The Lost Colony

[Nemesis Legion]

Roanoke Colony / North America / 1585 - 1587

I read about this story when I was a kid and it always somehow fascinated me how an entire colony just disappeared, and it was the first real attempted at an English colony in North America? Most theories say that the colonists’ left the colony after there crops failed and all the food ran out - they then lived with a near by Native American tribe or that those a Native American tribe attack and killed the colonists for one reason or another. But both of those theories have problems, If they lived with the Native Americans in the area how these hundreds of colonists where never seen again (just three years later after the their last sighting) and if they where attacked and killed by Native Americans, then how come no evidence of a struggle/fight or even a body (or skeleton) was ever found even modern-day archaeologist? It’s a mystery that still holds…

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roanoke_Colony

[Mayerling]

Hi N.L.,

I have an old pamphlet I bought forty years ago at the New York Historical Society that strongly supports the theory the surviving settlers intermarried with the Indians, and that many of their names are found among native Americans who live in the South Carolina area. The pamphlet was written in 1949.

Best wishes,

Jeff

[The Good Michael]

I think the best guess so far is that the settlers, what few remained, were joined with the Croatan Indians who were later wiped out by Powhatan of Pocahontas fame along with a few other tribes. Indeed, this is what Powhatan related to John Smith, and makes some sense. There weren't any traces of English known to the remnants of these tribes as far as I know, so that suggests not an assimilation, but more of a caretaking until the whites were wiped out, possibly through a combination if starvation, disease, and warfare.

Cheers,

Mike

PS. Powhatan did have European implements and weapons, and he had to have gotten them from somewhere. As to the lack of remains, remember that the Indians used burial mounds. It would make sense that there was a mass burial.

[Nemesis Legion]

I think the best guess so far is that the settlers, what few remained, were joined with the Croatan Indians who were later wiped out by Powhatan of Pocahontas fame along with a few other tribes. Indeed, this is what Powhatan related to John Smith, and makes some sense. There weren't any traces of English known to the remnants of these tribes as far as I know, so that suggests not an assimilation, but more of a caretaking until the whites were wiped out, possibly through a combination if starvation, disease, and warfare.

Cheers,

Mike

PS. Powhatan did have European implements and weapons, and he had to have gotten them from somewhere. As to the lack of remains, remember that the Indians used burial mounds. It would make sense that there was a mass burial.

Case Closed Then ... ??? ...

[Pippin Joan]

We learn in school that the first European child born in North America was Virginia Dare. She was among those missing people, so who knows what her life story was? What a puzzle.

Most certainly, the colonist left the site for Croatan Island and eventually assimilated with the native people. It had been decided before the leader, John White, returned to England, that if the people had to leave the location by force, they would carve a Maltese cross on a tree. When he returned, and found them gone, there were only trees marked with 'Croatan' and 'Cro'. This indicates a somewhat voluntary decision to leave and the destination of nearby Croatan Island. I read about a signet ring that was found about 50 miles from Roanoke that is assumed to belong to one of the settlers. There's also a DNA project underway to investigate this.