The Chess Player's Instructor or, Guide to Beginners, Containing all the Information Necessary to Acquire a Knowledge of the Game

Charles Henry Stanley

New York, R.M. De Witt, 1859

Bound in publisher's cloth-backed, colored pictorial boards.  The front board shows a scene of a man and woman playing chess.  The rear board shows advertisements for "Webster's Practical Letter Writer" and "Ready Reckoner, [Sweets]." Edge wear to cover.  iv, 72 p. + 11 pages of ads [2].   11 chess diagrams. 

Charles Henry Stanley was the first chess champion of the United States.  Stanely started the American Chess Magazine in 1846.  He was defeated by Paul Morphy in 1857. 

Early signature of Frank H. Tomlin, New York, 1876.