2020 - 250th anniversary of Captain Cook’s ‘discovery’ of Australia in 1770

The 2010 Conference of the Queensland members of BGANZQ proposed BGANZ consider the possibilities for and benefits to the botanic gardens of Australia and New Zealand in commemorating the 250th anniversary of Captain James Cook’s voyage of discovery in 1770 in the barque ‘Endeavour’.

Cook mapped the entire coastline of New Zealand before traversing the east coast of Australia from Botany Bay to Cape York whereon Possession Island, Cook claimed Australia for Great Britain, hence the significance of this commemoration year to the Botanic Gardens of both nations.

Equally it is important to involve the original custodians of the land as many people in the indigenous communities and there are many important messages of ‘prior knowledge’ to impart on the Australian flora to the wider community.

Botanic Gardens can be the key places to work together to further reconciliation by adding an extra dimension to the botanical story through the dual stories of indigenous and European taxonomy and use of Australian plants.

Significance of the Endeavour voyage

The significance of this voyage to world botany, through Joseph Banks’ collection of Australian flora, is well known and documented. Extracts from Cook’s and Bank’s records indicate that they came ashore in Australia between April and August 1770. At each of these locations – all except Botany Bay are in Queensland – Banks made extensive observations and collections of the local flora. Cook’s log made observations of numerous coastal locations along the east coast, most notably: (related to botanic gardens to further identify the significance of the voyage.)

• Victoria: Point Hicks, Ram head & Cape Howe (Mallacoota)
• New South Wales: Mount Dromedary, Batemans Bay, Red Point (Eurobodalla)
• Botany Bay, Port Jackson (Sydney BG)
• Port Stephens , Cape Hawke (Newcastle BG)
• The Three Brothers, Smoky Cape,
• Solitary Isles (Coffs Harbour BG)
• Cape Byron (Lismore BG)
• Mount Warning (Tweed BG)

Queensland:

• Point Danger (Gold Coast BG)
• Point Lookout (Indigiscapes RedlandS, Brisbane City BG and Mt Cooth-tha BG)
• Cape Moreton, Morton Bay (Redcliffe BG)
• The Glass Houses, Double Island Point (Sunshine Coast Maroochy Bushland BG)
• Indian Head, Hervey’s Bay (Hervey Bay BG/Bundaberg BG)
• Bustard Bay, Cape Capricorn (Gladstone Tondoon BG)
• Keppel Isles, Keppel Bay, Cape Manyfold, Shoal Water Bay (Rockhampton BG)
• Northumberland Isles, Long Isle, Broad Sound,
• Slade Point (Mackay BG)
• Whitsunday Passage, Cape Gloucester (Whitsunday BG)
• Magnetic Island, Palm Isles (Townsville BG’s)
• Halifax Bay, Dunk Island (Innisfail BG)
• Frankland Islands, Fitzroy Island, Green Isle, Trinity Bay (Cairns BG)
• Cape Tribulation, Endeavour River, Lizard Island (Cooktown BG)
• Eagle Island, Sir Charles Hardy’s Isles, Cape Grenville,
• York Cape, Possession Island, Prince of Wales’s Isles,
• Booby Island.

Tondoon Botanic Gardens - Gladstone and Cairns Regional Botanic Gardens have recently explored Cook’s landing sites at Bustard Bay and Fitzroy Island respectively and found that the existing plant communities closely match Banks’ plant records.

The Cooktown Botanic Gardens, not far from the landing site, already has an extensive garden based on Banks records.

Curators of the other Queensland Botanic Gardens listed above have expressed interest in developing a specific commemorative element within an overall national strategy to commemorate the 250th anniversary of Cooks voyage in 1770.

The proposal from BGANZQ also includes suggestions to link this commemorative event to either an International Garden Festival, a BGCI Conference or a similar celebration. BGANZQ is to be commended for initiating this long-term project that should present an opportunity to involve and showcase many botanic gardens.

From 2011 onwards, BGANZQ will program a list of all botanic gardens related activities planned for 2020 to commemorate the voyage and pass on the great and look for opportunities to link botanic gardens with events proposed by the wider community. 

To register your event - please contact the secretary Lawrie Smith at lawries@landplanstudio.com.au