Captain Cook (1826 ship) Captain Cook (1826 ship) Captain Cook was a 452-ton merchant ship built at Whitby, England in 1826. She made three voyages transporting convicts from Ireland and England to Australia. On her first convict voyage, under the command of William Steward and surgeon Eben Johnson, she departed Dublin, Ireland on 5 November 1831, with 200 male convicts. She arrived in Sydney arriving on 2 April 1832. There were two convict deaths en route. "Captain Cook" left Port Jackson on 15 May 1832 bound for Launceston. The second convict voyage, under the command of William Thompson and surgeon John Morgan, she departed
James Colnett in Devon at Devonport in 1753, and was baptised on 18 October 1753 at Stoke Damerel parish church, Plymouth. His parents were James and Sarah (née Lang) Colnett. He had two older sisters and one younger brother. Very little is known about his life until he joined the Royal Navy as an able-bodied seaman in 1770. Colnett joined the Royal Navy in June 1770, initially serving as an able seaman aboard , and then aboard as a midshipman under Lieutenant James Cook from September until December 1771, when both Cook and Colnett moved to . Colnett served as a midshipman