For those interested in playing the game of connecting players with players of
the past using a short chain of chess games, it might be interesting to try to
use the Viennese player Karl Mayerhofer. In 1851, he played in the all-play-all
tournament in the London chess club, playing Kieseritzky, Harrwitz, and
Anderssen. He was a serious enough chess player so that even his obituary in the
Wiener Zeitung, which is there because he was among the most famous opera singer
for his time, talks about his chess prowess, and that he was still an extremely
strong amateur and played regularly in the Vienna chess club up to his death in
1913. Since the Vienna club was very active, he probably met a lot of players who
had careers stretching well into the 1900s, giving a potentially long span of
years for opponents of Mayerhofer. Perhaps the Wiener Schach Zeitung would
mention some of his specific opponents in later years.

Jerry Spinrad

Jeremy Spinrad wrote:

years for opponents of Mayerhofer. Perhaps the Wiener Schach Zeitung would
mention some of his specific opponents in later years.

WSz is mostly occupied with Mayerhofer himself and his successes as a singer,
and says that once he retired, his favourite occupation was botany.
(1. e4 e5 2. Se2 -- nowadays called Alapin Opening -- is said to be named
after Mayerhofer, according to this source, though another mentioned in DSz
mentions 'Mayerhofer-Alapin' opening, which term seems to have be used in Cordel's
'Theorie und Praxis' book. OCC leaves out Mayerhofer.)

DSz mentions Hamppe, Jenay, Schlemm, Klotz as opponents in 'das sog. silberne
Café bei Neuner in der Plankengasse' in Vienna, and Evans, Horwitz, Löwenthal,
Mongredien, Kieseritzky, Perigal and Staunton while he was studying in London,
but nothing more. No later opponents noted.

--
Anders Thulin ath*algonet.se http://www.algonet.se/~ath