Maclear , John Fiot Lee Pearse , 1838-1907 , Admiral

Maclear entered the Navy in 1851, became a lieutenant in 1859 and a commander in 1868. He sailed with Captain G.S. Nares in 1872 during the CHALLENGER expedition. When Nares left the ship at Hong Kong, Maclear was the most senior officer to complete the voyage which lasted until 1876, the year he was promoted to captain. In 1879 he succeeded Nares in command of the ALERT and completed his survey of the Magellan Straits before moving to the Indian Ocean and Australian waters. From 1883 to 1887 he commanded the survey ship FLYING FISH charting the Korean and China coasts. In 1891 he became a rear-admiral and retired. He was promoted to vice-admiral in 1897, to admiral in 1903 and continued working at the Hydrographic Department compiling Admiralty sailing directions. See: Sir Archibald Day, The Admiralty Hydrographic Service (London, 1967).