Fergus George H. Nicholson

b. 1935, Dumfries - d. ?

Associated with Polytechnic Chess Club, Glasgow.

Attended Queen's Park Secondary School and Hyndland Secondary School, both Glasgow, and Glasgow University.

In 1950 Nicholson and Polytechnic clubmate Alec Maclennan made the national news when they hitched to Buxton, Derbyshire to play in the British Chess Federation Congress. Alec (17) and Fergus (15) took second and third prizes in their section.

Chess, October 1950, p5.
Nicholson is on the left.

Played in the Scottish Boys' Championship in 1950 and 1951, winning the latter event.

		1	2	3	4	1	2	3	4	Pts
1	Fergus G.H. Nicholson	■	1	1	1	■	½	0	1	4½
2	David G. Weir	0	■	1	1	½	■	1	1	4½
3	James C. Allan	0	0	■	1	1	0	■	1	3
4	Grant Walker	0	0	0	■	0	0	0	■	0

Scottish Boys' Championship, Dundee 1951

Member of Scotland's Glorney Cup team 1951 (played at Dublin).

Led the Hyndland Secondary School team in winning the Glasgow Schools' Chess League in 1951. 

In 1952, when Polytechnic CC won Divisions 1 and 2 of the Glasgow League and the Richardson Cup, Nicholson was a member of the first team. 

He married:
(1) 1957, Elizabeth Elsby Burns (1936-2021) at Pollok, Glasgow.
(2) 1972, Gina M. Young at Merton, London.

As mentioned above Nicholson and his school pal made the national press in 1950 when they hitchhiked to Buxton. Nicholson was also in the Scottish press in 1952 when, as a pupil of Hyndland Secondary School, he distributed a pamphet described as 'Communist propaganda' that was critical of the Conservative Party education and housing policy. This was an early example of his involvement in politics. Nicholson was politically active when at Glasgow University and thereafter, being heavily involved with the Communist Party.

Sources
Glasgow Herald, 3 March 1952, p5.
The Bulletin, 3 March 1952, pp1-2.
https://grahamstevenson.me.uk/2012/06/21/nicholson-fergus/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Straight_Left 

Alan McGowan
Archivist/Historian, Chess Scotland

added 24/2/2023