Kurnell, a suburb of Sydney, Australia, is noted as the first landing place of the British navigator James Cook when he charted the east coast of the Australian continent. He landed there while serving as captain of the ship Endeavour. Cook anchored off the Kurnell Peninsula, the southern headland of Botany Bay , on April 29, 1770. Isaac Smith, a young midshipman, was probably the first ashore. The party explored the area, encountered an Aboriginal family, and found black soil that they thought could produce any kind of grain. A public park now surrounds the historic landing site. See also Cook, James ; Sydney .
