1587 · North Carolina
Lost Colony of Roanoke.
115 people went missing, leaving only one word behind.
Picture it, It is summer of 1587. 115 people decided to leave their homeland and travel to the New World, Over the Arctic Ocean.
Confident about their future, they landed on the small island situated close to the seaside of modern North Carolina.
The chief of their group is Governor John White.
His daughter, Eleanor, who was pregnant, is part of this group.
This was their place; they made it home.
On August 18, 1587, Eleanor gave birth to her daughter. The baby’s name was Virginia Dare, the first female English child ever born in America.
New World welcomes them
Unfortunately, the supplies are starting to dwindle.
So Governor White, promising to be back soon, had to go back to England to obtain additional supplies.
It was not until after three years that he returned from England.
At this point, England and Spain were at war.
All available ships were sent to combat the Spanish Armada.
Stuck thousands of miles away, White could not help his family stuck on this deserted island.
Finally, after three long years, he traveled by sea back to the island.
However, when his ship reached the coast, he saw a empty town.
There were no dead bodies.
Not even a drop of blood.
The evidence of any kind of battle.
Nothing – except for a silence.
Silence that is terrifying.
All inhabitants of this village disappeared as if swallowed by the sea itself.
“CROATOAN” was all what they left behind – Sculpted into the wooden post near the fort’s entrance.
It seemed as though these settlers decided to move to Croatoan Island, which was around 80 kilometers to the south of Roanoke Island.
White wanted to go searching for them, but the bad weather forced him to give up on this idea.
He never returned.
They never returned.
Virginia Dare — his newborn granddaughter— disappeared with them.
What happened to her?
What happened to them?
Did they join some native American family, living nearby?
Was their settlement destroyed?
Was anyone injured during the struggle?
Are they still alive somewhere?
Have they tried to go back to England but failed, ending up drowning in the water?
This question has kept researchers busy for over 400 years.
Archeologists have dug up the territory.
Experts in history have looked at old maps, studied records, and analyzed Native American legends.
The theory that suggests these migrants got mixed with locals sounds quite plausible.
DNA testing is underway.
The verdict is yet to come. For now – we will have to wait and see.
