Drueke No. 152 — what board is this?
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It’s beautiful!
Nice board!
Thanks for the compliments on the board. I’ve continued to research it on the web, and while I have not been able to confirm when it was manufactured, I have found some very interesting materials. I emailed the Grand Rapids Public Museum and they were kind enough to send me pictures of a 1922 Drueke price list for retailers, called a “Jobbers’ List” that has images of many of the Drueke chess sets that were offered in 1922. I think that a website called PetersPioneers.com on the genealogy of descendants of William Drueke includes a great deal of information on the Drueke company including a partial copy of a 1920 price list. This document is longer and has more images of chess sets offered at the time.
That 1922 price list is pretty cool! Thanks for sharing it.
I love that sunburst border on it...nice find!
Whether you find an answer or not,you have a real gem there.
Good luck.
This may be a shot in the dark, but there is nothing to lose....
Very few know more about antique chess sets, including Drueke, than Frank Camarrata. This is his chess antiques site. If you contact them, perhaps send them some photos of your board they may be able to help you identify it....
https://chessantiques.com/product-category/chess-antiques/
You might also try contacting William Drueke III himself....
https://www.facebook.com/DruekeIIIGames/
https://www.facebook.com/DruekeIIIGames/about/?ref=page_internal
Hello, I was hoping someone here might be able to help me figure out some more information about a Drueke chess board. I recently got a Drueke board on eBay that was called a “No. 152” and has what appears to be a Drueke maker’s mark saying so stamped into the bottom side. The board is 18” with 1.75” squares and appears to be walnut and maple veneer, but I have never read about Drueke making a veneer board before. I have model 63 from the 90’s, and while this board has similar beveled edges to that one, and similar wide-boarders proportions to other Drueke boards, it does not have the trademark groves framing the playing area. I have not been able to find any images or references to this model number other than the same eBay listing I bought it from. Is this an earlier Drueke board? Maybe pre-war? I read in an article that Drueke’s hiatus from 1928 to 1932 was related to an FTC action related to selling veneer furniture without properly advertising it as veneer- could the board be pre 1928? I would be grateful for any information anyone can provide, and thanks just for reading the post and adding your own thoughts too.
