Born June 22, 1757,
Norfolk, England
Died May 10, 1798,
Surrey, England

George Vancouver was born the son of a customs official in the town of King’s Lynn in Norfolk, England, on June 22, 1757. He entered the Royal Navy at the age of 13 as a “young gentleman” or midshipman candidate. Through family connections he secured an appointment to serve with Captain James Cook (see entry) on the Resolution during Cook’s second voyage to the Pacific from 1772 to 1775. When the Resolution approached the continent of Antarctica, Vancouver hung off the front of the ship so that he could truthfully claim to have been farther south than any other person.

Serves in naval battles

Vancouver sailed as midshipman on board the Discovery on Cook’s third and last voyage, which left England in July 1776 at the time the United States was declaring independence. Vancouver was a...