It is named after the Dutch consul and bullion dealer Henry Albert Wilhelm Benz (1889-1962).

[1] The village lies in the jungle of the Tapanahony resort, near the Lawa River that forms the border with French Guiana, an overseas region and further north, in the Marowijne.

In 1902, then-Governor Cornelis Lely in Suriname, decided that the Lawa Railway would be built by the government.

The proposed 350-kilometre (220 mi) railway line was only half completed from Paramaribo due to disappointing gold finds.

On April 3, 2008, an airplane operated by Blue Wing Airlines crashed upon landing at Lawa Antino Airport near Benzdorp in which 19 people were killed.