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What Happened At Roanoke? |
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Although exactly what happened to the colonists at Roanoke from the time that Governor White left until he returned, there are several theories and hypotheses. One of the most widely theorized and possible ones, is that the colonists, finding the Native Americans unfriendly, moved off the Island and sought out the help of a neighboring tribe of Native Americans, the Crotoans. This is thought to be the case for several reasons. One of these is because upon Governor White's return from England, all that was found on the Island was the word Crotoan carved into a tree. It has also been suggested by Morison, in his book, that this is a possibility and supporting evidence is found in the fact that the descendents of the Croatoan tribe have a legend of the "white men" that joined their tribe, as well as having many among them whose parents are of the tribe, but that are fair haired and blue eyed.
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Other theories have included that of the colonists being massacred by Wingina's tribe, as well as a suggestion that they may have moved to the mainland, a plan that had been in the making for sometime when White left, and may not have told him, or may not have been able to wait for him to come back to tell him. |
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In Haywood J. Pearce's essay on New Light On the Roanoke Colony, he talks of the discovery of a stone, earlier this century that had carved into it, a seeming description of what happened at what is believed to be the Roanoke settlement. This description tells of the Natvies attacking and murdering many of the English settlers and of the rest fleeing the island in hopes of seeking safety on the mainland.
Although there is no record that the Roanoke colonist were ever seen again, Pearce states in his essay that there are five references to their survival and fate in the early writings on Jamestown.
William Strached, a secretary of the colony reported that Powhatan had caused the colonists to be massacred. From this, seven supposedly survived and fled, to be helped by a chief named Eyanoco. Another, Captain John Smith, says that a Native American chief, Opechanacanough, informed him that there were other men that were dressed as he was in British clothes. The third evidence, a map sent by Captain francis Nelson to England around 1608 states on it just north of Roanoke, at the site of a Native village, that it was the site where four Britich men came clothed seeking help. A phamplet states that the lost colonists had been contacted, were captors of Native Americans and beat copper for them. Lastly, Sir Thomas Gates in 1609 was instructed to seek out the Roanoke River Country. While doing so he was told of the men like him that worked the rich copper mines in the region for the Native Americans. (Pearce) |