George
Vancouver 1757 - 1798 |
George Vancouver
was a naval officer and explorer from King's Lynn who sailed with
Captain Cook on two of his voyages.
His connection
with Norfolk lies in King's Lynn.
George Vancouver was the son of John Vancouver, the Deputy Collector
of Customs and Collector of Town Dues at Lynn.
At the age
of 14, George Vancouver set sail with Captain James Cook
on his ship the 'Resolution' on a four-year expedition which took
in the South Pacific, the Antarctic and the South Atlantic.
Vancouver also sailed on Cook's last voyage to the Sandwich Islands
(now the Hawaiian Islands) where Cook was killed.
King's Lynn's most famous sailor eventually rose to the dizzy heights
of Commander when in 1791 he was sent to explore and survey South
West Austrailia and the west coast of America.
He also led the longest mapping expedition in history. In
four-and-a-half years, Vancouver and his crewmen sailed about 140,
000 kilometres and mapped the North American west coast from northern
Mexico to southern Alaska.
His measurements were so accurate that many can still be used today.
Bronze
statue to Lynn's famous explorer, George Vancouver. |
It was George
Vancouver who proved that Vancouver Island, off British Columbia
was truly an island. It was named in his honour. As was the City
of Vancouver in British Columbia and Fort Vancouver in Washington
state.
George Vancouver eventually died of poor health in May 1798 in Petersham.
In 2001 a bronze
statue was erected at the quay in King's Lynn as a tribute to
the great explorer.
The Vancouver
Shopping Centre in the town is also named after him.
For other
information about the Vancouver Project in King's Lynn email
Brian Howling .
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