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CAPTAIN JAMES COOK RN., FRS. (1728-1779)
England's greatest Mariner, Explorer and Navigator

Cook's cottage in Great Ayton, now in Australia James Cook was born on 27 October 1728 in Marton, in Cleveland, England. His father was a poor farm labourer who had worked his way up to Overseer. James began as a farm labourer too in nearby Great Ayton, then as a grocer's assistant in Staithes. He soon found employment at the age of 18 on the Baltic sea in a Collier sailing out of Whitby.

During the war with the French in 1755, James Cook left his merchant vessel in the Thames and enlisted as an Able Seaman on HMS Eagle. Within only a month he was promoted, because of outstanding ability, to Master's Mate. Four years later he was promoted to Master. In command of his own ship, James Cook performed a crucial charting of the St. Lawrence River, which made possible the great amphibious assault upon Quebec City in 1759. In 1763 he was given command of the schooner Grenville to survey the eastern coasts of Canada over a four year period. These excellent charts were used up until the early part of the 20th century.

James Cook was selected to lead a 1768 expedition to observe the transit of Venus, and to explore new lands in the Pacific Ocean. In his first Pacific voyage, James Cook rounded Cape Horn in the Whitby built bark Endeavour (formerly the Earl of Pembroke) and reached Tahiti on 3 June 1769. After recovering a necessary scientific instrument stolen by the natives, the transit of Venus was successfully observed. The Endeavour then spent six months charting New Zealand. James Cook next explored and claimed possession of eastern Australia. Returning to England, on 12 June 1771, via New Guinea, Java and the Cape of Good Hope, the crew suffered an appalling 43% fatality rate. James Cook thus became very concerned about crew health on subsequent voyages. He instituted compulsory dietary reforms that were copied by many other ship captains.

HMS Resolution The object of Captain Cook's second Pacific Ocean voyage was to confirm the existence of a theorised Great Southern Continent. His ship HMS Resolution, accompanied by HMS Adventure, departed Plymouth on 13 July 1772 and sailed around the Cape of Good Hope. Beset by ice, he was unable to reach Antarctica. Although its existence was suspected, James Cook demonstrated, by traversing large areas of the south Pacific, that it would have to be a frigid wasteland, and not an economically productive addition to the British empire. James Cook charted many of the South Pacific islands with the incredible accuracy of 3 miles. This accuracy was made possible by a new and highly accurate clock. The two ships returned to England, via Cape Horn, on 29 July 1775. The experimental diets and close attention to cleanliness had a miraculous effect: out of a crew of 118, only one man was lost to disease!

Since public interest was high, the many paintings by the artists were widely displayed and published as engravings. James Cook was also awarded the Copley Gold Medal and elected as a fellow of the Royal Society. The third great voyage is especially significant to the history of the west coast of North America. Captain Cook and his men were primarily searching for the Northwest Passage from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean. They departed Plymouth on 12 July 1776 in HMS Resolution and HMS Discovery.

The ships sailed around the Cape of Good Hope to reach the west coast of America in February of 1778. They continued north along the coast in haste to the Bering Sea and Bering Strait in an attempt to pass through the Arctic Ocean during the summer season. Foiled by ice, James Cook returned to Hawaii to prepare for another attempt at the Northwest Passage the next season. Soon after they had departed, a storm damaged the foremast of the Resolution and forced a return to Kealakekua Bay for repairs. Unfortunately, they had previously overstayed their welcome and relations became tense. The theft of a ship's cutter led Captain Cook to put ashore to demand the return of the boat.The death of Captain Cook

A fight broke out and James Cook was killed on 14 Feb 1779 by angry natives. Although his men made another attempt at the Northwest Passage, they were unsuccessful. The expedition did identify the possibilities of trade with the coastal American natives for otter seal furs, which could then be bartered for Chinese goods that were highly prized in England.
     
   
 Cook's Life & Time Line
27 Oct 1728 James Cook is born the son of a casual farm labourer in a tiny cottage in Marton in Cleveland. his father had married grace pace at Stainton in Cleveland in 1725 and between 1727 and 1745 they have eight children, four dying in infancy. the eldest, John, is to die later aged just 23 and only James and two sisters Christiana and Margaret live through to adulthood.
1735 With the opportunity of full-time employment the family move to Aireyholme farm near the village of Great Ayton where James' father becomes bailiff. he is employed by a Thomas Skottowe of Ayton Hall who owns extensive estates in the area.
1740 Mr Skottowe pays for young James to attend the nearby Postgate School at Great Ayton. Here Cook appears to learn well, especially arithmetic. On leaving school at the age of about twelve, James works on the farm alongside his father and brother for a while.
1744 Cook's proficiency in letters and numbers is such that Mr Skottowe obtains a position for him as an assistant in a general dealers shop belonging to Mr. William Sanderson at Staithes. Here he hears tales of the sea and seamanship and soon Sanderson recognises that Cook's interests lie elsewhere than shopkeeping.
1746 After just eighteen months in Staithes, Sanderson recommends the youngster to a quaker - John Walker of Whitby a shipowner who runs collier vessels to the Baltic and London. Apprenticed to 'Captain' Walker, James Cook goes to sea on the 341 tons coal-carrying ship 'Freelove'. Cook lives in the attic of Walker's home in Grape Lane when ashore, where he studies navigation and use of nautical instruments.
1752 At the age of 23 Cook is promoted to mate on the 'Friendship', another of Walker's collier vessels.
17 Jun 1755 He declines an offer of the command of the 'Friendship' and James Cook volunteers for service as an ordinary seaman with the Royal Navy. He is drafted to the fourth rate 60 gun ship HMS Eagle where he is soon promoted to master's mate and sees action in the Channel under Captain Hugh Palliser, later to become member of parliament for Scarborough and Cook's lifelong friend.
30 Jun 1757 Discharged from 'Eagle', Cook now joins HMS Solebay at Leith in Scotland. .
27 Oct 1757 Cook, now a master, is drafted to HMS Pembroke, part of the squadron under Admiral Boscowen which is sent to Halifax, Nova Scotia in the April of 1758. the Pembroke crosses the Atlantic in record time but 29 men are lost on the way from scurvy - a fact which is to influence Cook's care for the welfare of his later crews his charting of the St. Lawrence leads to the fall of the French stronghold of Louisberg and the eventual storming of Quebec and the fall of French domination in Canada. Cook remains out in eastern Canada carrying out survey work on HMS Northumberland and when captain palliser is appointed Governor of Newfoundland, Cook gets his first command as master of the Grenville his first real survey ship.
21 Dec 1762 Cook marries Elizabeth Batts, thirteen years his junior, at St Margaret's church, Barking in Essex.
May 1763 Cook sails to Newfoundland again as surveyor, making accurate surveys of the coast from land & sea, returning to England each winter to draw up and publish his charts.
13 Oct 1763 First son, James, born. (drowned 25/1/1794).
14 Dec 1764 Second son, Nathaniel, born. (drowned 5/10/1780).
1766 Solar eclipse observed at Cape Race.
1767 Only daughter, Elizabeth, born. (died 9/4/1771).
First voyage begins
1 Aug 1768 Lieutenant James Cook R.N., sails on his first voyage of discovery on board the Whitby-built HM Bark Endeavour to observe the transit of Venus over the sun's disc in Tahiti, and with secret orders which are to lead him to New Zealand.
26 Aug 1768 Third son, Joseph, born. he dies just a month later on 13 September without Cook ever seeing him.
7 Oct 1769 Cook's cabin boy Nicholas Young is reputed to be the first to spot New Zealand and the point is logged as young Nick's head. Cook starts charting the coastline of the new found country and discovers it is two large islands. A small portion of Western Australia had already been charted by Dutch voyages some 100 years before but little else is known. leaving New Zealand on roughly the same latitude as the known land was plotted, Cook sails westwards.
20 April 1770 The eastern seaboard of Australia is sighted at Point Hicks. Cook charts the coastline of Queensland and an area he first names South Wales but later changes to New South Wales.
28 April 1770 Cook lands in an area he originally charted as Stingray Harbour because of the local occupants, but because of the great profusion of plants and flowers he re-names Botany Bay. He charts the eastern coastline of Australia and continues to New Guinea and Java.
12 Jun 1771 Cook returns to England in Endeavour after two years and 11 months, having travelled some 30,000 miles and charted over 5,000 miles of coastline.
30 Jan 1772 Now a nationally known figure, Cook returns to Whitby for a visit which is to prove his last. he also sees his father's home at Great Ayton for the last time. later the same year, the family sell the house and today it stands in Melbourne, Australia to where it was transhipped in 1934. Cook's father later moves to Redcar to live with his married daughter, now Margaret Fleck.
8 July 1772 Fourth son, George, born. (dies 1 October 1772).
 Second voyage begins
13 July 1772 The Whitby built HMS Resolution is Cook's chosen vessel for his second voyage of discovery on which he is accompanied by the adventure, also Whitby built. His task is to map out the Great Southern Continent which is believed to lie around the South Pole.
17 Jan 1773 Crossing the Antarctic circle for the first time in 'Resolution' Cook becomes not only the first to cross the Antarctic line but he is also to become the first to circumnavigate the world in a westerly direction and the first to circumnavigate it in both directions.
21 Dec 1773 Second crossing of the Antarctic Circle takes place.
26 Jan 1774 Third crossing of Antarctic Circle takes place, which is his last, Cook reaches 71°10's sailing further south than any other captain and proving that an inhabitable Great Southern Continent does not exist. The Antarctic Circle is not crossed again for nearly half a century.
1774 'Adventure' returns home, while Cook continues to explore and circumnavigate the south seas.
30 July 1775 'Resolution' returns with Cook to England after 3 years & 18 days, and anchors at Spithead. he is received by King George III.
Feb 1776 Cook's memories of the 'Pembroke' crossing help his writing of a paper on 'The preservation of the health of the crews of ships on long voyages' of which he now has great experience. for this he is elected a Fellow of the Royal Society and awarded their gold medal.
23 May 1776 Fifth son, Hugh, born. (dies 21/12/1793).
 Third voyage begins
12 July 1776 Cook's third voyage of discovery is to be his last. He sets sail on his promotion to Captain, with 'Resolution' and 'Discovery', the latter not joining up until 1st August. Objectives of the voyage are further exploration of the Pacific and to investigate the presence of an exit from the North West Passage.
1777 Expedition visits New Zealand, Tonga, Tahiti, and Christmas Island.
18 Jan 1778 Cook discovers the Sandwich Islands, now the Hawaiian islands.
7 Feb 1778 The Cook expedition crosses the Pacific eastwards to make landfall off the coast of Oregon. He turns northwards to discover Nootka Sound and British Columbia in his search for an exit from the elusive North West Passage.
25 April 1778 'Resolution' maintains northerly heading to discover Alaska and resting for a while in what Cook charted as Anchorage Bay.
8 Aug 1778 Cook sails into the Bering Straits but foiled by ice, returns due south to Hawaii where he arrives in January 1779 to prepare for another attempt at the North West Passage the next season.
4 Feb 1779 Cook leaves Kealakekua Bay but is forced to return because of a damaged foremast of 'Resolution'.
14 Feb 1779 The theft of a ship's cutter leads Captain Cook to put ashore to demand the return of the boat. the shore party is suddenly attacked by armed warriors and Cook is clubbed & repeatedly stabbed to death. Two Royal Marines are also killed. After negotiations with the Hawaiians, Captain Clerke, now in command, is able to have parts of Cook's body returned. All have been scraped clean of flesh and burned in a fire, except some flesh from Cook's thigh, the scalp, and the hands. The hands are preserved with salt, and there are enough identifying marks that they are able to determine that it is Cook's body. The remains are put into a coffin, and with great ceremony are buried at sea in Kealakekua Bay on 21 February.
April 1779 James Cook senior dies without learning of the death of his son, and is buried at Marske near Redcar.
22 Aug 1779 Capt. Clerke dies in Kamchatka and is buried there. Lt. Gore assumes command of the expedition.
Jan 1780 News of Cook's death reaches England.
4 October 1780 After a further unsuccessful search for the North West Passage, remnants of the expedition under Lt. Gore return to England via Java and Cape Town, and arrives in the Thames having sailed via Stromness in Scotland due to unfavourable weather conditions.
13 May 1835 Death of Mrs Elizabeth Cook in Clapham, Surrey (aged 94).
   
There were no direct descendants of Cook bearing his name, his male children all died unmarried and his two surviving siblings were sisters.

Although world renowned as an explorer. Captain James Cook RN., FRS, was essentially a technician and his skill as a surveyor and draughtsman were to set the seal on the quality of British prepared charts which still exists today. His work led to the formation of the Royal Navy Survey Squadrons whose charts are second to none with every ship afloat carrying its share of Admiralty Charts.

Cook rose from the humble farm labourer's cottage to being commissioned in the Royal Navy, received by George III and acknowledged by the country for his achievements. It was said of him: " His general knowledge was extensive and various... the most determined resolution, he pursued his object with unshaken perseverance... Cool and intrepid among dangers : patient and firm under difficulties and distress... In every situation he stood unrivalled and alone; on him all eyes were turned: he was our leading star, which at its setting left us involved in darkness and despair".
     
   
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