August 21, 2025 • 20 mins
The Enduring Mystery of the Lost Colony of Roanoke
In this episode of The Rabbit Hole Chronicles, host Joe Foster delves into one of America's most enduring historical enigmas—the Lost Colony of Roanoke. Established in 1587 under the leadership of Governor John White, the colony faced numerous challenges, ultimately leading to its mysterious disappearance. The episode explores various theories, including integration with the Croatoan tribe, Spanish attacks, and natural disasters, while also highlighting recent archaeological efforts and legends surrounding the event. Foster encourages listeners to dig deeper and even suggests that one of them might one day solve this historical mystery.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Joe Foster (00:02):
Welcome to another episode of The Rabbit Hole
Chronicles the podcast that delsdeep into the mysteries of the
past.
I'm your host, Joe Foster.
Today we are going to exploreone of the most enduring enig in
American history, the LostColony of Roanoke in 1587.
A group of English settlersarrived on Roanoke Island,
(00:24):
located off the coast of presentday North Carolina.
In an attempt to establish thefirst permanent English colony
in the new world led by GovernorJohn White, they faced numerous
challenges in their new home,but nothing could have prepared
them for the mysterious fatethat would befall them.
So buckle up as we journey backin time to the late 16th century
(00:49):
and try to unravel the bafflingdisappearance of the Roanoke
colony.
But first, a littlehousekeeping.
If you're enjoying the show andyou haven't done so already,
please consider leaving a reviewand a five star rating.
It helps a lot by getting theshow in front of new listeners.
(01:13):
I, so if you're alreadylistening on Apple Podcasts or
Spotify, you're already in theright place, but if you're not,
there would be a link in thedescription to take you to.
The, the show on Apple Podcastor Spotify.
Uh, so that way you can leave areview on those platforms.
Thank you so much for your time.
(01:34):
And now back to the show.
In the late 16th century,England was eager to establish a
foothold in the new world,driven by a desire for wealth,
resources, and a strategicadvantage over their rivals,
particularly Spain, queenElizabeth.
I granted Sir Walter Riley, acharter to colonize the eastern
(01:57):
coast of North America, whichultimately led to the elevated
Roanoke Expedition.
Before we discuss the Roanokecolony, let's take a look at the
broader context of Englishexploration.
During this period, England wasa latecomer to the race for the
new world with Spain andPortugal already having
(02:17):
established colonies in reapingthe benefits of their overseas
territories.
England's forays into the newworld were marked by a series of
Feld expeditions.
Including the 1584 Renaissancemission led by Philip Armand and
Arthur Barlow, and the 1585attempt to establish a military
(02:41):
outpost under Sir RichardGreenville.
Now let's talk about the man atthe center of it all.
John White.
He was an artist and acartographer by trade.
But as it turns out, also quitethe adventurer appointed as the
governor of the Roanoke Colony.
He was tasked with leading over100 men, women, and children
(03:04):
across the Atlantic to establishtheir new home.
Talk about a career change,right?
The settler has arrived on Ro.
Island in July, 1587, and theyquickly got to work building
their resettlement.
The island offered astrategically advantage, uh,
location with natural defenses,but it wasn't exactly a tropical
(03:25):
paradise.
Resources were scarce intentionsbetween the settlers and the
local Native American tribeswere high, partly due to the
previous failed colonizationattempts by the English in the
area.
It is safe to say that theRoanoke sailors weren't exactly
winning any popularity contestswith their new neighbors.
(03:47):
And you know what they say aboutfirst impressions, right?
Well, the sailors accidentallyburnt down their initial fort
during the construction.
Not exactly the smoothest startto the new lives in the new
world.
But hey, we all make mistakes tomake matters even more
challenging.
They arrived too late in theseason to plant crops.
(04:08):
Which would have severeconsequences for their food
supply in the coming months.
So with the colony established,albeit a bit chaotically, John
White realized that they wererunning low on supplies.
He made the difficult decisionto return to England to gather
more resources leaving thesettlers behind on Roanoke
Island.
Little did he know that thiswould be the last time he would
(04:31):
ever see them.
Now, white had planned to returnto Roanoke as quickly as
possible.
But fate had other plans.
England was on the brink of warwith Spain, and every available
ship was needed for the loomingconflict.
To make matters worse, whenWhite finally managed to secure
passage back to Roanoke in 1590,his ship was captured by
(04:57):
pirates.
Talk about bad luck, right?
Anyway, after someswashbuckling.
Ventures and several delays.
White finally made it back toRoanoke, but when he arrived,
the colony was deserted.
Now, single settler was insight.
The only thing he found was aword crow toan carved in a tree
(05:19):
in the letters crow.
CRO etched into a nearby post.
Nobody.
No signs of struggle, just aneerie silence in a cryptic
message.
It was like something straightout of a horror movie.
White was devastated by thediscovery and immediately set
(05:39):
out to search for the settlers,believing that they may have
moved to Patura Island.
Home to the crow toe and tribe.
However, a series of storms anddangerous sea conditions forced
him to abandon his search andreturn to England empty handed.
So what happened to the Roanokesailors?
(06:02):
Well, there are several theoriesthat attempt to explain their
mysterious.
Appearance.
Let's dive into some of the mostpopular ones and consider the
evidence for each integrationwith the crow and to tribe.
The cryptic me message Crow Toincould suggest that the sailors
moved to Hatches Island home tothe Crow to tribe.
(06:24):
Some evidence supports thistheory, including archeological
findings of European artifactsand Native American settlements.
There are also stories passeddown by the Crow and Towen
tribe.
That describe the arrival of theEnglish settlers and their
integration into the community.
So did the settlers assimilatewith the crowton tribe as
(06:45):
possible, but definitive proofremains elusive Spanish attack.
So let's not forget that Englandand Spain were on pretty bad
terms during this period.
The Spanish could havediscovered the Roanoke colony
and attacked.
Either killing or capturing thesettlers.
In fact, the Spanish wereactively searching for the
(07:07):
English colony, hoping toeliminate it before it became a
threat to their interests in theregion.
However, there's a lack ofconcrete evidence to support
this theory, so for now, itremains just another piece of
the puzzle.
Disease, famine, or naturaldisaster.
Life on Roanoke Island wasn'teasy.
(07:28):
The sailors faced harshconditions, limited resources,
and potential conflicts with thelocal tribes.
It's possible that disease,famine, or even a natural
disaster could have wiped outThe colony tree ring studies
conducted on Roanoke Island haverevealed that the area
experienced a severe droughtduring the period.
(07:50):
The sailors were there.
Which could have led to cropfailure in a lack of portable
water.
But again, without moreevidence, it's hard to say for
sure.
And, uh, internal conflict andfragmentation.
So lastly, there's thepossibility that the settlers
simply couldn't get alongInternal divisions and conflict
(08:13):
could have led to the colony'sdemise.
There are some reports ofviolence and turmoil within the
Roanoke settlement, but like theother theories.
Concrete evidence is scarce.
It's also possible that thesettlers decided to split into
smaller groups and seek refugeamong different Native American
tribes in the region with thehope of increasing their chances
(08:33):
of survival.
So what's happening now in thesearch for answers about the
lost colony of Ron?
Well, researchers haven't givenup and new discoveries continue
to be made.
Archeological efforts areongoing with digs at various
sites on Roanoke Island,hatchery Island, and the
(08:53):
surrounding areas.
Some of these excavations haveuncovered intriguing artifacts,
which could potentially belinked to the Roanoke Sailors.
For example, the First ColonyFoundation has been conducting
excavations at a site calledSite X.
On the mainland where they havefound pottery, metal items and
(09:16):
other artifacts dating back tothe 16th century, which could
suggest the presence of theRoanoke settles.
Modern technology is alsoplaying a significant role in
the search for clues.
Remote sensing techno, uh,techniques such as ground
penetrated radar and aerialphotography are being used to
identify potential archeologicalsites.
(09:39):
Meanwhile, DNA analysis is beingemployed to examine human
remains found in the region inan attempt to establish.
A connection to the Roanokesettlers.
The Lost Colony Research Grouphas been working with local
residents and descendants of theCroton tribe, collecting DNA
samples to look for potentialmatches with the Roanoke
(10:01):
settlers descendants.
While the mystery of the lostcolony of Roanoke remains
unsolved, the dedicated effortsof the researchers and, and the
use of cutting edge technologyoffer.
Hope that we may one day uncoverthe truth behind this
fascinating enigma.
I was able to find a clip from ahistory channel show called The
(10:24):
Unexplained.
This was from season three, andthe episode was called The
Colony of Roanoke, mysteriousDisappearance.
So let's have a listen.
Fort Raleigh National Historicsite, North Carolina.
More than 400 years ago, thiswas the site of a colony called
Roanoke, the first Englishsettlement in North America.
(10:50):
Roanoke is known as the LostColony because it was
mysteriously abandoned in 1590and the colonists vanished
without a trace.
The lost colony remains thismystery that's at the very heart
of the origin of our nation.
People fascinated by Roanokebecause we know so little about
(11:12):
the place, we know what happenedat Jamestown.
We know what happened atPlymouth, but Roanoke is this
mystery because we don't knowwhat happened.
When we think about the foundingof the United States of America,
we think of it in this fairlylinear way that colonists showed
up.
They settled, they moved Westthey America, and really it
(11:35):
turns out that there were anumber of false starts.
How this country got started,and one of those was the colony
at Roanoke.
This was a group of people whoshowed up and were ready to
settle.
But what happened to that colonyis one of the big unanswered
questions of American history.
(11:58):
What happened to the rokecolonists?
Perhaps the answer can be foundby examining the events.
In the late 16th century thatled to their fateful
disappearance.
In the 1580s, England was a verysmall, poor struggling island
that really wanted to get in onthe game of colonizing the
(12:21):
Americas'cause that's where themoney was, the English were
looking at, the Spanish shipscoming back, leading with gold
and various commodities fromtheir empire, if you like, in
Mexico, south America, Florida.
And of course that was makingSpanish very powerful.
Essentially, it was a case of ifwe don't find our own source of
wealth in this new world, wecould be sort of overrun by our
(12:44):
enemies.
In 1587, an English map makernamed John White was
commissioned to found a newcolony on Roanoke Island, which
had been claimed by a Britishexpedition to the new world.
Two years earlier, after anarduous two month voyage across
the Atlantic Ocean White and 117colonists landed on Roanoke
(13:07):
Island.
The people who chose to comealong on this ill faded
expedition were middle classpeople from London, so they were
eager to find new lands becauseto have land in England.
Meant everything.
That's what gave you status.
But they knew they needed moresupplies and more colonists in
(13:28):
order to succeed, in order tothrive.
So John White decided to returnto England in order to get those
needed supplies and colonists.
On August 25th, 1587, only threemonths after first arriving on
Roanoke John White set sale forEngland.
(13:49):
He planned to return with aidin.
Less than six months, but aseries of conflicts with the
Spanish Navy would delay white'sreturn mission for three long
years.
In August of 1590, John Whitereturns to Roanoke Island.
They anchor offshore, and whenthey arrive it's dark and it's
(14:10):
too late for them to go ashore.
But John White is happy becausehe sees a fire in the distance
and he assumes that the settlersare there waiting for him.
Maybe even have seen his shipand have.
Lit a bonfire in order to guidehim.
In the next morning, white cameashore, expecting to find the
colonist there to welcome himback, but to his surprise, there
(14:33):
was no sign of them.
The entire settlement wascompletely abandoned.
John White gets back to RoanOak, but there's no sign of
anyone and he finds all thehouses have been taken down.
And in their place is a very,very well built, defensible
fort.
So little bit of a mystery.
You've got this new fort thatwasn't there in 15, uh, 87 when
(14:57):
he last saw them, and the placeis deserted.
Where have they gone?
Eventually, John White cameacross a cryptic clue as to the
whereabouts of the colonists.
He found the word.
Croton mysteriously carved intoa wooden post.
John White told the colonistswhen he left in 1587 that if
(15:19):
they were to abandon thesettlement, that they should
leave a secret token, as hecalled it behind, so that he
would know where to find them.
And this seemed to be the answerhere was Tonin carved onto the
post Pro Ratin was what we callHatteras today, an island about
50 miles to the south.
It is also the name of the tribeof Native Americans who lived on
(15:40):
the island.
But when John White prepared toset sail to search for the
colonists, a storm blew in,damaged his ship, and he was
forced to return to England.
Unfortunately, John.
Was never able to return to thenew world to search for the lost
colonists.
(16:03):
But in recent years,archeologists have carried out
extensive excavations to try andsolve this 400 year old mystery.
Archeologists have been diggingon Hatteras, what was called pro
toin, and they have come up withsome remarkable evidence.
The first most important pieceof evidence found was a gold
(16:24):
ring that was made inElizabethan times.
This was big news because itseemed to indicate the
possibility that at least one ofthe colonists had been on
Croatan Island.
And then another competing teamwas digging on Hatter's Island.
And what they found was reallyintriguing.
They actually discovered thehilt of an Elizabethan erasor.
(16:47):
It was found in a NativeAmerican village.
Now, whether or not this issomething that belonged to a
lost colonist remains to beseen, it's possible some did
survive long enough to have afamily and that there would've
been a simulation with the Crowtoin.
And yet, considering how mucharcheology that's been done, we
(17:08):
have no skeletons.
Where are they?
That is a mystery.
If we had found dead bodiesscattered or obvious signs of a
siege or an attack, that wouldbe the answer that we need.
We get this word croatan, butdid people actually make it
there?
Where did they go?
What happened to this group ofsettlers?
(17:32):
It's the ambiguity that reallykeeps this legend alive.
It is hard to imagine that anentire colony that was home to
over a hundred people could justvanish into thin air.
Did the colonists at Roanokesimply decide to move somewhere
else, or was there a darkerreason behind the disappearance?
(18:00):
Now over the centuries, thestory of the Lost Colony of
Roanoke has captured thepublic's imagination and
inspired numerous legends andtells some of these stories have
become part of the localfolklore, adding another layer
of the.
To the mystery one.
Such legend tells of the darestones, a series of engraved
(18:22):
stones that purportedly tell thestory of the Roanoke cellar's
fate.
These stones were discovered inthe 1930s and initially
generated a great deal ofexcitement among historians.
However, the stones were laterdetermined to be forgeries
casting doubt on theirauthenticity.
(18:45):
Another fascinating tale is thatof Virginia Dare, the first
English child born in the newworld, in the granddaughter of
John White.
According to the legend,Virginia was transformed into a
white dough by an angry nativeAmerican sorcerer.
And she continues to roam theforest of Roanoke Island to this
(19:08):
day.
My, this story is more folklore.
In fact, it demonstrates theendearing fascination with the
lost colony of Roanoke.
So there you have it.
The endearing mystery of theLost Colony of Roanoke.
We've looked at the maintheories from integration with
Theone Tribe and Spanish attacksto disease, famine, or natural
(19:31):
disasters.
And even internal conflicts.
We've also explored recentresearch efforts and the legends
that have sprung up around thiscaptivating historical enigma.
While we may not have definitiveanswers, the intrigue
surrounding the Roanoke settlersdisappearance continues to
capture our imaginations.
(19:52):
I encourage you, our listeners,to dig deeper, explore the
series, and maybe even come upwith some of your own.
Who knows?
Perhaps one of you will be theone to finally solve the mystery
of the Roanoke Sailorsdisappearance.
Thank you so much for joining meon this journey into the past.
Be sure to tune in next time aswe dive into another fascinating
(20:15):
episode of The Rabbit HoleChronicles
Welcome to another episode of The Rabbit Hole
Chronicles the podcast that delsdeep into the mysteries of the
past.
I'm your host, Joe Foster.
Today we are going to exploreone of the most enduring enig in
American history, the LostColony of Roanoke in 1587.
A group of English settlersarrived on Roanoke Island,
(00:24):
located off the coast of presentday North Carolina.
In an attempt to establish thefirst permanent English colony
in the new world led by GovernorJohn White, they faced numerous
challenges in their new home,but nothing could have prepared
them for the mysterious fatethat would befall them.
So buckle up as we journey backin time to the late 16th century
(00:49):
and try to unravel the bafflingdisappearance of the Roanoke
colony.
But first, a littlehousekeeping.
If you're enjoying the show andyou haven't done so already,
please consider leaving a reviewand a five star rating.
It helps a lot by getting theshow in front of new listeners.
(01:13):
I, so if you're alreadylistening on Apple Podcasts or
Spotify, you're already in theright place, but if you're not,
there would be a link in thedescription to take you to.
The, the show on Apple Podcastor Spotify.
Uh, so that way you can leave areview on those platforms.
Thank you so much for your time.
(01:34):
And now back to the show.
In the late 16th century,England was eager to establish a
foothold in the new world,driven by a desire for wealth,
resources, and a strategicadvantage over their rivals,
particularly Spain, queenElizabeth.
I granted Sir Walter Riley, acharter to colonize the eastern
(01:57):
coast of North America, whichultimately led to the elevated
Roanoke Expedition.
Before we discuss the Roanokecolony, let's take a look at the
broader context of Englishexploration.
During this period, England wasa latecomer to the race for the
new world with Spain andPortugal already having
(02:17):
established colonies in reapingthe benefits of their overseas
territories.
England's forays into the newworld were marked by a series of
Feld expeditions.
Including the 1584 Renaissancemission led by Philip Armand and
Arthur Barlow, and the 1585attempt to establish a military
(02:41):
outpost under Sir RichardGreenville.
Now let's talk about the man atthe center of it all.
John White.
He was an artist and acartographer by trade.
But as it turns out, also quitethe adventurer appointed as the
governor of the Roanoke Colony.
He was tasked with leading over100 men, women, and children
(03:04):
across the Atlantic to establishtheir new home.
Talk about a career change,right?
The settler has arrived on Ro.
Island in July, 1587, and theyquickly got to work building
their resettlement.
The island offered astrategically advantage, uh,
location with natural defenses,but it wasn't exactly a tropical
(03:25):
paradise.
Resources were scarce intentionsbetween the settlers and the
local Native American tribeswere high, partly due to the
previous failed colonizationattempts by the English in the
area.
It is safe to say that theRoanoke sailors weren't exactly
winning any popularity contestswith their new neighbors.
(03:47):
And you know what they say aboutfirst impressions, right?
Well, the sailors accidentallyburnt down their initial fort
during the construction.
Not exactly the smoothest startto the new lives in the new
world.
But hey, we all make mistakes tomake matters even more
challenging.
They arrived too late in theseason to plant crops.
(04:08):
Which would have severeconsequences for their food
supply in the coming months.
So with the colony established,albeit a bit chaotically, John
White realized that they wererunning low on supplies.
He made the difficult decisionto return to England to gather
more resources leaving thesettlers behind on Roanoke
Island.
Little did he know that thiswould be the last time he would
(04:31):
ever see them.
Now, white had planned to returnto Roanoke as quickly as
possible.
But fate had other plans.
England was on the brink of warwith Spain, and every available
ship was needed for the loomingconflict.
To make matters worse, whenWhite finally managed to secure
passage back to Roanoke in 1590,his ship was captured by
(04:57):
pirates.
Talk about bad luck, right?
Anyway, after someswashbuckling.
Ventures and several delays.
White finally made it back toRoanoke, but when he arrived,
the colony was deserted.
Now, single settler was insight.
The only thing he found was aword crow toan carved in a tree
(05:19):
in the letters crow.
CRO etched into a nearby post.
Nobody.
No signs of struggle, just aneerie silence in a cryptic
message.
It was like something straightout of a horror movie.
White was devastated by thediscovery and immediately set
(05:39):
out to search for the settlers,believing that they may have
moved to Patura Island.
Home to the crow toe and tribe.
However, a series of storms anddangerous sea conditions forced
him to abandon his search andreturn to England empty handed.
So what happened to the Roanokesailors?
(06:02):
Well, there are several theoriesthat attempt to explain their
mysterious.
Appearance.
Let's dive into some of the mostpopular ones and consider the
evidence for each integrationwith the crow and to tribe.
The cryptic me message Crow Toincould suggest that the sailors
moved to Hatches Island home tothe Crow to tribe.
(06:24):
Some evidence supports thistheory, including archeological
findings of European artifactsand Native American settlements.
There are also stories passeddown by the Crow and Towen
tribe.
That describe the arrival of theEnglish settlers and their
integration into the community.
So did the settlers assimilatewith the crowton tribe as
(06:45):
possible, but definitive proofremains elusive Spanish attack.
So let's not forget that Englandand Spain were on pretty bad
terms during this period.
The Spanish could havediscovered the Roanoke colony
and attacked.
Either killing or capturing thesettlers.
In fact, the Spanish wereactively searching for the
(07:07):
English colony, hoping toeliminate it before it became a
threat to their interests in theregion.
However, there's a lack ofconcrete evidence to support
this theory, so for now, itremains just another piece of
the puzzle.
Disease, famine, or naturaldisaster.
Life on Roanoke Island wasn'teasy.
(07:28):
The sailors faced harshconditions, limited resources,
and potential conflicts with thelocal tribes.
It's possible that disease,famine, or even a natural
disaster could have wiped outThe colony tree ring studies
conducted on Roanoke Island haverevealed that the area
experienced a severe droughtduring the period.
(07:50):
The sailors were there.
Which could have led to cropfailure in a lack of portable
water.
But again, without moreevidence, it's hard to say for
sure.
And, uh, internal conflict andfragmentation.
So lastly, there's thepossibility that the settlers
simply couldn't get alongInternal divisions and conflict
(08:13):
could have led to the colony'sdemise.
There are some reports ofviolence and turmoil within the
Roanoke settlement, but like theother theories.
Concrete evidence is scarce.
It's also possible that thesettlers decided to split into
smaller groups and seek refugeamong different Native American
tribes in the region with thehope of increasing their chances
(08:33):
of survival.
So what's happening now in thesearch for answers about the
lost colony of Ron?
Well, researchers haven't givenup and new discoveries continue
to be made.
Archeological efforts areongoing with digs at various
sites on Roanoke Island,hatchery Island, and the
(08:53):
surrounding areas.
Some of these excavations haveuncovered intriguing artifacts,
which could potentially belinked to the Roanoke Sailors.
For example, the First ColonyFoundation has been conducting
excavations at a site calledSite X.
On the mainland where they havefound pottery, metal items and
(09:16):
other artifacts dating back tothe 16th century, which could
suggest the presence of theRoanoke settles.
Modern technology is alsoplaying a significant role in
the search for clues.
Remote sensing techno, uh,techniques such as ground
penetrated radar and aerialphotography are being used to
identify potential archeologicalsites.
(09:39):
Meanwhile, DNA analysis is beingemployed to examine human
remains found in the region inan attempt to establish.
A connection to the Roanokesettlers.
The Lost Colony Research Grouphas been working with local
residents and descendants of theCroton tribe, collecting DNA
samples to look for potentialmatches with the Roanoke
(10:01):
settlers descendants.
While the mystery of the lostcolony of Roanoke remains
unsolved, the dedicated effortsof the researchers and, and the
use of cutting edge technologyoffer.
Hope that we may one day uncoverthe truth behind this
fascinating enigma.
I was able to find a clip from ahistory channel show called The
(10:24):
Unexplained.
This was from season three, andthe episode was called The
Colony of Roanoke, mysteriousDisappearance.
So let's have a listen.
Fort Raleigh National Historicsite, North Carolina.
More than 400 years ago, thiswas the site of a colony called
Roanoke, the first Englishsettlement in North America.
(10:50):
Roanoke is known as the LostColony because it was
mysteriously abandoned in 1590and the colonists vanished
without a trace.
The lost colony remains thismystery that's at the very heart
of the origin of our nation.
People fascinated by Roanokebecause we know so little about
(11:12):
the place, we know what happenedat Jamestown.
We know what happened atPlymouth, but Roanoke is this
mystery because we don't knowwhat happened.
When we think about the foundingof the United States of America,
we think of it in this fairlylinear way that colonists showed
up.
They settled, they moved Westthey America, and really it
(11:35):
turns out that there were anumber of false starts.
How this country got started,and one of those was the colony
at Roanoke.
This was a group of people whoshowed up and were ready to
settle.
But what happened to that colonyis one of the big unanswered
questions of American history.
(11:58):
What happened to the rokecolonists?
Perhaps the answer can be foundby examining the events.
In the late 16th century thatled to their fateful
disappearance.
In the 1580s, England was a verysmall, poor struggling island
that really wanted to get in onthe game of colonizing the
(12:21):
Americas'cause that's where themoney was, the English were
looking at, the Spanish shipscoming back, leading with gold
and various commodities fromtheir empire, if you like, in
Mexico, south America, Florida.
And of course that was makingSpanish very powerful.
Essentially, it was a case of ifwe don't find our own source of
wealth in this new world, wecould be sort of overrun by our
(12:44):
enemies.
In 1587, an English map makernamed John White was
commissioned to found a newcolony on Roanoke Island, which
had been claimed by a Britishexpedition to the new world.
Two years earlier, after anarduous two month voyage across
the Atlantic Ocean White and 117colonists landed on Roanoke
(13:07):
Island.
The people who chose to comealong on this ill faded
expedition were middle classpeople from London, so they were
eager to find new lands becauseto have land in England.
Meant everything.
That's what gave you status.
But they knew they needed moresupplies and more colonists in
(13:28):
order to succeed, in order tothrive.
So John White decided to returnto England in order to get those
needed supplies and colonists.
On August 25th, 1587, only threemonths after first arriving on
Roanoke John White set sale forEngland.
(13:49):
He planned to return with aidin.
Less than six months, but aseries of conflicts with the
Spanish Navy would delay white'sreturn mission for three long
years.
In August of 1590, John Whitereturns to Roanoke Island.
They anchor offshore, and whenthey arrive it's dark and it's
(14:10):
too late for them to go ashore.
But John White is happy becausehe sees a fire in the distance
and he assumes that the settlersare there waiting for him.
Maybe even have seen his shipand have.
Lit a bonfire in order to guidehim.
In the next morning, white cameashore, expecting to find the
colonist there to welcome himback, but to his surprise, there
(14:33):
was no sign of them.
The entire settlement wascompletely abandoned.
John White gets back to RoanOak, but there's no sign of
anyone and he finds all thehouses have been taken down.
And in their place is a very,very well built, defensible
fort.
So little bit of a mystery.
You've got this new fort thatwasn't there in 15, uh, 87 when
(14:57):
he last saw them, and the placeis deserted.
Where have they gone?
Eventually, John White cameacross a cryptic clue as to the
whereabouts of the colonists.
He found the word.
Croton mysteriously carved intoa wooden post.
John White told the colonistswhen he left in 1587 that if
(15:19):
they were to abandon thesettlement, that they should
leave a secret token, as hecalled it behind, so that he
would know where to find them.
And this seemed to be the answerhere was Tonin carved onto the
post Pro Ratin was what we callHatteras today, an island about
50 miles to the south.
It is also the name of the tribeof Native Americans who lived on
(15:40):
the island.
But when John White prepared toset sail to search for the
colonists, a storm blew in,damaged his ship, and he was
forced to return to England.
Unfortunately, John.
Was never able to return to thenew world to search for the lost
colonists.
(16:03):
But in recent years,archeologists have carried out
extensive excavations to try andsolve this 400 year old mystery.
Archeologists have been diggingon Hatteras, what was called pro
toin, and they have come up withsome remarkable evidence.
The first most important pieceof evidence found was a gold
(16:24):
ring that was made inElizabethan times.
This was big news because itseemed to indicate the
possibility that at least one ofthe colonists had been on
Croatan Island.
And then another competing teamwas digging on Hatter's Island.
And what they found was reallyintriguing.
They actually discovered thehilt of an Elizabethan erasor.
(16:47):
It was found in a NativeAmerican village.
Now, whether or not this issomething that belonged to a
lost colonist remains to beseen, it's possible some did
survive long enough to have afamily and that there would've
been a simulation with the Crowtoin.
And yet, considering how mucharcheology that's been done, we
(17:08):
have no skeletons.
Where are they?
That is a mystery.
If we had found dead bodiesscattered or obvious signs of a
siege or an attack, that wouldbe the answer that we need.
We get this word croatan, butdid people actually make it
there?
Where did they go?
What happened to this group ofsettlers?
(17:32):
It's the ambiguity that reallykeeps this legend alive.
It is hard to imagine that anentire colony that was home to
over a hundred people could justvanish into thin air.
Did the colonists at Roanokesimply decide to move somewhere
else, or was there a darkerreason behind the disappearance?
(18:00):
Now over the centuries, thestory of the Lost Colony of
Roanoke has captured thepublic's imagination and
inspired numerous legends andtells some of these stories have
become part of the localfolklore, adding another layer
of the.
To the mystery one.
Such legend tells of the darestones, a series of engraved
(18:22):
stones that purportedly tell thestory of the Roanoke cellar's
fate.
These stones were discovered inthe 1930s and initially
generated a great deal ofexcitement among historians.
However, the stones were laterdetermined to be forgeries
casting doubt on theirauthenticity.
(18:45):
Another fascinating tale is thatof Virginia Dare, the first
English child born in the newworld, in the granddaughter of
John White.
According to the legend,Virginia was transformed into a
white dough by an angry nativeAmerican sorcerer.
And she continues to roam theforest of Roanoke Island to this
(19:08):
day.
My, this story is more folklore.
In fact, it demonstrates theendearing fascination with the
lost colony of Roanoke.
So there you have it.
The endearing mystery of theLost Colony of Roanoke.
We've looked at the maintheories from integration with
Theone Tribe and Spanish attacksto disease, famine, or natural
(19:31):
disasters.
And even internal conflicts.
We've also explored recentresearch efforts and the legends
that have sprung up around thiscaptivating historical enigma.
While we may not have definitiveanswers, the intrigue
surrounding the Roanoke settlersdisappearance continues to
capture our imaginations.
(19:52):
I encourage you, our listeners,to dig deeper, explore the
series, and maybe even come upwith some of your own.
Who knows?
Perhaps one of you will be theone to finally solve the mystery
of the Roanoke Sailorsdisappearance.
Thank you so much for joining meon this journey into the past.
Be sure to tune in next time aswe dive into another fascinating
(20:15):
episode of The Rabbit HoleChronicles
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