Beekeepers old and new are always seeking out how best to be successful raising bees in the 21st century. But there is a good deal of value to learning about how beekeeping developed over the years and who may have played a role in the development of beekeeping as we know it today. Below is a bit of history of beekeeping and some of the men and woman who may have helped the beekeeper.
George Whitfield Demaree: The "Demaree method" for swarming prevention by Ron Miksha at Sassafras Bee Farm.
Major Franz Hruschka: Best known as the inventor of the honey extractor.
Dr. Elton James Dyce: best known for his process for controlling the crystallization and fermentation of honey.
Anton Janša:The Father of European Beekeeping and the first teacher of modern beekeeping by Ron Miksha at Sassafras Bee Farm: Click here to learn more about Janša and World Bee Day (May 20th)
Karl von Frisch by Sassafras Bee and Honey Farm: von Frisch's work centered on investigations of the sensory perceptions of the honey bee and he was one of the first to translate the meaning of the waggle dance.
Telling the Bees (Additional links:
William Longgood - The Queen Must Die: and Other Affairs of Bees and Men -
Albert J. Cook - offered one of the first collegiate courses in beekeeping culture and published the first textbook on American beekeeping, The Manual of the Apiary.
Maurice Maeterlinck by Ron Miksha at Sassafras Bee Farm - Won Nobel Prize in Literature and wrote The Life of the Bee in . His poetic work is less about bees and more about life, expressed his philosophy of the human condition.
Roger A. Morse - Wrote ”The Complete Guide to Beekeeping”
Johannes Mehring by Ron Miksha -Made first comb foundation in 1857.
Charles Dadant by Ron Miksha -The first to lay down rules for the safe transportation of queen bees across the sea. Partnered with his son C. P. Dadant, he undertook the manufacture of comb foundation.
Moses Quinby by Ron Miksha -Known as the “father of commercial beekeeping in the United States,” and credited with the invention of the modern bee smoker with bellows.
Harry Hyde Laidlaw Jr. by Ron Miksha -Known as “the father of honey bee genetics.”
Ormond Aebi by Ron Miksha - Reported to have set the world’s record for honey obtained from a single hive in one year
Lorenzo L. Langstroth "The Father of American Beekeeping" by Ron Miksha
John S. Harbison: Inventor & Author by Ron Miksha