Archaeologist
Frank was born in Mirabar after his family and a small number of his clan fled Blingdenstone (with the rest of the deep gnomes) a little over a century ago. The people close to him worked the mines there, trading gems with other cities. They lived in a small settlement in the Underdark nearby, but had a lot of interaction with humans and dwarves in the area.
The older svirfneblin around him had memories of Blingdenstone, but he did not. He was never able to pry many stories out of them, so he took what he could get from other races, along with all of the other stories told along the trade routes. This instilled a love of a lore and a drive to piece together what he could about his homeland.
Since he learned more about the world from travelers and adventurers than his own people, the love of lore and quest for knowledge took him farther from Blingdenstone instead of closer. The fact that the city was overrun by the drow also didn't help. Unsatisfied with mining life, he volunteered for trade caravan work that took him to Luskan and Neverwinter.
In the larger cities he got some exposure to magic, after little practical experience with the illusion magic that was common for his people.
He's held on to the distrust of pretty much everyone that was instilled in him, making contacts out of necessity and still relying on the church of Callarduran for occasional news, but the network has gotten thinner with time and distance, even with continued trips into the Underdark. A large medallion he wears with the deity's symbol rarely draws attention any more, but advertises a desire for information from the network when it's available.
[some stuff happens...tbd]
He trained as a wizard in Waterdeep in one of the less prestigious schools, taking what he could get and never shaking the feeling (and reality) of being an outsider, even among the few other gnomes he encountered. He found a burrow outside the city about a half-day toward Amphail that lent some security along the well-patrolled road.
His interest in archaeology started in Mirabar and has grown ever since, supplemented with cartography along the trade routes and the forays into the Underdark, making a small income on whatever maps he could sell that were practical or just curiosities (especially for those who wouldn't venture into the Underdark themselves).
A life of mining gems and plying practical trades has always kept him comfortable, so gold is a means rather than an end. Wealth isn't a huge draw for him. What drives him most is learning more about his people--filling the gaps and correcting the errors left by the outsiders in what little they've written. He keeps a book as a record of what he has found out and is willing to seek out anything else that he can. The libraries of the cities he's visited haven't provided much, and he's set himself to making sure there's a large volume of svirfneblin lore on a shelf someday.
Frank isn't much of a charmer. Dealings with anyone are always out of necessity and obligation. There have been few he considers friends, and doesn't seek social ties. Even his mentor at the mage's college was eager to see him off, recommending him for an expedition out of Baldur's Gate. As Frank was about to board a ship, he got news that his people had reclaimed Blingdenstone. After some deliberation, he boarded the ship to head south, spending the trip in his quarters questioning when, or whether, he'd go north again to visit the city he's never seen. He heard tales of gems in Chult that he may also never have another chance to see. Maybe he could even take some back.
He's average height for a gnome, stocky, with dark brownish skin and grey eyes. His clothes are just as well suited for a mine as the mage's college. He carries a quarterstaff and a pack with several cylindrical cases strapped to the outside to hold clean parchment, maps or notes on anything that will fill a spot in his book of lore or reveal a piece of a spell.