Ranald MacDonald

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Noted regional author Jo Ann Roe has crafted the definitive biography of Ranald MacDonald (1824-94), an Old Oregon Country resident who risked death and imprisonment by entering forbidden Japan in 1848. The son of a Hudson's Bay Company official and a Chinook Indian woman, MacDonald developed a fascination with Japan during his youth at HBC's Ft. Vancouver and Red River schools. His interest was piqued by reports of shipwrecked Japanese sailors in the 1830s, leading him to arrange for his own landing on Japan's northern coast in 1848. After being captured and spared execution, he was ordered to teach English to Japanese students. Following nearly a year in captivity, he was permitted to leave Japan in 1849 with other American sailors. Notably, several of his former students later interpreted for Commodore Perry when the U.S. Navy pressured Japan to open its doors in the 1850s. MacDonald journeyed extensively across Asia, Europe, and Canada before settling in the Pacific Northwest in 1858, where he engaged in various adventures, including an exploration of Vancouver Island. His grave in northeast Washington is now a state park heritage site, while a monument on Rishiri Island in Japan commemorates his historic landing.