A DESCENDANT of Captain Cook's family has commemorated the circumnavigator's birthday.

Marion Calvert was guest of honour at a ceremony outside the Captain James Cook Birthplace Museum, at Stewart Park, Marton, in Middlesbrough, yesterday.

Mrs Calvert, a descendant of Captain Cook's sister, Margaret, laid a wreath near the site of the cottage where Cook was born on October 27, 1728.

Mrs Calvert, who lives at Skelton, east Cleveland, said: "My father always thought there was a connection, but it was my mother who researched it properly.

"The original document of our family tree is 6ft long and it clearly shows the line."

The cottage where Captain Cook was born has long been destroyed, but a description of it in 1840 said it was a humble, low dwelling with a thatched roof.

Marton, now a suburb of Middlesbrough, was a village at the time of Cook. Archaeologists recently dug at the site, but did not find clear evidence of the cottage.

Before the wreath-aying, a service was held at the nearby St Cuthbert's Church, where records on display show Cook was baptised on November 23, 1728.

Sea cadets from Guisborough, Hartlepool and Middlesbrough joined mayors from across the Tees Valley and Whitby for the ceremony.

The Bishop of Whitby also attended, along with people in 18th Century costumes.