author
E. A. (Ernest Adna) Back
1880–1959
A pioneering American entomologist, he wrote practical guides that helped farmers and households deal with destructive insects. His work ranged from bean and pea weevils to cockroaches and stored-grain pests, always with a strong focus on real-world control methods.
1 Audiobook
Carpet Beetles and Their Control
by E. A. (Ernest Adna) Back
About the author
Born in Northampton, Massachusetts, on October 7, 1880, Ernest Adna Back built his career around economic entomology—the study of insects that affect agriculture, stored food, and daily life. Sources describing his life identify him as an entomologist and scientist, and record his death on May 21, 1959.
Back studied at Massachusetts Agricultural College, where he earned advanced degrees and later taught before joining the United States Department of Agriculture's Bureau of Entomology. He became known for practical research and clear public writing on insect problems, including weevils in beans and peas, fumigation, stored-grain pests, bedbugs, and cockroaches.
Much of his published work was issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which gives his writing a direct, useful quality: it was meant to solve problems for farmers, food handlers, and homeowners, not just specialists. That mix of scientific expertise and everyday usefulness is what still makes his work interesting today.