TITLE: JAMES WEDDELL; SCIENCE AND SEALING
1999 5.5 X 16 INCHES

James Weddell:
1787-1834, British navigator, explorer. sealer.

"…I conceive that I have only done that which every man would endeavor to
accomplish, who, in the pursuit of wealth, is at the same time zealous enough in
the cause of science…for the benefit of mankind."

He was born in Scotland. At the age of eight, he joined the British Royal
Navy and then the merchant service

From 1819 to 1822 Weddell made two voyages to the Antarctic as a sealer. He
was an unusual kind of a sealer in that, his quest for knowledge far outweighed
his quest for wealth. At heart, he was an explorer and a navigator. He took
more navigational instruments with him than were needed for sealing. On both
voyages he killed few seals. He found an unknown species, which became the
Weddell Seal. He discovered the South Orkney Islands. He sailed into the sea
that bears his name, 240 miles further south than Captain Cook. Like Cook,
Weddell was a great leader. He kept his crew of 22 officers and men cheerful and
eager throughout the months in rough seas and freezing temperatures. He died
in London at age 47, in poverty.