1. Mercator Cooper was a ship's captain who is credited with the first formal American visit near Edo, Japan and the first formal landing on the mainland East Antarctica.
12 Facts About Mercator Cooper
1. 2.
Mercator Cooper went to sea on a whaling vessel in the early 1820s.
3.
Mercator Cooper married Maria Green at the age of 24, and they had three children: Nathan, Maria, and Sarah.
4.
On November 9,1843, Mercator Cooper left Sag Harbor as captain of the 440-ton ship Manhattan on a whaling voyage.
5.
When Captain Mercator Cooper was exploring the shore to hunt turtles, he met 11 Japanese sailors on the coast who had been shipwrecked on St Peters many months ago.
6.
Mercator Cooper took them to the shore, showed them his vessel, and informed them he would take them back to Jeddo if they trusted him.
7.
Captain Mercator Cooper decided to take them to Jeddo, although there was a clear rule published by Japanese court prohibiting foreigners from going to Japan.
8.
Captain Mercator Cooper saved 11 more sailors from this ship and made sail again for the shores of Japan.
9.
Outside Edo Bay four of the survivors took a Japanese boat with a message that Mercator Cooper wanted to deliver the remainder to the harbor.
10.
Mercator Cooper's visit to Japan in 1845, he translated the government orders to the Captain into English.
11.
Mercator Cooper took with him the map that charted the islands of Japan that had been found on the disabled Japanese ship.
12.
News of Mercator Cooper's encounter was extensively publicized in the United States.