Panchronia

The Lost Colony of Roanoke

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1587–1590 · Roanoke Island · Americas · Exploration

An English colony vanishes, leaving one word carved on a post

The Lost Colony of Roanoke
National Park Service · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

In 1587 more than a hundred colonists settled on Roanoke Island, where Virginia Dare became the first English child born in the Americas. Governor John White sailed home for supplies, but war with Spain delayed him until 1590. He found the site deserted, with CROATOAN carved on a post.

Did you know

The Roanoke colony may have been lost because of the Spanish Armada. Governor White sailed home for supplies, but the war kept him away three years — in 1590 he found only CROATOAN carved on a post. Share →

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Alive at the time