August 10

Farther Than Any Man: The Rise and Fall of Captain James Cook (2001)
By Martin Dugard

For someone who only knew that Cook was a famous British sea captain, this relatively short and appealing biography provides a fairly thorough exploration of Cook's life and accomplishments.  "Farther than any man" describes Cook's travels, as he circumnavigated the gloves several times.  Born to a laborer in northern England, Cook joined the merchant navy as a teenager, and later the Royal Navy.  This experience gave him the chance to travel to Quebec during the Seven Years' War, where he created accurate maps (e.g., of Newfoundland and the St Lawrence River) that would be used by seafarers for centuries.  He rose through the ranks and in 1766 was asked to lead a voyage of scientific discovery.  He outfitted a former collier, naming it "Endeavor", and making sure to have sufficient supplies for his crew, e.g., each member would get a lemon per day to ward off scurvy.  Besides maintaining a healthy crew, Cook was a fair and effective leader of men, and his trip resulted in scientific discoveries, botanical samples and new species identified, and new lands mapped and illustrated.  Another voyage followed (these trips usually lasted about 3 years), with more discoveries, and Cook's fame only grew.  A third trip, however, ended in tragedy, as Cook was killed on the coast of Hawaii, in the midst of trying to arrange to repair a broken mast.  It is hard to overestimate the impact of all of the discoveries that resulted from Cook's three voyages.

This story opens with a Newport, RI connection.  Author Dugard opens each section of his account with a visit to a geographical area associated with Captain Cook.  Newport is featured because it is thought that one of Cook's two ships was later outfitted as a frigate, and eventually sunk by British trips occupying Newport during the War for Independence to create a naval blockade.  Maybe one day it will be found and hauled out of the harbor for all to see.