George was born in Iowa, the son of a an Irish immigrant plasterer and was with his family in Davenport, IA in 1870. He moved to Washington by 1884. George became a bit of a local legend - he and two other chaps climbed to the top of Mt Ranier in 1884, and were the first to do so on the route taken (the North side). George documented the climb in the local newspaper. The censuses of 1885, 1887 and 1889 for Snohomish listed him as either a surveyor or E. E. (electrical engineer), and in 1887 he married his wife, Lillian Ward, in Snohomish. My best guess is that George used the Randolph compass during his early surveying career.

In 1890 George received Contract 343 for the survey of two long-awaited townships on the Stillaguamish between Arlington and Oso, and another at Granite Falls. George’s survey was examined in 1891 by James DeWitt and approved in 1892 with no corrections. During this survey, Lake Riley in T32N R7E was named for W. Riley Pearsall, an axeman on the crew. George's last Contract (387) was just South of the previous one at Granite Falls. That survey was examined by Sewall Truax in 1893 with no corrections, and approved in 1894.

Here are the survey maps he flied with the USGLO under Contracts 343 and 387:

Using a solar instruments was required on US Government land at this time, so presumably George used the Gurley Solar Compass to survey the government lands pursuant to the 2 contracts he had. I found no evidence linking George to the Benson syndicate that conducted fraudulent surveys in Washington, Oregon and California during my research.

George is listed in the Dawson City Directory in 1901, and in about 1903 he was part owner and operator of Ophir Creek 14, a placer mine on the Seward Peninsula. The article states that he had moved in a steam shovel to increase production, and the claim was very profitable. George and part of his family were living in Nome in 1910, where George was a civil engineer and the proprietor of a hotel called Elite Baths, which had steam heat and electric lights. The hotel was completely demolished in a severe storm. In 1920, he and his family were back in Snohomish, living with Lillian's parents. The 1920 census identified George as a civil engineer. He died in Snohomish. My best guess is that George used the Gurley Transit after he returned from Alaska.

The above borrows heavily from a website maintained by a Washington Surveyor - Jerry Olson - who has compiled an amazing amount of history reflecting the history of surveying in Washington. The George James biographical information is drawn from a comprehensive biography of Washington Surveyors on that website.