History of the Pitcairn Islands It was rediscovered by the British on 3 July 1767 on a voyage led by Captain Philip Carteret, and named after Robert Pitcairn, the crew member who first spotted the island. Pitcairn was one of the sons of John Pitcairn. On January 15, 1790, the mutineers of "Bounty" and their Tahitian companions arrived on the island. The group consisted of Fletcher Christian and eight other mutineers from the Bounty. These were Ned Young, John Adams, Matthew Quintal, William McCoy, William Brown, Isaac Martin, John Mills and John Williams. Also with them were six Polynesian men (Manarii/Menalee, Niau/Nehou, and Teirnua/Te Moa
Mutiny on the Bounty with her captive guests. Coleman escaped by diving overboard and reached land. Among the abducted group were six elderly women, for whom Christian had no use; he put them ashore on the nearby island of Mo'orea. "Bounty"'s complement now comprised nine mutineers—Christian, Young, Quintal, Brown, Martin, John Williams, William McCoy, John Mills, and John Adams (known by the crew as "Alexander Smith")—and 20 Polynesians, of whom 14 were women. The 16 sailors on Tahiti began to organise their lives. One group, led by Morrison and Tom McIntosh, began building a schooner, which they named "Resolution" after Cook's ship. Morrison had