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DAVIS, or DAVYS, JOHN (1550?-1605). —Navigator, known as D. of Sandridge to distinguish him from another of the same name. He was one of the most enterprising of the Elizabethan sailors, who devoted themselves to the discovery of the North-west Passage. Davis Strait was discovered by, and named after, him. He made many voyages, in the last of which he met his death at the hands of a Japanese pirate. He was the author of a book, now very scarce, The World's Hydrographical Description, and he also wrote a work on practical navigation, The Seaman's Secrets, which had great repute.
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