On the 18th July 1801 a young man from Manchester by the name of Samuel Smith set sail for Terra Australis. He had taken his place as a mere Landsman - the lowest rank in the Royal Navy - aboard the Investigator. Under the command of the indefatigable Matthew Flinders, Smith was about to participate in one of the great voyages of discovery.
Happily Smith was eager to share his experiences with posterity. His journal, published here for the first time, gives an invaluable 'history from below the decks' account of the voyage which gave Australia its shape and name.
The journal of seaman Samuel Smith is a fortuitous survival from the voyage of HMS Investigator, 1801-1803. It is the only journal of this landmark voyage of HMS Investigator, on which Matthew Flinders proved the Australian continent to be one landmass, which was not kept by an officer or by one of the scientists. It is a view of the voyage from below decks. The journal's history is unknown. It is like a note in a bottle which has been washed up on shore bringing fresh, but belated, information on famous events.