Yorkshire Chess Association, 1868‒1869
| a: | pr. | W. Bolt |
| b: | ? | ? (see notes) |
The initial tourney announcement was limited only to British amateurs. The final announcement added section B.
The closing date as well as the number of prizes were contingent
on the number of competitors. If the number was fewer then 5,
closing date would be extended until that number was met. If
the number was fewer than 7, only one prize would be awarded,
and if the number was fewer than 10, only two prizes.
Actual closing date was 1869-04-31/1869-05-31: as long as one
problem had been
sent in, together with the entry fee, by 1869-04-31, the
competitor had to 1869-05-31 to send in the remaining two.
Problems by six participants were published in Chess Player's
Quarterly Chronicle issues 3–8 (Aug. 1868–Aug. 1869):
W. Grimshaw (2 problems), J. W. Abbott (3),
J. H. Finlinson (3), A. B. Skipworth (1),
G. O. Cutler (3) and W. Bolt (4). (There is no indication of
the section they competed in.)
As four problems by W. Bolt were published, it may be assumed that
one of them turned out to be faulty and replaced. However, no
indication in the used source has been found as to which of the problems
was found to be faulty, and what kind of fault it was. For that reason,
all four problems have been included below. (As problem 4 was found to be
faulty by computer testing when this article was prepared, the simplest solution would be to
assume that it was the faulty problem. There is however the possibility
that a try in one of the other problems was mistaken for a second solution. Without further details, it is not possible to be certain.)
In Notices to Correspondents, i. 7 (inside back cover), it is
noted that judges were
intended to be chosen from those visitors at the meeting who were in
no way interested in the tourney.
The result was announced at the association meeting on Aug. 2,
1869. It is assumed that the prize referred to is that of section A. It
is not known if there were any competitors in section B. (The printed
account omits W. Grimshaw from the list of unsuccessful competitors, but
as two problems by Grimshaw were published after closing date as
participating in the tourney, it is practically certain that he was a
competitor; however, he might have competed in section B.)
A note published later said that Mr. J. H. Finlinson was second in
rank after W. Bolt.