George Cartwright (12 February 1739/40 – 19 May 1819) was an English army officer and a trader and explorer in Newfoundland and Labrador. His name is borne by Cartwright, a settlement at the entrance to Sandwich Bay.

Early life and family

George Cartwright was born at Marnham in

Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated Notts.) is a landlocked county in the East Midlands region of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The trad ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

, an elder brother of

Edmund Cartwright Edmund Cartwright (24 April 174330 October 1823) was an English inventor. He graduated from Oxford University and went on to invent the power loom. Married to local Elizabeth McMac at 19, he was the brother of Major John Cartwright, a politi ...

, clergyman and inventor of the power loom, and of John Cartwright, naval officer and English parliamentary reformer.

Army career

Cartwright became a gentleman cadet in the Royal Military Academy at

Woolwich Woolwich () is a district in southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was maintained thr ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, when he was fifteen. He served in India as ensign in the 39th Foot. In 1759, he was promoted lieutenant while in Ireland. In 1760 he was aide-de-camp to the

Marquess of Granby A marquess (; french: marquis ), es, marqués, pt, marquês. is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman wi ...

in Germany and a staff officer under Duke Ferdinand of Brunswick. He was brevetted captain in 1762, returned to England and went on half pay from 1762 to 1766. In 1766, Cartwright was commissioned Captain in the 37th Foot, and went to Minorca during 1766 and 1767.

Voyages to Newfoundland and Labrador

George Cartwright's brother John Cartwright was first lieutenant on HMS ''Guernsey''. In the 1766 season, George Cartwright cruised the

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

coast on this vessel with his brother. In 1768, George Cartwright went to Newfoundland again and accompanied John Cartwright's voyage attempting to contact the Beothuk people on the Exploits river. Between 1770 and 1786, Cartwright occupied a number of fishing and furring stations from Cape Charles to Sandwich Bay and developed connections with the Inuit and Innu people there. His financial successes was mixed at best, and his many setbacks included being thoroughly raided by

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

privateers A privateer is a private person or ship that engages in maritime warfare under a commission of war. Since robbery under arms was a common aspect of seaborne trade, until the early 19th century all merchant ships carried arms. A sovereign or deleg ...

in 1778. This came about when his servant Dominick Kinnien defected to join the crew of the Bostonian John Grimes. In 1772, Cartwright brought five Inuit individuals from what was then called Labrador. However, it is ambiguous to whether or not this was done forcefully or in collaboration with the chosen individuals. Traveling on this ship to England was Atajug, his youngest wife Ikkanguaq and their toddler daughter Ikiunaq. Joining Atajug's family was Atajug's younger brother Tuglavingaaq and his wife Qavvik, also known as

Caubvick Caubvick (fl. 1773) was an Inuk from Labrador, a wife of one of George Cartwright's Inuit friends. The highest peak in all of Labrador and east of the Rockies is named in her honour, Mount Caubvick. Her name comes from the Inuktitut word for "wolv ...

. They traveled with Cartwright to Ireland and England, where they were a sensation, drawing the attention of

King George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great B ...

Joseph Banks Sir Joseph Banks, 1st Baronet, (19 June 1820) was an English naturalist, botanist, and patron of the natural sciences. Banks made his name on the 1766 natural-history expedition to Newfoundland and Labrador. He took part in Captain James ...

, John Hunter,

James Boswell James Boswell, 9th Laird of Auchinleck (; 29 October 1740 ( N.S.) – 19 May 1795), was a Scottish biographer, diarist, and lawyer, born in Edinburgh. He is best known for his biography of his friend and older contemporary the English writer ...

Samuel Johnson Samuel Johnson (18 September 1709 – 13 December 1784), often called Dr Johnson, was an English writer who made lasting contributions as a poet, playwright, essayist, moralist, critic, biographer, editor and lexicographer. The ''Oxford ...

, and great crowds. Similar to other Indigenous travellers to London in the past, this Inuit family was "subjected to the spectacle of Georgian London". The intention was both to show off the Imperial city and to show off them, the Inuit family, to the curious and consumer eyes of London society. In May, 1773, Cartwright and Atajug's family started the journey home. However, before they had even left the Thames, Qavvik fell ill with smallpox. Three weeks later Atajuq, Ikkanguaq, Ikiunaq and Tuglavingaaq had all died. Qavvik lived, returning to Labrador. Nearly a year later, Cartwright noted the devastation that followed Qavvik's return. "The Inuit of southern Labrador were almost entirely wiped out by the disease".

Later life in England

In 1786, Cartwright returned to England. He published his diary in 1792 and continued to be interested in the politics and business of Labrador. He was barracks master of the Nottingham Militia from some time during the

Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fre ...

until 1817. He died in 1819 in

Mansfield Mansfield is a market town and the administrative centre of Mansfield District in Nottinghamshire, England. It is the largest town in the wider Mansfield Urban Area (followed by Sutton-in-Ashfield). It gained the Royal Charter of a market to ...

, England. He had an unparalleled love for Labrador until his death – as is shown, for example, in his lengthy and somewhat tedious piece of verse, of which this is a small extract: :''Fish, Fowl and Ven’son now our tables grace:'' :''Roast Beaver too, and ev’ry Beast of Chase.'' :''Luxurious living this! who'd wish for more?'' :''Were Quin alive, he'd haste to Labrador!'' Cartwright died at Mansfield, Nottinghamshire. At Cartwright, Labrador, there is a substantial monument commemorating him and his brother John. Part of the inscription reads: "In Memory of George Cartwright, Captain in his Majesty's 37th Regiment of Foot ... who in March 1770 made a settlement on the coast of Labrador ... also of John Cartwright, Lieutenant of the Guernsey ...".Buckle, Francis (2003) ''Labrador Diary, 1915-1925: the Gordon journals''. Cartwright: Anglican Parish ; pp. 2-3

Sources

Primary sources

*Cartwright, George. ''A Journal of Transactions and Events during a Residence of nearly Sixteen Years on the Coast of Labrador.'' 3 vols. Newark nglandand London: Printed and sold by Allin and Ridge, sold also by G. G. J. and J. Robinson in Paternoster-Row, and J. Stockdale, Picadilly, London, 1792. Cartwright's journal, edited and published by Cartwright himself. * Stopp, Marianne, ed. ''The New Labrador Papers of Captain George Cartwright.'' Montreal and Kingston: McGill-Queen's University Press, 2009. Previously unpublished materials by Cartwright, edited and introduced by Marianne Stopp. *Townsend, Charles Wendell. ''Captain Cartwright and his Labrador Journal.'' Boston: Dana Estes & Company, 1911. An abridged addition edited and introduced by Charles Wendell Townsend. This edition was reprinted most recently in 2000.

Biographies

*Stopp, Marianne. "An Account of George Cartwright's Life." In ''The New Labrador Papers of Captain George Carwright,'' edited by Marianne Stopp. 24–33. Montreal and Kingston: McGill-Queen's University Press, 2009.
Story, G. M. "Cartwright, George." In ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography'', vol. V (1801-1820). Toronto: University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003.

Fiction

*Steffler, John. ''The Afterlife of George Cartwright: A Novel.'' Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 1992.

John Steffler John Steffler (born November 13, 1947) is a Canadian poet and novelist. He served as Canadian Parliamentary Poet Laureate from 2006 to 2008. Biography John Steffler was born in Toronto, Ontario, on November 13, 1947, and grew up in a rural area n ...

's fictionalized account of Cartwright based on the Labrador journal.

References

External links

*
Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cartwright, George 1740 births 1819 deaths 37th Regiment of Foot officers 39th Regiment of Foot officers Canadian diarists English diarists English explorers of North America Explorers of Canada Graduates of the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich People from Bassetlaw District