The origins of one of America’s oldest unsolved mysteries can be traced to August 1587, when a group of about 115 English settlers arrived on Roanoke Island, off the coast of what is now North Carolina. 

Later that year, it was decided that John White, governor of the new colony, would sail back to England in order to gather a fresh load of supplies. But just as he arrived, a major naval war broke out between England and Spain, and Queen Elizabeth I called on every available ship to confront the mighty Spanish Armada. 

In August 1590, White finally returned to Roanoke, where he had left his wife and daughter, his infant granddaughter (Virginia Dare, the first English child born in the Americas) and the other settlers three long years before. He found no trace of the colony or its inhabitants, and few clues to what might have happened, apart from a single word—“Croatoan”—carved into a wooden post.

Cascone, S. (2021, December 9). Archaeologists May Have Finally Solved the Mystery of the Disappearance of Roanoke’s Lost Colony. Artnet News. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/archaeologists-mystery-lost-roanoke-lost-colony-1921594

History.com Staff. (2023, June 20). What happened to the ‘Lost Colony’ of Roanoke? HISTORY. https://www.history.com/news/what-happened-to-the-lost-colony-of-roanoke

Hogeback, J. (n.d.). The lost colony of Roanoke. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/story/the-lost-colony-of-roanoke

Roanoke Colony deserted. (2010, February 9). HISTORY. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/roanoke-colony-deserted

American History Central. (2023, November 20). Lost Colony Roanoke, Summary, Facts, Significance, APUSH. https://www.americanhistorycentral.com/entries/lost-colony-roanoke-island/

HISTORY. (2022, May 15). The Colony of Roanoke’s Mysterious Disappearance | The UnXplained (Season 3) [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sckzQiXapk8

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This episode of The Dark Oak was created, researched, written, recorded, hosted, edited, published, and marketed by Cynthia and Stefanie of Just Us Gals Productions with artwork by Justyse Holmes and Music by Ryan Creep