Ranald MacDonald, adventurer

About this book

MacDonald was the son of a Scotsman and a Chinook woman. While still young, he met shipwrecked Japanese sailors and developed a fascination for Japan. In 1845 he was a sailor on the Plymouth, a whaling ship. As it neared Japan, he convinced the captain to set him off in a small boat to land as a shipwrecked sailor in Japan. He was made a prisoner and used by the Japanese to teach English. In 1849, the American warship USS Preble under Captain James Glynn rescued MacDonald and other stranded sailors. Some of his students were involved the negotiations with Commodore Matthew Perry to open Japan to foreigners. MacDonald wrote of his experiences and favorable evaluation of the Japanese to the U.S. Congress. MacDonald traveled to Australia and Europe before returning to Washington state.