and West Bromwich.
They lost against College for the blind and Birmingham.
Worcestershire league division 1 1938-39
The club won against College for the blind, Worcester City, Stourport and Malvern and lost against North Worcestershire. They won the play-off against Worcester City to win the league. Home matches were usually played on a Friday or Saturday.
The following players played for the team: F. Dovey, D.W. Wooldridge, A.L. Homer, R.E. Hooper, B.C. Ashford, J.S. Boyt, S.H. Willetts
Cobham trophy 1938-39
The club won against College for the blind, Kidderminster, Stourport, Worcester Royal Grammar school and Malvern and drew with Worcester City.
The following players played for the team: S.H. Willetts, E. Sammons, A. Groves, T.G.L Chataway, C.E. Bache, G. Hodgkiss, V.E. Blomfield, G. Cole
AGM 1939
The club's AGM was held on 29th September.
The following members were present
| Position | Name |
|---|---|
| Hon. Treasurer | Mr A. Grove |
| Member | Mr A.L. Homer |
| Hon. Secretary | T.E.L. Chataway |
| Member | R.E. Hooper |
| Member | C.E. Bache |
| Member | G. Hodgkiss |
| Member | G.R. Cole |
Points of interest
- It was decided to continue meeting once a week during the war.
- The president J.E. Boyt and vice president D.W. Wooldridge promised to continue to support the club financially but would be unable to attend.
- The institute had agreed to let the club have the use of a room on Friday evenings at the old rent of 6 guineas (£6.30) for the season with the option of breaking the lease at Christmas.
- The Worcestershire league would continue but long journeys to fixtures would be avoided.
