James Cook

Captain James Cook FRS RN (7 November 1728 – 14 February 1779) was a British explorer, navigator, cartographer, and captain in the Royal Navy. Cook made detailed maps of Newfoundland prior to making three voyages to the Pacific Ocean, during which he achieved the first recorded European contact with the eastern coastline of Australia and the Hawaiian Islands, and the first recorded circumnavigation of New Zealand.

Cook joined the British merchant navy as a teenager and joined the Royal Navy in 1755. He saw action in the Seven Years' War, and subsequently surveyed and mapped much of the entrance to the Saint Lawrence River during the siege of Quebec. This helped bring Cook to the attention of the Admiralty and Royal Society. This notice came at a crucial moment in both Cook's career and the direction of British overseas exploration, and led to his commission in 1766 as commander of HM Bark Endeavour for the first of three Pacific voyages.

In three voyages Cook sailed thousands of miles across largely uncharted areas of the globe. He mapped lands from New Zealand to Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean in greater detail and on a scale not previously achieved. As he progressed on his voyages of discovery he surveyed and named features, and recorded islands and coastlines on European maps for the first time. He displayed a combination of seamanship, superior surveying and cartographic skills, physical courage and an ability to lead men in adverse conditions.

Captain Cook (1826 ship)

The Captain Cook was a 452-ton merchant ship built at Whitby, England in 1826. She made three voyages transporting convicts from Ireland and England to Australia.

Career

On her first convict voyage, under the command of William Steward and surgeon Eben Johnson, she departed Dublin, Ireland on the 5 November 1831, with 200 male convicts. She arrived in Sydney arriving on 2 April 1832. There were two convict deaths en route. Captain Cook left Port Jackson on 15 May 1832 bound for Launceston.

The second convict voyage, under the command of William Thompson and surgeon John Morgan, she departed Portsmouth, England on 5 May 1833 with 230 male convicts. She arrived in Sydney on 26 August 1833 and had four convict deaths en route. On the third convict voyage, under the command of George Brown and surgeon Arthur Savage, she departed Cork, Ireland on 5 July 1836 with 229 male convicts. She arrived in Sydney on 13 November 1836 and had one convict death en route.

Citations

References

Captain Cook (disambiguation)

Captain James Cook (1728–1779) was a British explorer, navigator and map maker.

Captain Cook may also refer to the following, mostly named for James Cook: He rode endeavor in throwaway from carly martin