Daniel Houghton (1740–1791) was an Irish explorer and one of the earliest Europeans to travel through the interior of West Africa.

Early life and family

After he retired from the army he married and started a family. He married Philippa Evelyn, the great-granddaughter of John Evelyn, the diarist, at St Martin in the Fields, London, on 12 December 1783. A marriage notice referred to him as "Major of the Garrison of Goree in Africa, and formerly Consul-General to the Emperor of Morocco." They had three children: Charles Evelyn Daniel Francis Houghton, born on 20 September 1784; Frederick Hugh Evelyn Houghton, born on 30 August 1786; and Philippa Maria Houghton, born on 27 July 1788. Prior to his marriage to Philippa. Daniel had been married before. In the Irish National Archives there is a file containing the "Memorial of Monica Kiernan, alias Lawler Lynch and James, George and Cecilia Lawler Lynch of Galway Town, to Viscount Sidmouth, seeking assistance and noting that they are the descendants of the late Maj Daniel Francis Houghton, 69th Regiment of Foot, who discovered the source of the Niger River in Africa; noting that Houghton’s only child, Catherine Cornwallis Houghton, married George Lawler Lynch. Also covering letter from George Lawler Lynch, attorney, 16 George’s Place, ublin seeking a situation in the law department."

African explorer

In 1790, Houghton approached the

African Association The Association for Promoting the Discovery of the Interior Parts of Africa (commonly known as the African Association), founded in London on 9 June 1788, was a British club dedicated to the exploration of West Africa, with the mission of discov ...

in London, proposing a mission to travel up the

Gambia river The Gambia River (formerly known as the River Gambra, French language, French: ''Fleuve Gambie'', Portuguese language, Portuguese: ''Rio Gâmbia'') is a major river in West Africa, running from the Fouta Djallon plateau in north Guinea westward ...

and explore the hinterland of Africa's west coast. His optimism, determination and apparent fearlessness worked in his favour, as did his basic knowledge of

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

and Mandingo. His proposal was accepted by the Association. Houghton's instructions were to sail to the mouth of the Gambia, navigate the river to the Barra Kunda falls, and then to travel overland to the

Hausa Hausa may refer to: * Hausa people, an ethnic group of West Africa * Hausa language, spoken in West Africa * Hausa Kingdoms, a historical collection of Hausa city-states * Hausa (horse) or Dongola horse, an African breed of riding horse See also ...

lands to the east. He was also tasked with pinpointing the exact location of the fabled city of

Timbuktu Timbuktu ( ; ; Koyra Chiini: ; ) is an ancient city in Mali, situated north of the Niger River. It is the capital of the Tombouctou Region, one of the eight administrative regions of Mali, having a population of 32,460 in the 2018 census. ...

as well as charting the course of the

Niger River The Niger River ( ; ) is the main river of West Africa, extending about . Its drainage basin is in area. Its source is in the Guinea Highlands in south-eastern Guinea near the Sierra Leone border. It runs in a crescent shape through Mali, Nige ...

Death

References

Sources

Anthony Sattin Anthony Sattin FRGS is a British journalist, broadcaster and travel writer. His main areas of interest is the Middle East and Africa, particularly Egypt, and he has lived and travelled extensively in these regions. Education Sattin completed a l ...

, ''The Gates of Africa: Death, Discovery and the Search for Timbuktu'', pp. 91–124 (HarperCollins, London, 2003). * Mungo Park, ''Travels in the Interior Districts of Africa, Performed in the Years 1795, 1796, and 1797. with an Account of a Subsequent Mission to that Country in 1805.'', pp. 101–102 (John Murray, London, 1816). * * http://www.bookrags.com/research/daniel-houghton-ued {{DEFAULTSORT:Houghton, Daniel 1740 births 1791 deaths 18th-century Irish explorers Explorers of Africa