On June 19, 2023, the National Baseball Hall of Fame announced details about its Black Baseball Initiative and the unveiling of a new exhibit scheduled to open in spring 2024 in the new Yawkey Gallery at the Cooperstown museum.
The Hall’s Black Baseball Initiative includes outreach programs, educational materials, virtual programming and the new exhibit, “The Souls of the Game: Voices of Black Baseball”, a title that pays tribute to W.E.B. Du Bois’s seminal 1903 book The Souls of Black Folk. Made possible in part through support of the Yawkey Foundation, the exhibit will explore the Black baseball experience of those African-American men, women and children who were and are an integral part of our National Pastime. From the decades-long history of Black baseball prior to the formation of the Negro Leagues, through the complexities of baseball’s re-integration, to the challenges that remain today, The Souls of the Game will reveal the deep connections between baseball and Black America.
Since its opening in 1939, the mission and purpose of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum deeply resonated with the Yawkeys during their lifetimes because they truly believed in and understood all the good that can come from the game. Stemming from the Yawkeys passion for the game of baseball and the Hall of Fame, this latest aspect of the partnership reflects a cherished relationship that spans eight decades and continues to this day.
Tom and Jean Yawkey gave to the Hall not only their tangible resources but also demonstrated a loyalty and leadership commitment that manifested itself through their respective participation on the Board of Directors (Tom: 1968-1976; Jean: 1984-1991). It is notable that Jean Yawkey trailblazed the path for more equitable gender representation in The Hall’s leadership by serving as its first female Board member.