Skip to content
Back to the daily read

Daily Read: World

Retired FBI Agent Saves Rare Apple Trees

In 2012, retired FBI agent Dave Benscoter began a mission to rescue century‑old apple varieties that were slipping into oblivion across the Pacific Northwest. The idea sparked when he noticed a parishioner’s orchard in Washington contained unusual trees, including the historic Yellow Transparent and Wealthy apples, the first U.S.‑bred variety. Benscoter turned to online research, county fair archives and family recipes, and soon teamed with orchard experts Joanie Cooper and Sean Shepherd from Oregon’s Temperate Orchard Conservancy. Together they identified the first lost apple, the Fall Jenneting, and over the next decade have catalogued 30 other pre‑1920 varieties such as Streaked Pippin, Sary Sinap and Nero. He co‑founded the nonprofit Lost Apple Project with E.J. Brandt, which harvests specimens in the fall, performs DNA analysis, and returns in winter to graft branches and grow “heritage” trees. The project’s work has taken them beyond Washington to Idaho and Oregon, where they recovered the long‑missing Kittageskee apple in southern Idaho, delighting a farmer who had spent his life searching for it. By preserving these rare cultivars, Benscoter and his partners safeguard genetic diversity, protect regional food heritage and provide future growers with a living archive of America’s earliest apple breeding. Their ongoing efforts illustrate how individual passion can turn a quiet orchard into a living museum, ensuring that these historic trees survive for generations to come.

· Good Good Good

The essential points

  1. 01Dave Benscoter, former FBI agent, launched Lost Apple Project in 2012 to rescue century‑old apple varieties.
  2. 02First discovery was the Fall Jenneting, followed by 30 pre‑1920 cultivars including Streaked Pippin, Sary Sinap and Nero.
  3. 03The nonprofit harvests specimens, performs DNA testing, and grafts heritage branches each winter to regenerate lost apple trees.
  4. 04A farmer in Idaho was thrilled when the team found the long‑missing Kittageskee apple, a dream he had held for years.
The full brief

In 2012, retired FBI agent Dave Benscoter began a mission to rescue century‑old apple varieties that were slipping into oblivion across the Pacific Northwest. The idea sparked when he noticed a parishioner’s orchard in Washington contained unusual trees, including the historic Yellow Transparent and Wealthy apples, the first U. S. ‑bred variety.

Benscoter turned to online research, county fair archives and family recipes, and soon teamed with orchard experts Joanie Cooper and Sean Shepherd from Oregon’s Temperate Orchard Conservancy. Together they identified the first lost apple, the Fall Jenneting, and over the next decade have catalogued 30 other pre‑1920 varieties such as Streaked Pippin, Sary Sinap and Nero. He co‑founded the nonprofit Lost Apple Project with E. J.

Brandt, which harvests specimens in the fall, performs DNA analysis, and returns in winter to graft branches and grow “heritage” trees. The project’s work has taken them beyond Washington to Idaho and Oregon, where they recovered the long‑missing Kittageskee apple in southern Idaho, delighting a farmer who had spent his life searching for it. By preserving these rare cultivars, Benscoter and his partners safeguard genetic diversity, protect regional food heritage and provide future growers with a living archive of America’s earliest apple breeding. Their ongoing efforts illustrate how individual passion can turn a quiet orchard into a living museum, ensuring that these historic trees survive for generations to come.