By Graeme Reilly
The headland now known as Point Cook in Port Phillip Bay was named after Mate/Acting Lieutenant John Murray Cooke during the 1836 survey of the bay by Captain William Hobson and his crew of HMS Rattlesnake. The suburb and a street in Seabrook also bear his name.
Commander John Murray Cooke was a distinguished officer of the English Royal Navy. His naval career, spanning over three decades, saw him participate in significant historical events, and contribute to maritime surveys and military operations across the British Empire.
Born in Hereford, England, in 1814, John Cooke was the second son of Reverend William Cooke and Mary Anne Murray, connecting him to a family with strong ties to the church, law, publishing, and the military. John Cooke joined the Royal Navy at the age of 12, initially serving on HMS Asia, and was involved in the Battle of Navarino in 1827, against the Ottoman and Egyptian forces, where he was recognised for his gallantry.
He served on several naval vessels before joining the crew of HMS Rattlesnake, which had been commissioned to survey parts of the new Port Phillip settlement, and other regions such as northern Australia and New Zealand, as well as supporting colonial and military activities within the region.
Apart from its surveying duties, the Rattlesnake was assigned to transport Captain William Lonsdale and family to the new settlement of Port Phillip, where Lonsdale was to be responsible for its administration on behalf of the Governor of NSW. It is interesting to note that during their survey of the bay, they named quite a few geographical landmarks, yet the area had been visited and surveyed by the British navy over thirty years prior, and by more than three survey ships.
After his return to England, John Cooke participated in the First Opium War (China) aboard HMS Blenheim and was promoted to Lieutenant in 1841. He later served on various ships in the East Indies and West Indies, acting as commander of the ship HMS Electra when its commander took ill.
Appointed Commander in 1852, John Cooke took charge of HMS Simoom in 1856, using the iron-hulled frigate as a troopship to transport soldiers to Mauritius, India during the Indian Mutiny, and China during uprisings.
Commander Cooke died aboard HMS Simoom in 1861 in China at the age of 47 and was buried in Shanghai. Although his grave site no longer exists, a brass memorial tablet honouring his life and service is in Bromyard Church, Herefordshire, England.
Cooke’s naval career reflected his family’s distinguished history, and his own contributions to British naval operations and colonial expansion, with his name enduring in Australian geography as a tribute to his service. In 2024, John Cooke’s four times great niece visited several sites around Point Cook and was pleased to observe that some of these retain the original spelling of Cooke even after 188 years.
