3-057-055 - Heritage Art/Heritage Images

Sir Samuel White Baker, African explorer, 1880. In 1847 Baker established a settlement and sanitorium in Ceylon (Sri Lanka). In 1855 he travelled to the Crimea and became involved in establishing the first railway in Turkey. He spent much time exploring the course of the River Nile. In 1864 he discovered a freshwater lake which he named the Albert N'yanza. He was knighted on his return to England in 1866. He served for some time in Egypt for the Egyptian government in suppressing the slave trade. His travels in later life took him to Cyprus, Egypt and India.