James Strange

James Charles Stuart Strange (8 August 1753 – 6 October 1840) was a British officer of the East India Company, one of the first maritime fur traders, a banker, and a Member of Parliament.

Background and education James Charles Stuart Strange was born on 8 August 1753 in London, England, United Kingdom. His parents were Robert Strange and Isabella Lumisden.

His father, Robert Strange, was a former Jacobite from Orkney and had fought in the Jacobite rising of 1745, under Charles Edward Stuart, known as "Bonnie Prince Charlie" and the "Young Pretender". Robert Strange named his son James Charles Stuart Strange after Bonnie Prince Charlie, who was also James' godfather.

Robert and Isabella Strange moved to London in 1750. A few years later James Charles Stuart Strange was born. James attended the College of Navarre in Paris in 1770. including news of the large profits made by his crew in Guangzhou (Canton), China, selling sea otter furs they had obtained at Nootka Sound on the Pacific Northwest Coast. Captain James King, who had helped take over after the death of Cook, wrote of the possible profits to be made selling Northwest Coast furs in China.

Strange's expedition left Bombay in December, 1785. Unable to acquire goods on the Malabar Coast for trade in Macau, Strange sailed directly for the Pacific Northwest.

Strange had been instructed to establish a trading relationship with the natives. To this end he left John Mackay, assistant surgeon of the Experiment, at Nootka Sound. Strange hoped to make a second expedition, which would benefit from Mackay's time at Nootka Sound, but a second expedition never happened. He found and named the Scott Islands.

In September 1786, Strange left Prince William Sound and sailed to Canton, China. He sold his furs for about £5,600, which was not nearly enough to cover the expenses of the expedition, nor even his own personal investment.

Political career In 1796 James Strange, a Whig, became a Member of Parliament (MP) as a guest of John Sackville, 3rd Duke of Dorset, a silent supporter of William Pitt's administration. Strange's constituency was East Grinstead. Strange survived a challenge to his election by two wealthy London merchants. They had three daughters: Mary Anne Strange (c. 1806–1889), Louisa Strange (1810–1895), and Isabella Strange (1816–1879). in Nootka Sound, and Strange Rock, near Cape Scott, Guise Bay, and Lowrie Bay. Other places are named for Strange's captains, Guise and Lowrie, and his ships, Captain Cook and Experiment. For example, near Cape Scott at the north end of Vancouver Island, Experiment Bight, and Guise Bay. And in Fitz Hugh Sound, Guise Point, and Experiment Point.

A fictional account of Strange, portrayed by Jonathan Pryce, appears in the television show Taboo on BBC One and FX.