The Matthew

This modern-day replica of John Cabot's ship, the Matthew, is seen sailing into Conception Bay during the Cabot 500 anniversary celebrations of 1997.

Over 500 years ago, John Cabot and his crew set sail from Bristol, England, for Asia aboard the original Matthew hoping to trade goods and commodities with the people who lived there. However, he arrived on the coast of Newfoundland and therefore was the original discoverer of America, not Christopher Columbus as most people are led to believe. In 1997 the replica Matthew followed the same course as John Cabot in 1497 and sailed across to Newfoundland. The ship carried the same number of crew members as the original and took the same amount of time to complete the crossing.