Born in Detroit, Yawkey became president of the Boston Red Sox in 1933 and was the sole owner of the team for 44 seasons until he died of leukemia.

[1][2] Augusta was the eldest child of William Clyman Yawkey, who had become wealthy in the lumber and iron ore industries of the Midwestern United States.

[2] In addition to these interests, William Clyman Yawkey had agreed to buy the Detroit Tigers baseball team in 1903, but died before the deal closed.

[13][14] Collins found a potential target in the Boston Red Sox, who had spent the last fourteen years as one of the worst teams in baseball.

Former owner Harry Frazee had been forced to sell most of his best players to the New York Yankees due to chronic cash shorts.

When it became apparent that buying top level major league players wasn't enough to surpass the Yankees and Detroit Tigers, Yawkey began building a minor-league system as well.

Yawkey spent around an additional $3 million during that time on buying players, renovating Fenway Park, and other capital expenses.

[28] However, they were the last major league team to add a black player to their roster, allegedly due to Yawkey and the managers he hired being racists.

[30] In 1945, Red Sox held a farce tryout chiefly designed to assuage the desegregationist sensibilities of powerful Boston City Councilman Isadore H. Y.

[31] Jackie Robinson, who would later play for the Brooklyn Dodgers, was subjected to racial epithets by management[32] and left the tryout humiliated.

Joe Cronin, general manager after Eddie Collins, scouted black players, including Sam Jethroe, Larry Doby and Bill Greason but none signed with the team.

[41][42] In 1956, The Boston Globe published an article discussing the Red Sox's lack of black players on the team, in which manager Joe Cronin denied prejudice allegations.

[48] In 1967, the Red Sox fielded a team with a starting lineup including multiple black players, such as George Scott and Reggie Smith.

[51] In 2008, the original Foundation supported the building of a new home, Jean Yawkey Place, for the Boston Health Care for the Homeless program.

[63] In 2014, The Foundation gave a $10 million donation to Boston University to support a paid internship program for students to work at nonprofits.

[68] However, in August 2017, due to Yawkey's alleged history of racism and discrimination against Black players, the Red Sox principal owner John W. Henry announced the team was seeking to change the name of the street.

[69][70] The change was unanimously approved by the Boston Public Improvement Commission in April 2018, and the name reverted to Jersey Street in May 2018.

[71][72] Also in May, a plaque commemorating Yawkey from "his Red Sox employees," that had hung at the administrative office entrance to Fenway Park since shortly after his death was removed.