Roanoke Colony

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The Lost Colony

Jamestown is thought by most of to be the first colony in the New World but this is not the complete truth. Jamestown is considered our first successful colony; however it was not the first attempt at a colony. There were a few attempts to colonize the New World before Jamestown and one in particular that was the most mysterious is the Roanoke colony, also known as the Lost Colony. The colony got this name because the colonists that were there vanished mysteriously with no trace of what happened.

Sir Humphrey Gilbert and his half-brother Sir Walter Raleigh were both veterans of earlier colony efforts. In 1578 Gilbert managed to acquire a patent from Queen Elizabeth that would let him have exclusive rights for six years to find any land he chose and build a successful colony. After numerous setbacks Sir Gilbert led an expedition and took possession of land called Newfoundland. He then continued down the coast to set up a military post in hopes that it would one day become a profitable colony. Unfortunately for Gilbert, he ran into a storm and he was lost at sea.

Undeterred by his brother's defeat the following year Walter Raleigh went back to Queen Elizabeth and obtained another six year grant similar to the one Gilbert had received. He sent explorers Philip Amadas and Arthur Barlowe to explore the island. They were the first to set eyes on the island and wrote glowing reports of Roanoke Island. When Amadas and Barlowe returned a year later with two natives, Manteo and Wanchese, all of Britain was excited with talk of the New World and its wonders. Raleigh went to the Queen and asked permission to name the island Virginia in honor of her, "the Virgin Queen" in hopes she would give him more money for the exped...

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...n village but never did. Soon after, White came across a rough storm and was forced to return to England. Despite many attempts to return to Roanoke, White couldn't get the funding or resources to make the trip. Raleigh had finally given up hope of settlement and Jon White died many years later ignorant to the fate of his family and the colony.

That leaves the questions of what happened. Did the colonists actually go to the Croatoan village or was the carving in the tree a sign that the Croatoan's killed the colonists for capturing their chief? Is it possible that the Spanish Armada killed them during the war? If so then Jon White may have been apart of killing his family and everything he had worked so hard for. These are the questions that can not be answered which is why the lost colony of Roanoke will remain one of the biggest historical mysteries of all time.

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