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Roanoke Colony (/ ˈ r oʊ ə n oʊ k / ROH-ə-nohk) was an attempt by Sir Walter Raleigh to found the first permanent English settlement in North America. The colony was founded in 1585, but when it was visited by a ship in 1590, the colonists had inexplicably disappeared.
Learn about the mysterious disappearance of the first English settlers in North America in 1587. Discover the clues, theories, and evidence surrounding the fate of the Roanoke colonists.
- Overview
- John White's Departure and the Spanish Armada
- Was the 'Lost Colony' of Roanoke Ever Found?
- HISTORY Vault: Roanoke: A Mystery Carved in Stone
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How could 115 people just vanish?
The origins of one of America’s oldest unsolved mysteries can be traced to August 1587, when a group of about 115 English settlers arrived on Roanoke Island, off the coast of what is now North Carolina. Following an earlier, failed attempt at settlement on Roanoke two years earlier, these colonists intended to form the first permanent English outpost in the New World.
Later that year, it was decided that John White, governor of the new colony, would sail back to England in order to gather a fresh load of supplies. But just as he arrived, a major naval war broke out between England and Spain, and Queen Elizabeth I called on every available ship to confront the mighty Spanish Armada.
In August 1590, White finally returned to Roanoke, where he had left his wife and daughter, his infant granddaughter (Virginia Dare, the first English child born in the Americas) and the other settlers three long years before. He found no trace of the colony or its inhabitants, and few clues to what might have happened, apart from a single word—“Croatoan”—carved into a wooden post.
Investigations into the fate of the “Lost Colony” of Roanoke have continued over the centuries, but no one has come up with a satisfactory answer. “Croatoan” was the name of an island south of Roanoke that was home to a Native American tribe of the same name. Perhaps, then, the colonists were killed or abducted by Native Americans.
Other hypotheses hold that they tried to sail back to England on their own and got lost at sea, that they met a bloody end at the hands of Spaniards who had marched up from Florida or that they moved further inland and were absorbed into a friendly tribe.
For centuries, the disappearance of 117 colonists from Roanoke Island has been this country's oldest mystery. Now, stonework experts Jim and Bill Vieira will use cutting-edge technology to take a deeper look at the evidence left behind.
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Learn about the origins, disappearance and possible fates of the first English settlers in America. Find out how DNA analysis and archaeology are trying to solve the 'Lost Colony' of Roanoke mystery.
Learn about the history and mystery of the Roanoke colony, founded by Walter Raleigh in 1584 with Elizabeth's support. Explore the theories of what happened to the settlers who disappeared without a trace in 1590.
Jun 18, 2020 · The Roanoke Colony was England's first colony in North America, located in what is today North Carolina, USA. Established in 1585 CE, abandoned and then resettled in 1587 CE, the colonists had little regard for their new environment and were soon in conflict with the peoples who already inhabited the region.
- Mark Cartwright
May 30, 2024 · Lost Colony, early English settlement on Roanoke Island (now in North Carolina, U.S.) that mysteriously disappeared between the time of its founding (1587) and the return of the expedition’s leader (1590). In hopes of securing permanent trading posts for England, Walter Raleigh had initiated.
Sep 1, 2020 · A new book aims to settle a centuries-old question of what happened to a group of English colonists. Archaeologists said that its theory was plausible but that more evidence was needed.
