I’m thinking of less-than-famous people who were both unusual and notable in various ways. Here are a couple I’ve run across:
John Ledyard (1751 - 1789):
Born in Connecticut
Attended Dartmouth briefly - ran away in a dugout canoe he build himself
Impressed into the British Navy
Sailed with Capt James Cook on his 3rd voyage of exploration
First US citizen to set foot on what is now the US west coast
Wrote the first book protected by copyright in the US
Set off on an overland exploration of Alaska and the western US that began by crossing Russia (he was stopped by order of Catherine The Great)
Died in Cairo by accidentally poisoning himself with sulfuric acid (ouch)
Harman Blennerhassett (1765 - 1831):
Born into a wealthy English-Irish family
Married his niece (!)
Emigrated to the US in 1796
Built a grand mansion on an island in the Ohio river (at a time when no building within a week’s travel was much more than a log cabin)
Fell in with Aaron Burr’s goofy schemes to form a separate southwestern country
Was captured and held in prison on charges of treason supported by Thomas Jefferson
Was freed when Burr was acquitted
Tried his hand at running a Mississippi cotton plantation (failed)
Lost his fortune, returned to England and died on the island of Guernsey