The Beneski Museum of Natural History's collection dates back to the earliest days of the college.

Edward Hitchcock, who joined the faculty in 1825 and served as the third president of Amherst College from 1845 to 1854, was deeply interested in the sciences and encouraged alumni to send back scientific specimens from all over the world.

During his presidency, Hitchcock raised funds for the building of the Octagon, the first home of Amherst's natural history collection.

[citation needed] The Beneski Museum of Natural History houses collections and exhibits that include vertebrate and invertebrate paleontology, minerals and other geologic specimens, and anthropological material.

It is home to the world's largest collection of dinosaur tracks,[2] the Hitchcock Ichnological Cabinet, which dates from the 1850s.

The first floor showcases large Ice Age mammals, including a mastodon uncovered by Shepard in 1869 and a mammoth found by Loomis in 1923.