Frank Benton (1852-1919), born in Coldwater, Michigan, graduated from Michigan Agricultural College (now Michigan State University) with his B.S. in 1879 and his M.S. in 1886. He also studied at the University of Tennessee, the University of Munich, and the University of Athens. In 1879, he taught modern languages at M.A.C. Benton spent 1880-1891 studying honeybees in Europe, Africa, and Asia. Around 1880, he was the investigator in charge of apiculture with the Bureau of Entomology in the United States Department of Agriculture. In 1894, he was corresponding secretary of the Entomological Society of Washington and the North American Beekeepers Association. He was also secretary of the Michigan State Beekeepers Association and a member of various scientific organizations including the National Geographic Society and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He authored two books: Bee-Keeping and The Honey Bee (1896), as well as many articles on apiculture, a partial listing of which is included in this collection and is located in Box 6209 Folder 1.

According to the January 27, 1914 issue of the M.A.C. Record, Benton traveled to Palestine "to investigate the bee industry, and as a result of his efforts there is now in this country a particular strain of bees known as Holy Land bees, which are scattered widely over the United States (page 5)."