The Crater, or Vulcan's Peak: a Tale of the Pacific is a novel by James Fenimore Cooper first published in 1847. Cooper incorporated knowledge of ship construction he had acquired while working as a U.S. Navy midshipman in the 1810s. From merely surviving the loss of his shipmates and the embayment of his ship within The Reef, protagonist and role-model Mark Woolston goes on to thrive by his own industry. Following a regional volcanic upheaval which raises new land, he founds a similarly industrious and thriving colony after escaping from, then returning to The Reef. The outnumbered colonists must defend their new homes and possessions against natives who covet the new land

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