Copyright ©Chicago Billiard Museum. All Rights Reserved.

"If the contents of this octavo shall bring to the light new truths,
or recall old facts nearly lost or forgotten; if they shall correct
various errors, and, withal, place a few pebbles upon the
historic pile or memento of Chicago's early history, our efforts
will not have been altogether futile. "
H.H.Hurlbut  1881
In fact, around 100 years ago, because of her overwhelming industry
dominance and influence in the realm of tournaments and championships,
Chicago was the premier American city synonymous with billiards and pool.
As a championship level player, you certainly had to prove yourself in New
York, but none of that mattered unless you could win in Chicago too.

For a variety of reasons, public popularity of billiards and pool has
obviously waned somewhat since that time, but even as this is being written,
the love and respect for billiards and pool is still very much alive in Chicago.


The Chicago Billiard Museum is dedicated to the promotion of billiards and
pool in the future, by preserving and sharing it's illustrious past. Likewise,
we are here to honor the passionate men and women who dedicated their lives
to the betterment of the games and the industry as a whole; from the players
themselves to the makers of the tables and cues to everyone in between.
The Great Midwestern City of Chicago has certainly
produced it's share of champions in the world of sports. But long before The
Bulls, The Sox and The Blackhawks, it was billiard players, billiard tables and
high-stakes billiard championships that Chicago was known for.

Top players like Jake Schaefer, George Sutton, Tom Foley, Cap Anson and
Johnny Kling were considered citywide heroes and were as respected and
hailed as a "Michael Jordan" or "Sammy Sosa" would be today.