Roanoke Colony

The Roanoke Colony was an early English settlement in North America, led by Sir Walter Raleigh. The first group of settlers arrived in 1585 on Roanoke Island, but they left after a year due to problems with nearby Native American tribes and lack of supplies.

A second group, led by John White, arrived in 1587. They wanted to build a permanent town called the "Cittie of Raleigh" near the Chesapeake Bay.

When White went back to England for more supplies, a war made him late returning to Roanoke. When he finally came back in 1590, he found the colony empty. The only clue was the word "CROATOAN" carved into a wall. This made White think the settlers had moved to Croatoan Island. But he could not search more because of bad weather and had to sail back to England.

The story of the missing settlers became well-known over time. Some people thought the colonists had joined nearby tribes, while others thought something bad had happened to them. Even though many looked for answers, the truth about what happened to the settlers remains a mystery today. The story of Roanoke Colony still captures people's imagination, especially the tale of Virginia Dare, one of the first English babies born in America.

Background

The Outer Banks were explored in 1524 by Giovanni da Verrazzano. He thought Pamlico Sound was the Pacific Ocean and believed the islands were connected to land. He told King Francis I of France and King Henry VIII of England about this, but neither king decided to do anything.

In 1578, Queen Elizabeth I gave Sir Humphrey Gilbert permission to explore and settle lands not already owned by Christian countries. Gilbert helped end a rebellion in Ireland's Munster. Though the queen's permission was unclear, Gilbert thought it meant he could claim any land in the New World north of Spanish Florida. He briefly claimed St. John's, Newfoundland in 1583 as England’s first territory in North America, but he disappeared during his trip back to England.

After Gilbert died in 1583, Queen Elizabeth split his permission between his brother Adrian Gilbert and his half-brother Sir Walter Raleigh. Adrian received rights to Newfoundland and areas further north. Raleigh received lands further south, though Spain already claimed much of that area. Richard Hakluyt encouraged England to take advantage of the opportunity in Raleigh’s area.

Raleigh’s permission, given to him on March 25, 1584, required him to start a colony by 1591 or lose his rights. The goal was to create a base for sending ships to attack Spain’s treasure ships. However, Raleigh was not allowed to leave the queen’s side, so he sent others to lead the trips while he stayed in London managing everything from far away.

Amadas–Barlowe expedition

Sir Walter Raleigh planned a trip to explore his land. It left England on April 27, 1584, with two ships. Philip Amadas led the bigger ship, and Arthur Barlowe led the other.

The ships sailed south to catch the trade winds and then west to the West Indies, where they got fresh water. They continued north until July 4, when they saw land now called Cape Fear. They landed on July 13 at a place north of Hatorask Island, named "Port Ferdinando" after the pilot, Simon Fernandes.

The Native Americans in the area had seen Europeans before. The Secotan people, who lived on Roanoke Island, met the English and became friends. The Secotan leader, Wingina, was hurt, so his brother Granganimeo met with them instead.

When they returned to England in late 1584, Philip Amadas and Arthur Barlowe praised the tribes' kindness and the good location of Roanoke. They brought back two natives: Wanchese, a Secotan, and Manteo, a Croatan. Queen Elizabeth liked the report and, in 1585, named the land Virginia and made Raleigh its governor. He then looked for people to help build a colony.

Lane colony

See also: List of colonists at Roanoke

Raleigh planned the first colony in Virginia as a military group to explore and study nature’s resources. The plan was for 69 colonists, but about 600 men sailed, with half to stay and more to come later. Ralph Lane was made governor, and Philip Amadas would be admiral. The fleet’s leader was Sir Richard Grenville. The group included Joachim Gans, a metallurgist; Thomas Harriot, a scientist; and John White, an artist. Manteo and Wanchese, who had visited England, were also on the trip.

Voyage

The fleet had seven ships: The galleass Tiger (Grenville’s main ship, with Fernandes as pilot), the flyboat Roebuck (led by John Clarke), Red Lion (led by George Raymond), Elizabeth (led by Thomas Cavendish), Dorothy (Raleigh’s ship, perhaps led by Arthur Barlowe) and two small pinnaces.

On April 9, 1585, the fleet left Plymouth, going south through the Bay of Biscay. A big storm near Portugal separated Tiger from the others and sank one pinnace. The ships planned to meet at Mosquetal on the south coast of Puerto Rico. Tiger went alone to the Caribbean and arrived at the meeting point on May 11, before the others.

While waiting, Grenville made a base camp where his crew could rest and guard against Spanish forces. Lane’s men practiced building forts for the new colony. The crew also built a new ship to replace the lost pinnace. Elizabeth arrived on May 19, after the fort and pinnace were finished.

The rest of the fleet did not reach Mosquetal. One ship had trouble near Jamaica and ran out of food, so its captain sent twenty crew members ashore. Later, Roebuck, Red Lion, and Dorothy continued to the Outer Banks, arriving by mid-June. Red Lion left about thirty men on Croatoan Island and sailed to Newfoundland. Grenville talked to local Spanish leaders to get food, but when they did not deliver it, he thought they might attack, so he and his ships left the temporary fort.

Grenville captured two Spanish ships in the Mona Passage, adding them to his fleet. Lane took one of these ships to Salinas Bay, where he took salt mounds the Spanish had collected. Lane built forts to protect his men as they loaded the salt. Grenville’s ships then sailed to La Isabela, where the Spanish traded with the English. On June 7, Grenville left Hispaniola to continue to the Outer Banks.

The fleet sailed through an inlet at Wococon Island (near present-day Ocracoke Inlet) on June 26. Tiger hit a shoal, ruining most of the food and almost destroying the ship. The wreck of Tiger made it impossible to spend the winter there, as planned. The remaining food could not support as many people as expected. Also, the shallow inlets made the area bad for big ships. Now the colony’s main goal was to find a better harbor.

After repairs, Tiger continued with the fleet to Port Ferdinando, where they met up with Roebuck and Dorothy. The men left by Red Lion were also found. On August 5, John Arundell took one of the faster ships to England to report the expedition’s safe arrival.

Establishment of the colony

The loss of food from Tiger meant the colony would have far fewer settlers than planned. Grenville decided that only about 100 men would stay with Lane, enough to meet the colony’s goals until another fleet was expected from England in June 1585. However, Grenville did not know this expedition had been sent to Newfoundland to warn fishing fleets that the Spanish were taking English ships. Until more supplies arrived, Lane’s colony would depend on the local people.

While Tiger was being repaired, Grenville explored Pamlico Sound and the Secotan villages of Aquascogoc, Pamlico, and Secotan. His group met the locals, letting Harriot and White study Native American life. Much of their research was lost when the colony was evacuated in 1586, but Harriot’s survey of Virginia’s people and resources was published in 1588, with White’s drawings in the 1590 edition.

After this first exploration, a silver cup was reported missing. Thinking it had been stolen, Grenville sent Amadas to lead a group back to Aquascogoc to demand it back. When the villagers did not give it up, the English decided to punish them to show they were strong. Amadas and his men burned the whole town and its crops, making the locals run away.

Manteo set up a meeting for Grenville and Lane with Granganimeo, to give land for the English settlement on Roanoke Island. Both sides agreed the island was a good place to reach the ocean and avoid Spanish patrols. Lane started building a fort on the north side of the island. There are no drawings of the Roanoke fort, but it was probably like the one at Mosquetal.

Grenville sailed to England on August 25, 1585, on Tiger. Days later, in Bermuda, Grenville attacked a big Spanish galleon, the Santa Maria de San Vicente, which had been separated from its fleet. The ship, which Grenville brought to England, had enough treasure to make the Roanoke expedition profitable, exciting Queen Elizabeth’s court about Raleigh’s colonization work.

Roebuck left Roanoke on September 8, 1585, leaving one pinnace under Amadas. Records show that 107 men stayed with Lane at the colony. Historians disagree about whether White returned to England with Grenville or spent the winter at Roanoke even though he was not on the list of colonists.

Exploration

Many colonists joined hoping to find gold and silver. When none was found, these men felt it was a waste of time. The English also looked for where the local Native Americans got their copper but never found the source. The colonists spent autumn 1585 getting corn from nearby villages to add to their limited supplies. The colony seem to have enough corn (plus venison, fish, and oysters) to last through the winter. Little is known about what happened at the colony between September 1585 and March 1586, so it is hard to know fully what the winter was like. The colonists likely used up their English food and American corn by October, and the plain food they had left may have made them unhappy.

Amadas spent the winter exploring Chesapeake Bay, going as far as Cape Henry and the James River. There he met the Chesapeake villages of Chesepioc and Skicóak. The Secotans had described Skicóak as the biggest city in the area, so the English expected something like the rich Inca and Aztec kingdoms the Spanish found. Amadas instead found a simpler place, but he liked the area’s weather and soil quality. Harriot and Gans explored Virginia, meeting Native American tribes and recording natural resources. During his trips, Harriot and his team collected information used to make White’s La Virginea Pars map.

Although 16th-century science could not explain it, Harriot noticed that each town they visited quickly had a deadly sickness, perhaps influenza or smallpox. Some Secotan thought the disease was from magic done by the English. When Wingina got sick, his people could not heal him, but he got better after the English prayed for him. Impressed, Wingina asked the colonists to use this power to help others, which spread the disease faster. The sickness likely hurt the fall harvest, when Lane’s colony needed nearby help for food.

Hostilities and food shortages

By spring, relations between the Secotan and the colony were tense, likely because the colony depended too much on Secotan food. The death of Granganimeo, who supported the colony, seemed to turn Wingina against the English. Wingina changed his name to “Pemisapan” (“one who watches”), showing he was now careful and watchful, and he made a new temporary tribal capital on Roanoke Island. The English did not at first see this as a threat.

In March, Lane talked to Pemisapan about exploring the mainland beyond Secotan land. Pemisapan said yes and told Lane that the Chowanoke leader Menatonon was meeting with his allies to attack the English, and that three thousand warriors were at Choanoac. Pemisapan also told Menatonon the English were coming, so both sides expected fighting. When Lane’s armed group arrived at Choanoac, he found leaders of the Chowanoke, Mangoak, Weapemeoc, and Moratuc. This was not an attack meeting, so Lane surprised them. He captured Menatonon, who then told Lane about good chances in lands not yet seen by the English. He described a rich and powerful king to the northeast (probably the leader of the Powhatan), warning Lane to bring many men if he wanted to meet him. Menatonon also said rumors Lane had heard about a sea beyond the head of the Roanoke River were true, confirming hopes of reaching the Pacific. The chief’s son Skiko told of a place to the west called “Chaunis Temoatan” with a valuable metal, which Lane thought might be copper or even gold.

Based on this, Lane planned to split his forces – one group going north up the Chowan River, the other along the coast – to settle at Chesapeake Bay. But he decided to wait until the colony got fresh supplies, which Grenville had said would arrive by Easter. In the meantime, Lane ransomed Menatonon and sent Skiko back to Roanoke as a hostage. He took forty men about 100 miles up the Roanoke River looking for Chaunis Temotan but found only empty villages and warriors waiting to attack. Lane had expected the Moratuc to give them food, but Pemisapan had told villagers to leave the river with their food.

Lane and his group returned to the colony shortly after Easter, hungry and empty-handed. During their absence, rumors spread that they had been killed, and Pemisapan had been getting ready to move the Secotan from Roanoke Island and let the colony starve. There was no sign of Grenville’s supply ship, which had not even left England yet. Lane says Pemisapan was so surprised that Lane returned alive that he changed his mind. Ensenore, an elder in Pemisapan’s group, spoke up for the English. Later, a message from Menatonon told Lane that the Weapemeoc leader Okisko had promised to support Queen Elizabeth and Sir Walter Raleigh. This change in power stopped Pemisapan from attacking the colony. He told his people to plant crops and build fishing weirs for the settlers.

This peace did not last long. On April 20 Ensenore died, taking away the colony’s last friend in Pemisapan’s group. Wanchese had become a main advisor, and his time with the English had made him think they were a danger. Pemisapan moved the Secotan from Roanoke, destroyed the fishing weirs, and told them not to sell food to the English. With no way to grow enough food, the English had to split into small groups to find or ask for food on the Outer Banks and mainland.

Lane kept Skiko as a hostage. Though Pemisapan met often with Skiko and thought he agreed with the anti-English views, Skiko wanted to keep his father’s wish of good relations with the colony. Skiko told Lane that Pemisapan planned to meet on June 10 with leaders from many tribes. With copper from trading with the colony, Pemisapan could offer good rewards to other tribes to fight with him against the English. Oksiko said no, but some Weapemeocs could join. The plan was to attack Lane and other leaders while they slept, then attack the rest. Lane learned of this and sent word to the Secotan that an English ship had arrived, to make Pemisapan act faster.

Pemisapan gathered allies for a meeting on May 31 at Dasamongueponke. That night, Lane attacked the warriors at Roanoke to stop them from warning the mainland the next morning. On June 1, Lane, his main officers, and twenty-five men went to Dasamongueponke saying they wanted to talk about a Secotan plan to free Skiko. When they were let in, Lane signaled his men to attack. Pemisapan was shot and ran into the woods, but Lane’s men caught him and cut off his head. The head was placed on a stick outside the colony’s fort.

Evacuation

In June, the colonists met Sir Francis Drake, who was sailing back to England after attacks on Santo Domingo, Cartagena, and St. Augustine. During these attacks, Drake had taken refugees, slaves, and equipment to give to Raleigh’s colony. When he learned of the colony’s troubles, Drake agreed to leave four months of food and one of his ships, the Francis. But a hurricane hit the Outer Banks, pushing Francis out to sea.

After the storm, Lane convinced his men to leave the colony, and Drake agreed to take them back to England. Manteo and his friend Towaye went with them. Three of Lane’s colonists were left behind and were never heard from again. Because the colony was abandoned, it is not clear what happened to the slaves and refugees Drake meant to leave. There is no record of them arriving in England, so Drake may have left them on Roanoke with some of the things he had set aside for Lane. Drake’s fleet, with Lane’s colonists, reached England in July 1586. The colonists brought tobacco, maize, and potatoes to England.

Grenville's detachment

One supply ship sent by Raleigh arrived at Roanoke just after Drake left the colony. The crew could not find any colonists and left. Two weeks later, Grenville’s supply fleet arrived with a year’s worth of food and 400 new men. Grenville searched and questioned three locals, and one finally told what happened to the colonists. The fleet went back to England, leaving fifteen men to keep an English presence and protect Raleigh’s claim to Roanoke Island.

The Croatan people said this group was attacked by mainland tribes not long after Grenville left. Five Englishmen were away getting oysters when two attackers, looking unarmed, came to talk peacefully with two Englishmen. One attacker hid a wooden sword and killed an Englishman. Then 28 more attackers appeared, but the other Englishman escaped to warn his group. The locals set fire to the house where the English kept food, forcing the men to grab whatever weapons they could. A second Englishman was killed; the remaining nine ran to the shore and fled on their boat. They met their four friends coming back from the creek, got on board, and went to a small island near Hatteras harbor. The thirteen survivors were never seen again.

Lost colony

See also: List of colonists at Roanoke

Sir Walter Raleigh wanted to try again after the first colony failed. This time, they chose a new place but faced many problems. The group included families but no soldiers to protect them.

The leaders of the colony faced many challenges with the local people and had to move to a new spot. The leader had to go back to England for help, but when he returned in 1590, he found the colony empty. The only clues were some carvings on a tree and a post.

The Spanish were worried about English activities in North America and sent people to look for the colony, but they did not find it.

When the leader finally returned in 1590, he searched for the colony but could not find anyone. They had left signs indicating they might have moved to Croatoan Island, but the leader could not continue his search due to problems with his ship.

Investigations into Roanoke

John White, the leader of Roanoke Colony, did not find his colonists when he returned in 1590. He thought they had moved somewhere else and might still be alive. His report helped Sir Walter Raleigh keep his claim to land in Virginia.

In 1595, Raleigh said he was looking for the lost settlers, but later admitted he was really searching for gold.

In 1602, Raleigh paid for a mission led by Samuel Mace to search for the settlers. But the main goal was to collect a valuable plant, and bad weather made them leave quickly. In 1603, another expedition led by Bartholomew Gilbert tried to find the settlers. Sadly, Gilbert and others were killed by Native Americans.

After the Jamestown settlement began in 1607, John Smith heard from local leaders about places where people wore clothes from Europe. He made a map showing these spots, including one where four settlers might still be. Smith planned to search but never did. Later, there were reports that the settlers had been attacked, but it is not known if these stories were true.

In the early 1600s, William Strachey wrote that the settlers had lived peacefully with a tribe before being attacked. He thought only a few survived and moved far away. In the early 1700s, explorer John Lawson found signs of English people, like old forts and coins, and believed some settlers might have joined the local community.

Scientific research

People stopped looking into why the 1587 colonists disappeared after a study in 1701. But in the 1800s, many started studying it again.

In the 1930s, work began to protect the old earthwork where the colony once stood. In 1941, it became part of the Fort Raleigh National Historic Site, and in 1950, the earthwork was rebuilt to look like it did long ago.

In 1998, scientists studied tree rings and found a big drought happened between 1587 and 1589, which may have hurt the colony's food supply.

Since 2005, scientists have used DNA tests to try to connect the colonists to possible Native American descendants. This work is hard, but it still continues today.

Main article: Fort Raleigh National Historic Site

Archaeological research

1887–present: Archaeological evidence

Archaeological research on Roanoke Island began in 1887 when a burial site was found. Later digging took place, but most items found were not connected to the colony from 1587. After a hurricane in 1995, a ring was found, but tests showed it was not very special.

One challenge for scientists is that many old items might have come from earlier settlements or from local Native Americans. They think part of the colony might be underwater because the shoreline has changed a lot.

2011–present; new archaeological sites

In 2011, researchers found a hidden symbol on an old map that might show where a fort was. In 2015, they began digging at this spot and found pieces of old pottery and weapons. They think these items might show that a few settlers lived there peacefully.

Recent digs have found European items at Native American villages, suggesting the settlers may have lived among them. In 2025, more pieces of old metal were found, which scientists think could show settlers were on the island, though this is still being studied.

Hypotheses about the colony's disappearance

Since the 1590s, many ideas have been shared about what happened to the Lost Colony. Scholars find these ideas interesting, but often there isn’t strong proof.

When John White returned in 1590, there were no signs of a fight or that the colonists had left in a hurry, even though the place was protected. No bones or graves were found, which suggests everyone was alive when they left. The word “CROATOAN” was written, which was the agreed place to leave a message if they moved, showing they hoped to be found.

Integration with local tribes

One idea is that the missing colonists might have joined nearby Native American tribes. If this happened, they would have used their European supplies and slowly lived like the local people. People who left European life for a long time often didn’t want to go back, so it’s possible the colonists or their children stayed with the tribes.

It’s not clear which tribe they joined, but some think it might have been the Croatan, ancestors of today’s Lumbee tribe. Other tribes mentioned are the Catawba and the Coree. Some stories from the 1600s told of pale-skinned, blond-haired people among Native American groups, which some think were the colonists. However, these could also be explained by a higher rate of albinism in Native Americans.

An archaeologist found European items, like part of a sword, at a Native American village site, which might show the colonists joined local tribes.

Attempt to return to England

Another idea is that the colonists tried to sail back to England in a small ship called a pinnace that was left behind. If the ship was lost at sea, that would explain why there was no trace of them. The colonists might have been sailors who could try this journey. They might have tried a direct route to avoid Spanish attacks or sailed north to meet English fishing ships.

The pinnace wasn’t big enough for everyone, and they would need extra supplies for such a long trip. They might have built another ship, but even then, some colonists would still be left behind in Virginia.

Spanish attack

Spanish forces were looking for the colony because they did not recognize England’s right to settle there. The colonists likely knew of the danger from past attacks, but the Spanish were still searching for them as late as 1600, showing even they did not know what happened.

CORA tree

In 2006, a writer thought a southern live oak tree on Hatteras Island, with the word “CORA” carved in its bark, might be a message from the colonists. This idea comes from local legends. However, tests could not determine the tree’s age, and it’s hard to say when the carving was made.

Dare Stones

Main article: Dare Stones

Between 1937 and 1941, several stones were found with writings said to be from Eleanor Dare, mother of Virginia Dare. They told of the colonists’ travels and deaths. Most experts now think these stones are fake, as they were linked to one stonecutter. One stone is sometimes seen as different and possibly real, based on its language and chemistry.

In popular culture

Sir Walter Raleigh was criticized for not helping the colony in 1587. Writers and plays often told stories about the settlers, especially a baby girl named Virginia Dare, who was the first English child born in what is now the United States. These stories made the colony famous in American history.

The idea of the "Lost Colony" became popular in books and plays. Over time, the story was used in movies and TV shows. The word "Croatoan" from the colony has appeared in many stories, often in mysterious ways.