Ballarat Chess Club History

Teters Era

Things quietened down in the 1930's and 1940's, no doubt influenced by the Great Depression and World War II. However, the Club was revived in 1946, with Ernest Greenhalgh again winning the Championship. Annual Championships then became a feature of the Club.

In 1954, the Club gained a new, important member in Arthur Teters. Arriving in Australia in 1950, Teters was part of the great wave of post-war immigration of Baltic chess players who enlivened Australian chess in the ensuing decades. He won what is now recognised as the first Australian Open in Melbourne in 1953, before settling in Ballarat in 1954. Teters had an immediate impact on local chess, winning the Club championship several times and being elected President of the Club. He was also the victor at the Victorian Country Chess Championship and represented Australia in a Correspondence Chess Olympiad. After returning to Melbourne, Teters won the Victorian Championship in 1965. Akin to Nathan Spielvogel, the Ballarat Chess Club now honours his memory with an annual Arthur Teters Memorial tournament.