Captain Aleksei Ilyich Chirikov | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Native name | Алексей Ильич Чириков |
| Birth name | Aleksei Ilyich Chirikov |
| Born | 1703 (1703) |
| Died | November 14, 1748(1748-11-14) (aged 44–45) Moscow, Russia |
| Buried | Tula Oblast, Russia |
| Allegiance |  Russia |
| Branch |  Imperial Russian Navy |
| Years of service | 1716–1748 |
| Rank | Captain |
| Other work | Navigator |
Aleksei Ilyich Chirikov (Russian:Алексе́й Ильи́ч Чи́риков; 1703 – November 14, 1748) was a Russiannavigator andcaptain who, along withVitus Bering, was the first Russian to reach the northwest coast ofNorth America. He discovered and charted some of theAleutian Islands while he was deputy toVitus Bering during theGreat Northern Expedition.
Little is known about Chirikov's early life other than that theRussian was born in 1703.[1][2] There is a claim, which originated in 1941, that he was the son of one ofPeter the Great's mastercarpenters.[3]
It is known that Chirikov began his service in theRussian Imperial Navy in 1716, and later in 1721 he graduated from theNaval Academy with the rank ofSub-lieutenant.[2][3][4]
In 1725–1730 and 1733–1743, he was Vitus Bering'sdeputy during theFirst and theSecond Kamchatka expeditions, having been made acaptain in 1733.[3][5][6]
In June 1741 Chirikov in theSt Paul andVitus Bering in theSt Peter, who he was serving under, leftPetropavlovsk-Kamchatsky and headed east.[1] Some time after 20 June they were separated by a storm and never saw each other again.[7][8] On 15 July 1741 Chirikov saw land atBaker Island offPrince of Wales Island at the south end of theAlaska Panhandle.[9] This was about 450 miles southeast of Bering's landfall nearMount St. Elias at the north end of the panhandle. Unable to find a harbor he sailed north alongBaranov Island past the later Russian base atSitka.[citation needed] He sent out a longboat to find an anchorage. When it did not return after a week he sent out his second longboat which also failed to return. Now without any small boats Chirikov had no way of searching for the two longboats or landing on the coast to explore or replenish his supply of fresh water. After waiting as long as possible, he abandoned the longboats to their fate and on 27 July sailed west.[9] He sighted theKenai Peninsula,Kodiak Island andAdak Island near the western end of the Aleutians. With water critically low he reached Petropavlovsk on 12 October 1741.
In 1742, Chirikov was in charge of a search party for Bering's shipSt. Peter. During this trip, he locatedAttu Island. Chirikov took part in creating the final map of the Russian discoveries in thePacific Ocean (1746).[9] In 1746 was assigned the Director ofAcademy of the Naval Guard, St. Petersburg. Chirikov's name is given to Capes of theKyūshū Island,Attu Island,Anadyr Bay,Tauyskaya Bay, an underwater mountain in the Pacific Ocean,Chirikof Island and Cape Chirikof at the westernmost point ofBaker Island.
Chirikov died on November 14, 1748, inMoscow due toscurvy.[3][9]
