In 1925, the editor of the American Bee Journal, C. P. Dadant, wrote about early queen imports to the USA ( “Personal Recollections of the Editor, Importation of Foreign Bees”, October 1925, pg 481).

He mentions once importing Cyprian queens. The exact year of the Cyprian import is not specified but he describes how he and his father imported about 500 queens per year from Europe during the years of 1874-1880.

C. P. was not a fan of the Cyprian stock, writing:

“Well the Cyprians proved to be infernal in their temper; so much so, that in my exasperation, I killed two colonies of them with brimstone, the only bees that I ever killed willingly. It was then that I learned that drones could stand more suffering than workers, for the dose of brimstone that would kill every worker would leave most of the drones alive. But no one needs offer Cyprian bees to me. I remember one instance when they stung everybody around, at an outapiary, also the dog, the chickens, the ducks, and the people passing along the road some 300 feet away. Perhaps I was to blame for this; but give me pure Italians, for if I make a mistake they will be easily pacified anyhow. I have no time to fool with the coppered-colored bees of Cyprus. By the way, “Cyprus” is a name derived from the Greek “Kupris”, the surname of Venus; but it also resembles the Latin word “Cuprum”, which means copper. The name applies well to the bees, for they are both beautiful and coppered-colored.” 

There is also a reference to queen imports in the January 1926 issue of ABJ ( “Nothing New Under the Sun” by J. Skovbo, pg 21). In the article, Skovbo reviews what was being discussed in ABJ thirty years earlier (1895). One topic he mentioned being discussed in 1895 was:

“Not a little is said about “five-banded-Italians”, and quite an excitement was caused by Apis Dorsata, or the giant bee of India. A Mr. Holt of Kentucky offered these queens for sale for three to eight dollars, and advocated them for crossing with other bees. He claimed that the hybrid would produce “more than twice the amount (of honey) of any race known. He also had this to say, “The young queen is generally fertilized in the hive or on the ground. Put a young Italian or black queen in a cage with an Indian drone and he will fertilize her at once, and will fertilize as many as four queens before he stops.” Mr. Holt, however, later had to retract, and returned money received for queens.” 

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