The Mystery of the Lost Colony of Roanoke

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The Mystery of the Lost Colony of Roanoke

It was the age of discovery that first provoked intrigue and curiosity of new lands, particularly the Americas, and how the Europeans could expand to fit their society within the borders of this unknown and unexplored land. By the 1580s, more had been learned about the Americas, but any colonization until this point had not even been attempted. And so it was the English, under Queen Elizabeth I's rule, that were issued to establish a colony along the east coast of North America. However, when this great accomplishment was finally made in 1587, it was not long founded until its ultimate fate ended in the disappearance of the colony three years later, instantly creating one of the greatest American mysteries that will ever be.

Exploration of the east coast with intentions of finding land appropriate for building a colony began in the early part of 1584 by Sir Walter Raleigh, who had been issued a charter to do so by England's Queen Elizabeth I. After significant exploration, the expedition led by Philip Amadas and Arthur Barlowe touched the area of what is now known as the North Carolina coast in the vicinity of Hatteras. It was Roanoke Island that was finally chosen as the site of colonization because of what they thought was a convenient placement ten miles off the mainland of North Carolina. In fact, the final report presented to Raleigh by the two explorers boasted of a bountiful land inhabited by friendly and benevolent natives.

When Amadas and Barlowe brought back to London two intelligent natives from the island, Manteo and Wanchese, Queen Elizabeth was so astoundingly pleased with the reports she had been given on the great promise of the founded region in Roanoke that ...

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Durant, David N. Ralegh's Lost Colony. New York: Antheneum, 1981.

Hume, Ivor N. The Virginia Adventure. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1994.

Kupperman, Karen Ordahl. "Roanoke Lost and Found." Reviews in American History, 14(March 1986): 55-60.

Lefler, Hugh T., and William S. Powell. Colonial North America. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1973.

Lorant, Stefan. The New World: The First Pictures of America. New York: Duell, Sloan, & Pearce, 1946.

Quinn, David B. North America From Earliest Discovery to First Settlements. New York: Harper & Row Publishers, 1977.

Quinn, David B. The Roanoke Voyages: 1584-1590. London: University Press, 1955.

Snell, Tee Loften. "The Wild Shores, America's Beginnings." National Geographic 1974: 54-58.

http://www.wm.edu/wmnews/042398/drought.html

http://www.outerbanks-nc.com/manteo/history/vadare.htm

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