Dutch Greenland commandeur Cornelis Butter bound for whaling grounds according to the Dutch newspaper Oprechte Haerlemsche courant dated 24 April 1749

An item dated Amsterdam, Netherlands 23 April reported the departure to Greenland of the Dutch Greenland commandeur C. Butter.(1)

Note

1. Greenland commandeur between 1745-1760, total catch results 95 2/3 whale-2,174 barrels blubber-3,216 quardelen whale oil, director in 1749 Philippe d’ Orville, Amsterdam results 2-40-59. Alphabetische naam-lyst van alle de Groenlandsche en Straat-Davidsche Commandeurs die sedert het jaar 1700 op Groenland en sedert het jaar 1719 op de Straat Davis etc.Gerret van Sant. Published by Johannes Enschede, Amsterdam 1770, with hand written note until 1794.

People in the 17th and 18th centuries held a different geographical view than people today. This means that when we speak of “Greenland whaling”, “the term “Greenland” actually refers to Svalbard, whereas “Davis Strait” refers to whaling off the coast of present-day Greenland. The Davis Strait is a southern arm of the Arctic Ocean that lies north of the Labrador Sea.