Lawrence "Larry" Benton (1918-2006) was born in Troy, Alabama, to Johnson Crowell (1885-1957) and Henrietta S. Cronberger. He moved to Atlanta in 1920 and attended Bass Jr. High School, graduated from Tech High School in Atlanta in 1937, and attended The Georgia School of Technology between 1937 and 1939. Benton worked as an engineer at a co-op in Montezuma, Georgia while he was in school. In 1939 he started working for Robert & Company in the Bona-Allen Building in Atlanta while also studying at the Evening School from 1940-194. In 1942, Benton enlisted in the United States Navy and served in the United States Naval Construction Battalion, often called the Seabees, first in the 57th battalion between 1942 and 1944 and then in the 11th Battalion between 1944 and 1945. After the war, Benton returned to Atlanta and continued his work at Robert & Company and at Georgia Tech, where he earned a masters in engineering in mechanical engineering under the GI Bill in 1951. After graduating, Benton left Robert & Company, started work at a mechanical contractors firm, and eventually became a licensed mechanical engineer in eight states: Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, Indiana, Minnesota, Kentucky, Illinois, and North Carolina. In 1948 Benton married Kathryn Elizabeth Cofer (1922-2014) and they had two daughters, Molly Benton (1961- ) and Laurie Benton Becker.