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 | This article contains content that is written like an advertisement. (September 2022) |
 World Chess Hall of Fame Logo | |
  Location within St. Louis | |
Former name | U.S. Chess Hall of Fame World Chess Hall of Fame and Sidney Samole Museum |
|---|---|
| Established | 1984 |
| Location | Central West End, St. Louis Missouri |
| Coordinates | 38°38′39″N 90°15′40″W / 38.644301°N 90.261153°W |
| Type | Hall of Fame Art museum |
| Public transit access |  MetroBus |
| Website | worldchesshof.org |
The World Chess Hall of Fame (WCHOF) is a nonprofit, collecting institution situated in the Central West End neighborhood of St. Louis, Missouri, United States. It features chess exhibits, engages in educational outreach, and maintains a list of inductees to the U.S. Chess Hall of Fame and World Chess Hall of Fame, the latter category being nominated by FIDE. Founded in 1984, it is run by the United States Chess Trust. Formerly located in New Windsor, New York, Washington, D.C., and Miami, Florida, it moved to St. Louis on September 9, 2011.[1]
History
Steven Doyle, USCF president from 1984 to 1987,[2] founded the World Chess Hall of Fame in 1986 as the U.S. Chess Hall of Fame.
It opened in 1988 in the basement of the Federation's then-headquarters in New Windsor, New York,[1] the small museum contained a small collection, including a book of chess openings signed by Bobby Fischer,[3] a silver set awarded to Paul Morphy, American chess player and unofficial World Champion, and cardboard plaques honoring past grandmasters.
In 1992, the U.S. Chess Trust purchased the museum and moved its contents to Washington, D.C. At its Washington, D.C. location from 1992 to 2001, the hall featured America's "big four" chess players: Paul Morphy, Bobby Fischer, Frank Marshall, and Samuel Reshevsky.[4] It displayed the World Chess Championship trophy won by the United States team in 1993 as well as numerous chess boards and chess pieces. The museum gave visitors the opportunity to play against a chess computer. By 2001, the collection had grown to include numerous chess sets and boards and plaques commemorating inductees to the U.S. and World halls of fame.[4]
In the late 1990s, Sidney Samole, former owner of Excalibur Electronics, proposed to move the hall of fame to Miami, where it would be located in a rook-shaped building constructed by Excalibur. Although Samole died in 2000, the U.S. Chess Trust accepted the proposal the following year.[1] Reopened in 2001, it was renamed the World Chess Hall of Fame and Sidney Samole Museum.[1][5] The museum continued collecting chess sets, books, tournament memorabilia, advertisements, photographs, furniture, medals, trophies, and journals until it closed in 2009. Rex Sinquefield soon afterward agreed to pay for moving the museum to St. Louis and renovating its new building.[1]
The World Chess Hall of Fame is located across the street from the Saint Louis Chess Club in the city's Central West End neighborhood. It displays artifacts from the museum's permanent collection and temporary exhibitions highlighting the great players, historic games, and rich cultural history of chess as well as the U.S. and World Chess Hall of Fame.
The Hall of Fame collaborates with the Chess Club and Scholastic Center to provide programming, instruction, and outreach to an international audience of chess players. Its collection includes pieces such as a 500-year-old[citation needed] piece from an Egyptian game called senet, the earliest known board game, a custom-made set of chess furniture that belonged to Bobby Fischer, and the first commercial chess computer. Rotating exhibitions feature items from the permanent collection. The museum also displays two temporary exhibitions per year. The Hall of Fame also commemorates the careers of its members.
Hall of Fame
There are 67 members in the U.S. Hall of Fame, including Bobby Fischer, John W. Collins, Larry Evans, Benjamin Franklin, George Koltanowski, Sammy Reshevsky, Paul Morphy, Gregory Kaidanov, and Arnold Denker.
There are 43 members in the World Hall of Fame, including José Raúl Capablanca, Anatoly Karpov, Garry Kasparov, and Boris Spassky. The winner of the first Women's World Chess Championship, Vera Menchik, was the first woman to be inducted into the WCHOF in 2011.[6]
The 2011 inductions took place on September 8 as part of the World Chess Hall of Fame Grand Opening celebration.
U.S. Chess Hall of Fame inductees
The U.S. Chess Federation Hall of Fame Committee considers candidates for the U.S. Chess Hall of Fame and sends its nominations to the U.S. Chess Trust annually. The trustees of the U.S. Chess Trust vote on who should be inducted. The induction itself take place either at the U.S. Chess Federation Awards Luncheon during the U.S. Open or at the World Chess Hall of Fame, which is now located in St. Louis, Missouri. The induction is almost always performed by either the Chairman of the U.S. Chess Trust or the Chairman of the Hall of Fame Committee.
Current members of the committee are Harold Winston (chairman), John Donaldson, John McCrary, Al Lawrence, GM Joel Benjamin, GM Arthur Bisguier, John Hilbert, Jennifer Shahade, and Shane Samole. McCrary and Donaldson are former Chairs of the Hall of Fame Committee. Both Bisguier and Benjamin are members of the Hall of Fame. Samole was in charge of the Hall of Fame when it was located in Miami, Florida from 2001 to 2009.
World Chess Hall of Fame inductees
The World Chess Hall of Fame inductees are nominated by representatives of the World Chess Federation (FIDE).