Frank J. Frost (December 3, 1929 – January 9, 2026) was an American scholar of Ancient Greek history, archaeologist, politician, and novelist.
Early life and education Born in Washington, DC, on December 3, 1929, to businessman Frank J. Frost Sr., and Eugenia Frost, Frank Frost grew up in Palo Alto, CA.See Oakland Tribune (April 15, 1939), p. 2 and San Mateo Times (April 17, 1939), p. 12. After high school and some college, he served in the US Army during the Korean War.Barney Brantingham, "Frank, Jerry, and Korea: Remembering the Forgotten War," Santa Barbara Independent (Dec. 1, 2011) He returned to the US from Korea and earned his B.A. at the University of California, Santa Barbara in 1955.Joseph Finnegan, "Archaeology of the Ocean Sea," Historia: Newsletter of the UCSB History Associates (January, 1992): p. 6; The Historian 18 (1956): 278 He then went to the University of California, Los Angeles where he earned a Ph.D. in history in 1961 (his doctoral dissertation, entitled "The Scholarship of Plutarch: the Biographer's Contribution to the Study of Athenian History, 480-429 B.C.," was directed by Truesdell Sparhawk Brown).
Academic career After teaching at the University of California, Riverside, and Hunter College,Joseph Finnegan, "Archaeology of the Ocean Sea," Historia: Newsletter of the UCSB History Associates (January, 1992): p. 6 Frost was called to the growing History Department of the University of California, Santa Barbara in 1965 where he joined C. Warren Hollister in building its European history program.
Frost's first book was an English edition, with additional commentary and supplementary material, of Adolf Bauer's German-language Themistokles: Studien und Beiträge zur griechischen Historiographie und Quellenkunde (Merseburg: P. Steffenhagen, 1881) published as Themistokles: literary, epigraphical and archaeological testimonia (Chicago, Argonaut, 1967). He edited Democracy and the Athenians: Aspects of Ancient Politics (New York: Wiley, 1969), which provides a mix of excerpts from primary and secondary sources. He published his revised doctoral dissertation as Plutarch's Themistocles: A Historical Commentary (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1980). His textbook Greek Society (originally published with D.C. Heath in 1971) was widely used and went through five editions. He published a collection of his essays in Politics and the Athenians: Essays on Athenian History and Historiography (Toronto: Edgar Kent, 2005).
Frost also was an active archaeologist with special interest in underwater archaeology. He mapped submerged remains of the ancient city of Halieis, near the modern community of Porto Cheli (in the Argolid Peninsula, Greece) in 1965.Michael H. Jameson, "Submerged Remains of the Town and Its Immediate Vicinity," in Marian Holland McAllister, ed., The Excavations at Ancient Halieis: The fortifications and adjacent structures, Vol. 1 (Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 2005), pp. 15, 85, 95 He also did survey work at Phourkari (also in the Argolid).Frank J. Frost, "Phourkari. A villa complex in the Argolid (Greece)," International Journal of Nautical Archaeology and Underwater Exploration 6 (1977): 233-238. He excavated in Greece in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s.See Frank J. Frost, "Here and There in the Cyclades: An Historian and Archaeologist Looks Around and Remembers His Wanderings," Ancient World 14 (1987): 97-114 Combining his interest in archaeology with the history of sea-faring, he also published on early sea-faring off the coast of California.Frank Frost, "The Palos Verdes Chinese Anchor Mystery," Archaeology 35 (1982): 23-27 Later, he co-directed the Greek-American excavations at Phalasarna (in Western Crete) with Dr. Elpida Hadjidaki of the Greek Archaeological Service.Frank J. Frost, "The Last Days of Phalasarna," Ancient History Bulletin 3 (1989): 15-17; "Tectonics and History at Phalasarna,"Res Maritimae, American Schools of Oriental Research Archaeological Reports, no. 4 (Atlanta: Scholars Press,1998), pp. 107-115; and (with Elpida Hadjidaki) "Excavations at the Harbor of Phalasarna in Crete," Hesperia 59 (1990): 513-27.
In 2000, two of his former students co-edited The Dance of Hippocleides: A Festschrift for Frank J. Frost in his honor.Originally published as Ancient World 31 (2000), it was re-issued in slightly revised format as: Robert M. Frakes and David L. Toye, eds., The Dance of Hippocleides: A Festschrift for Frank J. Frost (Chicago: Ares Publishers, 2002).
Political career and other activities Frost was also active in politics. He was elected County Supervisor of Santa Barbara County in 1972 on a no-growth platform (and was involved in a sting operation to stop bribes by real estate developers).Columbia Daily Spectator, Volume XCVII, Number 62 (January 26, 1973) He was the democratic nominee for Congress for the 19th congressional district in 1982, losing to Republican Robert J. Lagomarsino.
Following his retirement from teaching in 1990 (and receiving emeritus status), Frost was an active writer of fiction. These works included collections of short stories such as Subversives (Daniel & Daniel Publishers, 2001) and Gershwin's Last Waltz and Other Stories (Outskirts Press, 2016) as well as novels such as Dead Philadelphians (Capra Press, 1999), which received excellent reviews,See review by Peter Green in the Los Angeles Times, July 18, 1999. and Bay to Breakers (Daniel & Daniel Publishers, 2002).
He also played jazz piano professionally for decades.UCSB History Associates Marks 20th Anniversary with Afternoon of Jazz and Blues
Death Frost died on January 9, 2026, at the age of 96.Frank J. Frost
Selected publications Frank J. Frost, ed. and tr., Themistokles: Literary, Epigraphical and Archaeological Testimonia (Chicago, Argonaut, 1967) Frank J. Frost, Democracy and the Athenians: Aspects of Ancient Politics (New York: Wiley, 1969) Frank J. Frost, Greek Society, 1st edition (Lexington, MA: D.C. Heath, 1971). This book would go on through 5 editions Frank J. Frost, Plutarch's Themistocles: A Historical Commentary (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1980) Frank J. Frost, et al., The Archaeology of Athens and Attica under the Democracy (Oxford: Oxbow Books, 1994) Frank J. Frost, Politics and the Athenians: Essays on Athenian History and Historiography (Toronto: Edgar Kent, 2005).
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