In addition to his work in ichthyology, Bean was a forester, a fish culturist, a conservationist, an editor, an administrator, and an exhibitor.

His focus on ichthyology probably began in the summer of 1874, when he worked as a volunteer at the Fish Commission laboratory in Noank, Connecticut.

[citation needed] Bean spent the next two decades in Washington working for Baird's two institutions, the National Museum and the Fish Commission, in a number of capacities.

They were the beneficiaries of the extensive survey and collecting activities being done by Fish Commission vessels in the poorly explored deep waters off the coast of North America.

He was also a dedicated educator, from his early teaching days in Pennsylvania to his work on the great international exhibitions and his many popular articles and lectures on fishes, forestry, and conservation.

Bean was a pioneer in the growth of American ichthyology in the post-Civil War years and by the end of his life was one of its most respected and honored members.