Endeavour River National Park
Encyclopedia
| Endeavour River National Park | |
 The HM Bark Endeavour replica HM Bark Endeavour Replica The HM Bark Endeavour Replica is a replica of , the bark commanded by Lieutenant James Cook when he charted New Zealand and discovered the eastern coast of Australia... in the Endeavour River Endeavour River The Endeavour River on Cape York Peninsula in Far North Queensland, Australia, was named in 1770 by Lt. James Cook, R.N., after he was forced to beach his ship, HM Bark Endeavour, for repairs in the river mouth, after damaging it on Endeavour Reef... . Endeavour River National Park is in the background. |
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| IUCN category = II | |
| Coordinates = 15°26′31"S 145°13′03"E | |
| Nearest town or city = Cooktown Cooktown, Queensland Cooktown is a small town located at the mouth of the Endeavour River, on Cape York Peninsula in Far North Queensland where James Cook beached his ship, the Endeavour, for repairs in 1770. At the 2006 census, Cooktown had a population of 1,336... |
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| Area = 21.7 km² | |
| Established = First in 1975, expanded and newly gazetted 24 November 2006 | |
| Managing Authorities = Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service | |
| Official Site = Endeavour River National Park | |
Endeavour River National Park is a national park
National park
A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or owns. Although individual nations designate their own national parks differently A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or...
in Queensland, Australia, gazetted to protect and preserve some of the natural and cultural resources in and around the mouth of the Endeavour River
Endeavour River
The Endeavour River on Cape York Peninsula in Far North Queensland, Australia, was named in 1770 by Lt. James Cook, R.N., after he was forced to beach his ship, HM Bark Endeavour, for repairs in the river mouth, after damaging it on Endeavour Reef...
, immediately north of the small town of Cooktown
Cooktown, Queensland
Cooktown is a small town located at the mouth of the Endeavour River, on Cape York Peninsula in Far North Queensland where James Cook beached his ship, the Endeavour, for repairs in 1770. At the 2006 census, Cooktown had a population of 1,336...
. The park is located 1561 kilometres (970 mi) kilometres northwest of Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
.
Naturalists Joseph Banks
Joseph Banks
Sir Joseph Banks, 1st Baronet, GCB, PRS was an English naturalist, botanist and patron of the natural sciences. He took part in Captain James Cook's first great voyage . Banks is credited with the introduction to the Western world of eucalyptus, acacia, mimosa and the genus named after him,...
and Daniel Solander
Daniel Solander
Daniel Carlsson Solander or Daniel Charles Solander was a Swedish naturalist and an apostle of Carl Linnaeus. Solander was the first university educated scientist to set foot on Australian soil.-Biography:...
collected specimens of local 'Australian' flora in 1770 from this area which were taken back to the Royal Botanic Gardens
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, usually referred to as Kew Gardens, is 121 hectares of gardens and botanical glasshouses between Richmond and Kew in southwest London, England. "The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew" and the brand name "Kew" are also used as umbrella terms for the institution that runs...
in England. Sydney Parkinson
Sydney Parkinson
Sydney Parkinson was a Scottish Quaker, botanical illustrator and natural history artist.Parkinson was employed by Joseph Banks to travel with him on James Cook's first voyage to the Pacific in 1768. Parkinson made nearly a thousand drawings of plants and animals collected by Banks and Daniel...
first illustrated local Australian Aborigiinal people
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the Indian continent around 75,000 to 100,000 years ago....
encountered nearby, plus flora collected and fauna seen; and kangaroos were first given their modern English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
name (borrowing from the local Guugu Yimithirr language
Guugu Yimithirr language
Guugu Yimithirr is an Australian Aboriginal language, the traditional language of the Guugu Yimithirr people of Far North Queensland. Most of the speakers today live at the community of Hopevale, about 46 km from Cooktown...
).
HM Bark Endeavour
HM Bark Endeavour
HMS Endeavour, also known as HM Bark Endeavour, was a British Royal Navy research vessel commanded by Lieutenant James Cook on his first voyage of discovery, to Australia and New Zealand from 1769 to 1771....
, under the command of Lieutenant James Cook
James Cook
Captain James Cook, FRS, RN was a British explorer, navigator and cartographer who ultimately rose to the rank of captain in the Royal Navy...
, had struck reefs and been pulled ashore for repairs along the river locally known within Guugu Yimithirr as Wabalumbaal
Endeavour River
The Endeavour River on Cape York Peninsula in Far North Queensland, Australia, was named in 1770 by Lt. James Cook, R.N., after he was forced to beach his ship, HM Bark Endeavour, for repairs in the river mouth, after damaging it on Endeavour Reef...
, possibly near the present site of Cooktown. The river was renamed on James Cook's charts as the Endeavour River
Endeavour River
The Endeavour River on Cape York Peninsula in Far North Queensland, Australia, was named in 1770 by Lt. James Cook, R.N., after he was forced to beach his ship, HM Bark Endeavour, for repairs in the river mouth, after damaging it on Endeavour Reef...
, after Endeavour, and the current National Park appears, in turn, to be named after the river (although this name is not a formally registered place name).
The present National Park contains coastal dunes, freshwater wetlands, mangrove forests, heathlands, tropical woodlands and the estuary plus parts of the Endeavour River catchment. It is mostly accessible by boat only, and still contains flora and fauna species of the kind collected and illustrated back in 1770.
See also
- Captain Cook mythology: Australia
- Protected areas of Queensland (Australia)