Chess Journal, 1871 (3rd Tourney)

The announcement specifies the prizes as: 1st prize (best problem in any number of moves), 2nd prize (best #3), 3rd prize (best #4), 4th prize (best #2), and 5th prize (best s# in more than four moves).

The announcement adds As nearly as possible in all things not herein mentioned, the rules and regulations of tourney no. one will be observed …. This presumably refers to judgement (by sent-in reader scores), and awards (at most one prize to any individual composer). The latter may be an indication why no s# prize was awarded: the s#7 printed in the tourney book was sent in by W. A. Shinkman, who already had won a prize .

The tourney book does not have a title of its own: it is usually catalogued by the title page of the first tourney section The Dubuque Chess Journal Problem Tournay January to June 1871 (Dubuque, Iowa : O. A. Brownson, Jr.).

The cited section reprints 20 problems from the tourney, together with solutions and prize information. It does not contain any description of the tourney, and does not include references to the original source(s). The order in which the problems are printed is unclear: it may be be score ranking. No mention of the fifth prize (see above) has been found. All of the reprinted problems are on 8x8 boards.


S. Loyd gives the four prize winners in Scientific American Supplement, but his comments suggest that he has not have seen the tourney announcement, but relies on the tourney book alone.

Find a copy of v. 3 for original sources and report. Replace problem source reference to problem Tourney Book.