Welcome to the Rook House Chess Chronicle. The primary focus of the site is to share historical chess information (primarily from the mid-1800’s to the end of the Fischer era) in the form of brief articles, annotated games, photos & illustrations, and the occasional book review.
I originally started the site as a chess forum to cover the 2006 world championship match between Vladimir Kramnik and Veselin Topalov. It progressed from there into a collection of facts and pictures on tournaments, past champions, etc. The most recent modification was into this current blog format.
The name Rook House was inspired by a famous quote by Bobby Fischer:
“I got strong ideas about my house. I’m going to hire the best architect and have him build it in the shape of a rook. Yeah, that’s for me. Class. Spiral staircases, parapets, everything. I want to live the rest of my life in a house built exactly like a rook.”
In addition to periodically updating the website, I have spent several years working on a manuscript about former United States chess champion Jackson Whipps Showalter. Russell Enterprises Inc. has kindly agreed to publish the book, which is tentatively scheduled for release in the fall of 2026.
Please e-mail me directly at admin@rookhouse.com to report any site issues or to provide recommendations for improving the site.
Interesting site, Kevin. Well done.
Thanks Kimber!!
Very impressive!