Joseph John Lannin was a Canadian-born American baseball entrepreneur.
Biography
He was born on April 23, 1866 in Lac-Beauport, Quebec, Canada to John Lannin and Catherine Evans. His parents were Irish immigrants. Orphaned at the age of 14, Joseph Lannin migrated from Quebec to Boston, Massachusetts where he worked as a hotel bellboy. Penniless, he had remarkably made his way from Lac-Beauport to Boston on foot. He married Hannah Furlong and had two children, Paul Joseph Lannin and Dorothy A. Lannin. Although he had limited education, Lannin was personable and possessed a quick mind. He soon learned about real estate and the commodities market by listening to conversations of the wealthy patrons at his hotel and taking advice from those who were willing to share their insights with him. A confident and knowledgeable Joseph Lannin invested his savings in the commodities market, making a small fortune. From there he began to acquire other businesses and eventually built an empire of hotels, apartment buildings, and golf courses. On December 21, 1913, Lannin and a group of investors purchased 50% of the Boston Red Sox baseball team from Jimmy McAleer and Robert B. McRoy. In 1914 he became the sole owner of the Red Sox and in that same year he purchased the rights to bring Babe Ruth to Boston resulting in his team winning both the 1915 World Series and 1916 World Series. Joseph Lannin sold the team in 1917 to Harry Frazee for $675,000. He was quoted as saying, "I am too much of a fan to be an owner." With the profit made from the sale of his team, he continued to invest in real estate ventures all around Boston and across New York State. He acquired Roosevelt Airfield, on Long Island, New York, where Charles Lindbergh began his historic transatlantic flight. Lannin provided Lindbergh with a room at his nearby hotel and watched the takeoff from Roosevelt Airfield on May 20, 1927. He died on May 15, 1928, aged 62, in Brooklyn, New York City, having fallen from a window at the Hotel Granada. At his death his estate was valued at $7,000,000. Lannin was named to the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 2004. He is interred at the Cemetery of the Holy Rood, Garden City, New York.
