On January 18, 1778, Captain James Cook became the first European to chart the Hawaiian Islands during his third and final voyage of exploration. Among his crew was a teenage sailor named Thomas Tretcher, who survived fierce storms, punishment in the Tonga Islands, and a harrowing episode on Christmas Island before returning home.
But Tretcher’s voyage didn’t end with Cook’s death in 1779. He later married, crossed the equator three times with his wife Eleanor, and eventually settled in Alexandria, Virginia, where he captained merchant ships on the Potomac.
The couple died just weeks apart in 1815 and are buried in Alexandria’s Presbyterian Cemetery. His gravestone reads:
“This gentleman was a native of England and accompanied the celebrated Cook in his last voyage round the world.”
From the edge of empire to the edge of Old Town, Tretcher’s life reminds us that even the great voyages of global history can lead—ultimately—to Alexandria.
