Simplify the following text for a Grade 7 native English-speaking person.
Original: Explorer John Oxley was the first European to discover the area in 1817 and named it `` Wellington Valley '' after Arthur Wellesley , 1st Duke of Wellington .
Simplified: Explorer John Oxley was the first European to discover the area in 1817 . He named it `` Wellington Valley '' after Arthur Wellesley , 1st Duke of Wellington .