captain james cook – he came late and didn’t stay long

Much has been written about James Cook, about what he did and where he went.

The Hawaiians killed him in 1779 :

The esteem in which he was nevertheless held by the Hawaiians resulted in his body being retained by their chiefs and elders. Following the practice of the time, Cook’s body underwent funerary rituals similar to those reserved for the chiefs and highest elders of the society. The body was disembowelled, baked to facilitate removal of the flesh, and the bones were carefully cleaned for preservation as religious icons in a fashion somewhat reminiscent of the treatment of European saints in the Middle Ages. Some of Cook’s remains, disclosing some corroborating evidence to this effect, were eventually returned to the British for a formal burial at sea following an appeal by the crew.

Cook named dozens of places about the Australian coast:

Point Upright ~ on account of its perpendicular cliffs

Long Nose ~ on account of its shape

Cape Three Points ~ High land which projected out in 3 bluff points

Three Brothers ~ 3 remarkable large high hills lying Contigious to each other… bore some resemblance to each other

Smoky Cape ~ on account of the fires burning there at the time

Mount Warning ~ Breakers found within sight

Point Danger ~ Point off which shoals lie

Cape Manyfold ~ from the number of hills over it

Thirsty Sound ~ because they could find no fresh water

Cape Tribulation ~ because here was where all their troubles began

Cape Flattery ~ We now judged ourselves to be clear of all Danger, having, as we thought, a Clear, open Sea before us; but this we soon found otherwise

Magnetic Island ~ the Compass did not traverse well when near it