William Cormack

William Epps Cormack (5 May 1796 – 30 April 1868) was a Scottish explorer, philanthropist, agriculturalist and author, born St. John's, Newfoundland.

In 1818 he left the country to lead a group of Scottish emigrants to Prince Edward Island, where they settled on the Hunter River near Charlottetown.

On 22 July 1823, Cormack wrote Lord Bathurst, the British colonial secretary, enclosing a sketch of the interior of the island and a short account of the route followed.

He highlighted the plight of the Beothuk and expressed his intention to pursue further inquiries into their condition, as well as to study further the natural resources of the colony.

After returning to Newfoundland, Cormack organized a center devoted to the Beothuk, and began to solicit community support to rescue the remnants of their people from extinction.

His intention was to open communication with the Red Indians of Newfoundland, to promote their civilisation according to British standards, and to learn about their history.

Cormack departed with three native guides, a Canadian Abenaki, a Labrador Montagnais and a young Mi'kmaq, to explore the area around the Exploits River and Red Indian Lake, but found it deserted.

Although Cormack found many artifacts and other evidence of Beothuk culture, his attempt to locate and save the people from extinction proved unsuccessful.