Terre Haute Castle Chess Camp

The Castle Chess Camp is a nationally renowned program of chess instruction, recreation and competition that brings together some of the best chess teachers and scholastic players from across the U.S.  the camp concept developed out of a 5-year study of 7th and 8th grade students by school teacher Bob Ferguson. These students engaged in chess classes improved 17.3%  compared to 4.5% for the students that were engaged in other forms of "enrichment activity."  These results prompted Bob to form the American Chess School, which held its first resident camp in 1982. One week every summer for over a decade, the Bradford, PA, area has hosted a chess camp. Seven years ago, Terre Haute, IN, also began hosting a week-long camp. The Terre Haute Castle Chess camp takes place June 11-18, 2000 while the Bradford Camp runs from July 16-23.

Many students have experienced dramatic rating increases following their attendance of the camp--one individual increased his rating 408 points! Others have won hundreds, even thousands, of dollars at Grand Prix tournaments! Hundreds of these Castle Chess Camp students have won many thousands of trophies and other awards over the years!

It is getting outstanding instruction sometimes

The Castle Chess Camp is a structured week providing professional chess instruction, plenty of tournament and recreational play, and the opportunity to participate in other activities such as basketball, kickball, volleyball, swimming, and much more.

All campers may participate in supervised sports each afternoon. Activities at the camp include volleyball, basketball, softball, soccer, kickball, and tennis. Please bring tennis rackets, towels, bathing suits, and baseball gloves.

Other special activities include speed and bughouse tournaments, a master/student simul, late-nite pizza, and movie night.

Castle Chess Camp Terre Haute will be held at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. Rose-Hulman is a fully accredited college of engineering and science located on a 200-acre campus just east of Terre Haute, Indiana. The campus offers a quiet, secure environment for the campers. Terre Haute, Indiana is just one hour west of Indianapolis on Interstate 70. Terre Haute is three hours from St. Louis, Louisville, and Cincinnati and three-and-a half hours from Chicago.

Two students per room are housed in on-campus apartments with a live-on adult counselor. Linens are supplied. Single and family housing are available for an additional fee.

The Rose-Hulman campus provides a secure setting for the campers. Campus security is on duty 24 hours a day. The university health staff is available during camp. The local hospital is only minutes from the campus.

Chess players of all ages attend the camp. Last year's students ranged from 5 to 70. Past students include many national scholastic chess champions and several masters. The following list represents only a few of the country's top players who have participated in the Castle Chess Camp.

TAL SHAKED, International Grandmaster, is a former World Junior Champion. Tal has played some of the very best players in the world, including Garry Kasparov.

AVIV FRIEDMAN, Fide Master, USCF Senior Master, is a senior level chess instructor in Israel and is a coach for the U.S. team at the World Junior Rapid Championships.

BEN FINEGOLD, International Master, is a former U.S. Junior Invitational Champion, U.S. Open Co-Champion, and a recipient of the Samford Fellowship for the most promising American player under the age of 25.

JIM DEAN, Fide Master, USCF National Master, is the 1999 Indiana State Champion and is a chess instructor in Ft. Wayne, Indiana.

JAN VAN DE MORTEL,Fide Master, is a promising young talent from the Netherlands.

CRAIG STAUFFER, USCF National Master, is one of Terre Haute's resident chess instructors

SANDRA DE BLECOURT,is an expert and an experienced chess teacher from Amsterdam

ROBERT TANNER, USCF National Master and International Arbiter , is a very entertaining instructor and is the senior member of the staff.

Note: More Chess Masters will be added if the student/teacher ratio is more than 9:1.

The dining hall serves three meals daily. Meals are included in the resident camper fee. Meals are available to commuters on a per meal basis. You can get further information by clicking Meals

The Terre Haute camp takes place from June 11 to June 18 and the Bradford camp is July 16-23. Check-in for housing accommodations begins at 2:00 PM on Sunday, June 11. The camp ends following the last round of the tournament on June 18. For a nominal fee, a staff person will meet those who notify the camp of their expected arrival time.

The weekend following chess camp, June 24, Rose-Hulman will be the site of the Terre Haute Grand Prix. Your registration to chess camp includes your entry into either of these tournaments.

Resident camper (room & meals)

$482......if paid on or before March 10

$507......if paid on or before March 31

$532......if paid on or before April 29

$557......if paid on or before May 31

$582......if paid on or before June 11

$255......Resident non-camper (parent or guardian)

Please inquire about additional family member discounts.

Commuters (no meals included)

$317......if paid on or before March 10

$332......if paid on or before March 31

$349......if paid on or before April 29

$366......if paid on or before May 31

$382......if paid on or before June 11

A $100 deposit is required with registration. Entry must be paid in full by the specified deadline in order to qualify for any early entry discounts.

For more information, email Craig Stauffer or call 1-812-234-4156.

Fill out our form to send the directors your information immediately. Checks may be made out to the Terre Haute Chess Camp and mailed to TH Chess Camp, 125 Monterey, Terre Haute, Indiana 47803

For more information about the Bradford camp, contact Bradford Castle Chess Camp or the American Chess School Page.