John Cabot
Grade 9 Heritage Fair
By: Scott Stamp

Who is John Cabot?
John Cabot is the Italian navigator and explorer said to be responsible for discovering North America in 1497. It is widely believed that John Cabot originally landed on and discovered Newfoundland.
He was born in Italy, around 1450 and died in England in 1499.
His given name is Giovanni Caboto, which translated into English is “John Cabot.”
John discovered the “new world” of North America on his second voyage, not much about this voyage is known in recorded history, as very little was written about the event.

Where is John Cabot’s birthplace?
While not much is known about John’s exact place of birth, it is believed he is from Venice, Italy.
his belief formed from a signature found in some Venetian testamentary documents from 1484, where he signed “Zuan Chabotto.”
Zuan is a form of ‘John’ typical to Venice.
Alternate sources also state John may have been native to Genoa, Italy. The only thing known for sure is that John Cabot is definitely Italian in origin.
He is said to be born c. 1450.

Who sailed with John Cabot?
John Cabot, while the main person given credit for the discovery of North America, did not sail alone.
His ship was called the Matthew, and had a crew of 18 men, including Cabot.
On his second voyage, he reached North America, which was thought to be Asia at the time. His first voyage was cancelled due to conflicts with members of the crew.
John Cabot was commissioned by a group of wealthy Englishmen to find a shorter route to Asia, he thought he could achieve this by sailing westward.

How did John Cabot discover Newfoundland?
John originally began his voyage in hopes to find an alternate route to Asia by sailing westward from England.
He set sail from a seaport in Bristol, a popular English city for merchants and importers.
John discovered Newfoundland by accident while sailing across the Atlantic Ocean, and the entire crew believed the island to be Asia until further investigation.
After discovering the island, John continued further north, making the first recorded attempt to find the Northwest Passage, only to find ice-crusted waters.

What did John Cabot and his crew do following the discovery?