William Hoover Yawkey (August 22, 1875 – March 5, 1919) was an American business executive in the lumber and mining industries. He was the sole owner of the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, the club was f ...

of the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

from 1903 through 1908, and majority owner from 1908 to 1919.

Biography

Yawkey was the son of wealthy

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

lumber tycoon William Clyman Yawkey. The elder Yawkey agreed to buy the Tigers from Samuel F. Angus in 1903, but died before the deal closed.

Frank Navin Francis Joseph Navin (April 18, 1871 – November 13, 1935) was the president of the Detroit Tigers in Major League Baseball for 27 years, from 1908 to 1935. He was part-owner from 1908 to 1919, and principal owner from 1919 to 1935. He also serv ...

, then the Tigers' bookkeeper and vice president, persuaded the younger Yawkey to complete the deal. Yawkey took little interest in the Tigers, leaving day-to-day control in Navin's hands. In 1908, Yawkey sold almost half of the club's stock to Navin, effectively making Navin a full partner. Yawkey died in

Augusta, Georgia Augusta ( ), officially Augusta–Richmond County, is a consolidated city-county on the central eastern border of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. The city lies across the Savannah River from South Carolina at the head of its navig ...

, in 1919 from the

Spanish flu The 1918–1920 influenza pandemic, commonly known by the misnomer Spanish flu or as the Great Influenza epidemic, was an exceptionally deadly global influenza pandemic caused by the H1N1 influenza A virus. The earliest documented case was ...

. He was interred in a family lot in

Brattleboro, Vermont Brattleboro (), originally Brattleborough, is a town in Windham County, Vermont, United States. The most populous municipality abutting Vermont's eastern border with New Hampshire, which is the Connecticut River, Brattleboro is located about no ...

. Following Yawkey's death, Navin bought additional stock from the Yawkey estate, raising his stake to 50 percent; he would remain the Tigers' principal owner until his own death in 1935. Yawkey left his $40 million estate to his nephew and adoptive son,

Tom Yawkey Thomas Austin Yawkey, born Thomas Yawkey Austin (February 21, 1903 – July 9, 1976), was an American industrialist, philanthropist, conservationist and Major League Baseball executive. Born in Detroit, Yawkey became president of the Boston Red S ...

, who later bought the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

. A boathouse that Yawkey had constructed in 1917 in

Hazelhurst, Wisconsin Hazelhurst is a town in Oneida County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 1,267 at the 2000 census. The unincorporated community of Hazelhurst is located in the town. Hazelhurst describes itself as the "Quiet side of the North Woods." ...

, was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 2009. A cousin,

Cyrus C. Yawkey Cyrus Carpenter Yawkey (August 29, 1862 – May 18, 1943), commonly known as C. C. Yawkey, was an American business executive in lumber, and politician in Wisconsin. Biography Born in Chicago, Illinois, Yawkey moved with his family to Saginaw ...

, owned a lumber business and was a politician in Wisconsin.

Notes

References

External links

Detroit Tigers owners
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Yawkey, Bill 1875 births 1919 deaths People from Bay City, Michigan American business executives Major League Baseball owners Detroit Tigers owners Deaths from the Spanish flu pandemic in Georgia (U.S. state) 19th-century American businesspeople