Roanoke Colony MysteryThe coldest case of American history

The Roanoke Island colony was the first English settlement in the New World. It was founded by English explorer Sir Walter Raleigh in August 1585. The small colony was founded on an island off the eastern coast of North America. It would have been the first permanent English colony in the New World, had the settlers not disappeared due to unknown circumstances. The lost colony of Roanoke is one of the most notorious mysteries in American history. The cryptic clues left by the settlers at the abandoned settlement and the lack of any concrete evidence make it the focus of wild speculation and theories.Settling on Roanoke Island had failed in 1584 and 1585. A third colony led by John White returned in 1587. The first and second colonists were

troubled by a lack of supplies and bad relations with the local Native Americans. While waiting for a resupply mission, the colonists decided to abandon the colony and return to England. 118 returning colonists in 1857 continued to have difficulty. John White left for England to request resources and manpower. He returned three years later only to find the settlement empty. 118 men, women and children

vanished from the colony.

John White

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What do you think happened to the 118 men , women and children that were left living at Roanoke Island?

In 1585,John White, the governor of the new colony left Roanoke Island to return to England. He was to gather a fresh load of supplies and return the following year. But as he arrived to England, a major naval war broke out between England and Spain, and Queen Elizabeth I called on every available ship to confront the Spanish Armada. In August 1590, White finally returned to Roanoke, where he had left his wife and daughter and his infant granddaughter (Virginia Dare, the first English child born in the Americas) along with 118 other colonists. On arriving, the crewmen sounded the familiar tunes on trumpets to alert the colonists, but not a single human figure came to greet them. John White found the settlement deserted, weeds and vines growing where houses once stood. The houses had been removed and the colony's cannon was gone. Buried chests were found, containing some of the colonists' possessions. All evidence suggested a planned and orderly withdrawal. A tree was discovered with the letters CRO cut into the bark. On a post to

the stockade, the word "CROATOAN" was carved into the wood. This evidence gave White a reason to believe that the colonists had left for the Croatoan Island 50 miles to the south. It was inhabited by friendly Manteo Indians. After a storm forced the crew to return to their ships, White convinced two captains to sail to Croatoan Island the next morning to search for the lost colonists. But one ship lost her anchor and almost ran aground while the captain of the other ship convinced White to head for the Caribbean instead. John White never returned to Roanoke. He died three years later.

The Return

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John White had asked his colonists to carve the name of the location where they could be found if they had to leave the island. He also asked them to carve a cross if they were in distress. No cross was found. White was never able to confirm if the colonists made it to Croatoan. Consequently, no one is certain of the fate that befell the English settlers of Roanoke Island.Over the years, there have been many theories and hypotheses put forth to help try to explain this long-standing mystery. Theories:1. The colonists were absorbed into local Indian populations or captured as slaves.The most popular theory that the colonists left Roanoke to seek shelter with other Indian tribes. They had good relations with the Croatoan Indians. In the years following the disappearance, there was documented sightings of Europeans and their influence. Jamestown settler Francis Nelson in 1607 documented four men that came from Roanoke living among the Iroquois tribe. In the early 1600s to middle 1700s, European colonists claimed to have met gray-

eyed Indians who claimed to have been descended from white settlers. In 1696, French Protestants left records of meeting blond-haired, blue-eyed Indians soon after their arrival along the Tar River. There is another theory suggesting the colonists joined with the Croatoans and relocated inland along the Alligator River, slightly inland from Roanoke Island. An archeological site of settlements, including burial grounds, have been discovered there. The coffins at the burial grounds have Christian markings on them. There is no historical record of a settlement in this area.

Why would the colonists leave Roanoke Island? Evidence shows it was an organized departure. Why would they have left some of their valuables buried in chests?Do you think they left to settle with the Indians?

Fate of the Colonists

John White's sketch of the Roanoke area c. 1585

Do you think it is possible that the colonist went and lived peacefully with the Croatoan Indians?Do you think the colonists met another fate with the Indians?

2. The colonists were murdered by Indians.In 1607, Captain John Smith tried to uncover what happened at Roanoke. He claimed that Chief Powhatan told him that he killed the people of the colony to retaliate against them for living with another tribe that refused to ally with him. Allegedly, Powhatan showed Smith items he took from Roanoke to support his story, including a musket barrel and a brass mortar and pestle. Powhatan claimed that he ordered the killings because there was a prophecy that he would be conquered and overthrown by people from that area. Historians and anthropologists dispute this story because there were never any bodies or archaeological evidence found to support his claim.3. The colonists were murdered by the Spanish.Another possible theory is the Spanish murdered the settlers. England and Spain were in the middle of a war when the Roanoke disappeared. At the time of the disappearance, there were Spanish troops present in Florida. One reason why Spain and England were at war was over the colonization of the Americas. The Spanish troops could have secretly traveled north and eliminated the English colony. They were known to attack forts located in South Carolina and Florida throughout the 16th century.4. Cannibalism.There are two theories about cannibalism: the Roanoke settlers were the victims of cannibals, or the settlers resorted to cannibalism to survive. Other Native American tribes living near Roanoke were hostile to outsiders and the Croatoans. No bodies were found at the settlement, but that does not mean anything. If cannibals attacked the settlers, they would have had time to dispose of the bodies. John White was gone for three years. No evidence has been found that any Indian tribes in the area were cannibals. This theory began when in 1609, the settlement in Jonestown, Virginia, had to resort to cannibalism to stay alive. It is possible that the people of Roanoke had to as well.

Chief Powhatan

4. Disease.The Roanoke colonists may have possibly encountered New World diseases that they had no immunity to fight. They could have caught a good old-fashioned plague. Local tribes mentioned that there were internal conflicts within Roanoke Colony before everyone disappeared. Could this be the answer? The healthy settlers would have wanted to get rid of the sick. The healthy could have split up into smaller groups and left the colony in hopes of not being affected. The only question would be: what happened to the sick?5. The colonists split up and went their separate ways.This theory claims that a small group of colonists packed up, carved their message and moved to the Croatoan Island. Meanwhile, the main group went to live with the Chesapeake Indians, either at Chesepiooc or the principal town of Skicoak. They may have Intermarried and raised families while waiting the return of John White. Anthropologists do not believe that Croatoan had enough resources to support the entire colony. The majority favored to move to the southern shore of the Chesapeake Bay, where they had originally planned to settle.

Which theory do you believe was the fate of the Roanoke settlers?Is there another theory you have as to what might have happened to them?

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. A secret clue on a centuries old watercolor map made by John White could have solved the 400-year old puzzle.

In 2012, the British Museum took a closer look of Governor John White's map. Using 21st-century image techniques, they found hidden markings, apparently drawn by an invisible ink, that revealed a "fort-like image" concealed on the map. It was likely an inland fort where colonist may have settled after abandoning the coast.

Evidence of the Lost Settlers

What do you think about the secrets on the map made by John White?Why do you think it took so long to discover the secrets?

The hidden image found on the map led to a search of the fort structure. Keeping the location hidden, archaeologists have been digging small swathes of land and finding artifacts that may have been used by the settlers after they fled the colony. They have strong evidence that indicates that Roanoke colonists were there. Objects discovered: high volume of Elizabethan artifacts such as a food-storage jar known as a baluster, fragments of pottery (made south of London) and a metal hook used to stretch animal hide. Everything is speculative as of now. They do not believe it was the entire group of colonists that migrated to this spot.

Discovery of Site X

Archaeologists have been digging on Croatoan Island, now known as Hatteras Island. The excavated site is at Cape Creek, located about 50 miles southeast of the Roanoke Island settlement. Archaeologists have found several European objects that can be traced back to the colonists.Evidence shows that the colonists assimilated with the Indians but kept their goods. One particular item that was discovered was a small piece of slate that was used as a writing tablet, along with a lead pencil. It was similar to a larger slate found at Jamestown earlier. The slate

bears a small letter "M," a clue that suggests it had been owned by someone who could read or write. A nurumberg counter dating to the late 16th century was also discovered. It was identical to those found on Roanoke Island.

Discovery on Croatoan Island

In 1937, a tourist from California walked into the history department at Atlanta's Emory University with the massive 21-pound engraved stone. The tourist said he found the stone in a swamp while traveling through North Carolina. The stone had writing on both sides. The writing appeared to constitute a grave marker reading. Written on the stone was:"Ananias Dare & Virginia Went Hence Unto Heaven 1591 Anye Englisman Shew John White Govr Via."The engraving on the other side was much longer. A team of Emory scholars deciphered the message and were shocked to discover the story that it told. One describing two years of suffering due to sickness and war with local Native Americans that led to the death of virtually all of the colony's settlers, including the writer's husband and child. This story referred to John White as "father" and was signed "EWD," the initials of Eleanor White Dare, his daughter. Eleanor had left behind the story of the Roanoke Colony. The Emory team declared that the stone was authentic. Within the next few years, a Georgia stonecutter found more than three dozen stones also claiming to have been written by Dare and were also deemed as authentic.

In 1941, the "Saturday Evening Post" ran an expose debunking the legitimacy of all the stones as a hoax and revealing the Georgia stonecutter to be a fraud thanks to various pieces of evidence. Just like that, the discovery was transformed into a pile of rocks sent to the basement at Georgia's Brenau University.In 2016, a geologist named Ed Schrader decided to take the original stone to the University of North Carolina for analysis.

The Mysterious Dare Stone

What do you think about the stones? Real or fake?

What do you think Ed Schrader will discover with the first stone?

Geologist Ed Schrader decided to slice off one end of the stone to discover that, in contrast to the darker exterior, the interior was a bright white. Thus any inscriptions made in this stone would be that same bright white. The inscription on the stone was much darker in color. Such darkening takes a very long time to occur, suggesting that the inscription was made in the approximate era of the Roanoke Colony. This stone was different than the other stones discovered by the Georgian stonecutter. They were proven to be fakes. The first stone's writing was made by a different hand and the words are more likely to have appeared in the proper time frame. Elizabeth Dare was "moderately educated" and the wife of a stonemason, so she probably had the skills necessary to create the inscription. Further research will be done on the stone. A team of linguists will give the language on the stone a more thorough analysis. Ed Schrader plans on doing an extensive geochemical investigation of the stone to prove once and for all if the stone is real or the best hoax of modern time.

The Dare Stone

Engaging Questions1. Why do you think the colonists wanted to venture into the new world?2. Would you still have traveled to the New World knowing the two groups before you failed?3. What do you think the settlers were thinking when John White did not return to help them?4. Do you think modern DNA could help solve this mystery?5. Why do you think John White wrote in invisible ink on the map?6. Why do you think the colonist took down the houses at the settlement before they left?7. Do you think the Dare stone is authentic?

Curious Dragonfly LLCwww.curiousdragonfly.comTrina Terrell303.903.5319