Chess Set Chess Set

Like his friend Thomas Jefferson and many contemporaries in the era, James Madison enjoyed a rousing match of chess. His friend Edward Thornton described Madison’s enthusiasm for the game as a “passion.” In 1853, Thomas Jefferson’s granddaughter, Ellen Wayles Coolidge, fondly recalled her grandfather was “a very good chess-player. There were not among his associates, many who could get the better of him. I have heard him speak of ‘four hour games’ with Mr. Madison.” While living in Washington as Secretary of State, Madison also frequently played chess against Dr. William Thornton, neighbor and architect of the United States Capitol, and among the items purchased for the Madison-era President’s House was “1 sett of Chessmen & Board.”