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Cook Landing Site (Waimea, Hawai'i)
Encyclopedia
The Cook Landing Site in Waimea
on Kauai
island in Hawaii
, is where Captain James Cook
landed at the mouth of the Waimea River on January 20, 1778. Cook was the first European
reported to have sighted the Hawaiian Islands
,, and the January 20 landfall on southwestern |Kauai was his first arrival upon Hawaiian soil.
It is suspected that the land has actually grown since 1778 due to accretion
of sediment, so the exact spot is unknown. A small plaque was erected by Kauai County in 1928 which maintains a small county park.
Across the river Russian Fort Elizabeth
is preserved in a state park.
Waimea, Kauai County, Hawaii
Waimea is a census-designated place in Kauai County, Hawaii, United States. The population was 1,787 at the 2000 census...
on Kauai
Kauai
Kauai or Kauai, known as Tauai in the ancient Kaua'i dialect, is geologically the oldest of the main Hawaiian Islands. With an area of , it is the fourth largest of the main islands in the Hawaiian archipelago, and the 21st largest island in the United States. Known also as the "Garden Isle",...
island in Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
, is where Captain 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...
landed at the mouth of the Waimea River on January 20, 1778. Cook was the first European
European ethnic groups
The ethnic groups in Europe are the various ethnic groups that reside in the nations of Europe. European ethnology is the field of anthropology focusing on Europe....
reported to have sighted the Hawaiian Islands
Hawaiian Islands
The Hawaiian Islands are an archipelago of eight major islands, several atolls, numerous smaller islets, and undersea seamounts in the North Pacific Ocean, extending some 1,500 miles from the island of Hawaii in the south to northernmost Kure Atoll...
,, and the January 20 landfall on southwestern |Kauai was his first arrival upon Hawaiian soil.
It is suspected that the land has actually grown since 1778 due to accretion
Accretion (geology)
Accretion is a process by which material is added to a tectonic plate or a landmass. This material may be sediment, volcanic arcs, seamounts or other igneous features.-Description:...
of sediment, so the exact spot is unknown. A small plaque was erected by Kauai County in 1928 which maintains a small county park.
Across the river Russian Fort Elizabeth
Russian Fort Elizabeth
Russian Fort Elizabeth is a fort on the island of Kauai in Hawaii. It was the last remaining Russian fort on the Hawaiian islands, built in the early 19th century by the Russian-American Company as the result of an alliance with High Chief Kaumualii to gain influence in Hawaii...
is preserved in a state park.