John Cabot

Although little is known for certain about John Cabot, he is historically important because his explorations represent England's early claims on North America. By all accounts, Cabot was not English; he was born Giovanni Caboto, probably in Genoa, Italy around 1450. He later moved to Venice and became a naturalized citizen there around 1476, working as a mariner and trader in the eastern Mediterranean. Sometime in the 1490s he ended up in England, where he was given permission from King Henry VII to seek a northern route to Asia across the Atlantic. In 1497 Cabot sailed from Bristol, England in the Matthew to what is now eastern Canada. Precisely where he landed is a matter of some controversy; the possibilities include Newfoundland, Cape Breton Island, Labrador and Nova Scotia. He returned successfully to England and received permission to make a second voyage in 1498. He and 300 crew members set out from Bristol in May of that year, but were never heard from again.

Extra credit: Cabot's son, Sebastian, was a famous explorer and cartographer in his own right, and may have accompanied his father on the 1497 voyage.