Primary sourceDocument1776

The Method taken for preserving the Health of the Crew of His Majesty's Ship the Resolution

James Cook · 1776

Cook's 1776 scientific paper describing how he prevented scurvy among his crew during the Resolution's voyage.

Cook wrote this paper himself, describing how he protected his crew's health during his voyage on the Resolution.

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Scanned page numbered 402 of Philosophical Transactions, showing the title of Captain James Cook's article on preserving the health of the crew of HMS Resolution, addressed to Sir John Pringle, followed by the opening paragraphs of the letter in printed text. A JSTOR footer is at the bottom. — James Cook, 'The Method taken for preserving the Health of the Crew of His Majesty's Ship the Resolution', Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, 1776.

About this source

What it is

This is a paper written by James Cook in 1776, addressed to Sir John Pringle and published in the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society. It describes the methods used to keep the crew of HMS Resolution healthy during their voyage.

Why it matters

Scurvy had killed countless sailors on long voyages before Cook's time. This paper shows Cook as a careful observer who tested and recorded methods for preventing disease at sea, work that earned him the Royal Society's Copley Medal. It reveals how naval exploration in the 1700s depended on solving practical problems of health and supply, not just navigation.

Look closer

Why might Cook have wanted to share this information publicly with the Royal Society?
What does the formal, detailed writing style tell you about how scientific findings were communicated in the 1700s?
What does this document leave out about the experiences of ordinary sailors?

This document is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of James Cook on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.