Edo Ratings, Birch, J.A.

Birch, James

Ratings

Year	Rank	Edo	Dev.	Games
1855	163	1941	(120)	2
1856	182	1939	(118)	0
1857	189	1938	(115)	0
1858	208	1936	(112)	0
1859	232	1935	(109)	1
1860	247	1936	(107)	0
1861	260	1937	(104)	3
1862	278	1940	(102)	6
1863	272	1939	(103)	2
1864	289	1935	(107)	0
1865	316	1931	(110)	1
1866	352	1922	(115)	0
1867	350	1912	(119)	0
1868	372	1903	(123)	0
1869	386	1893	(126)	1

Rating table notes

Biographical data

Name: Birch, James A.

Born:

Died:

Notes:

Staunton gives his name as 'I.A. Birch' in the Illustrated London News of 4 Apr. 1863 (p.395), but it is given elsewhere as 'J. Birch' or 'James Birch'. I believe these are the same person, as 'I' was often used interchangably for 'J' as an initial in the 19th century. The middle initial 'A' also appears in the subscription list of the book of the Chess Association of Manchester meeting in 1857, and in Renette's biography of Paulsen, citing the Manchester Weekly Express and Guardian of 21 Dec. 1861. The Jun. 1853 issue of the Chess Player's Chronicle has 'James Bird' in error. There was also a 'Lee Birch' or 'Lea Birch' in Manchester, who was active at least from 1837 to 1853, and another 'James Birch' who played in Glasgow in the 1870s and was born in Manchester in 1841, but too young to have been the Manchester player of 1853.

References

Books

Chess Association, Manchester 1857 Report, page 40

Renette, Louis Paulsen, page 119

Whyld, English Tournaments, page 11

Periodicals

[CP], vol. 3, June 1853, page 322

[CPC], vol. 1, no. 6, June 1853, page 180

[CPC], vol. 3, no. 5, May 1855, page 176

[Era], vol. 18, no. 919, 4 May 1856, page 14

[Era], vol. 24, no. 1203, 13 Oct. 1861, page 13

[Era], vol. 24, no. 1214, 29 Dec. 1861, page 4

[ILN], vol. 22, no. 623, 21 May 1853, page 403

[ILN], vol. 28, no. 797, 3 May 1856, page 483

[ILN], vol. 30, no. 843, 7 Feb. 1857, page 124

[ILN], vol. 38, no. 1068, 5 Jan. 1861, page 23

[ILN], vol. 42, no. 1197, 4 Apr. 1863, page 395

[MWET], no. 736, 26 Apr. 1856, page 6

Web

Spinrad, Jeremy P. [Collected results, 1836-1863]

Tournament data

Liverpool 1855     Manchester - Liverpool Club Match

  Birch, J.A. - Sparke, M.     1.5 - 0.5

Manchester and Liverpool 1859     Manchester - Liverpool Telegraph Match

  Birch, J.A. - de Szabo, E.     0 - 1

Manchester 1861 (1)     Manchester Chess Club Tournament - 1st Class

  Birch, J.A. - Pindar, E.D.     0 - 3

Manchester 1862 (1)     Manchester Club Tournament

  Birch, J.A. - Perkins, G.     3 - 1

Manchester 1862 (2)     Manchester - Liverpool Club Match

  Birch, J.A. - Soul, J.     0.5 - 1.5

Liverpool 1863     Manchester - Liverpool Club Match

  Birch, J.A. - Schull, L.     0.5 - 1.5

Manchester 1865     Manchester - Liverpool Club Match

  Birch, J.A. - Soul, C.     0.5 - 0.5

Manchester 1869     Manchester - Liverpool Club Match

  Birch, J.A. - Soul, C.     0 - 1