What Happened To What We Call The Lost Colony
The lost colony was the first English attempt to colonize the New World, now known as the USA. Sir Walter Raleigh was granted a patent to colonize as much of the New World as he could. He sent two explorers, Philip Amadas and Arthur Barlowe to scout the coastal areas that are now North Carolina and Virginia. They landed on Roanoke Island. They returned to England with favorable reports. Impressed, Raleigh gathered a group of soldiers, scholars and craftsmen. They sailed off to colonize Roanoke Island. The colonists arrived too late for planting crops and their food ran out. When Sir Francis Drake arrived in 1586, the settlers abandoned the colony and returned home.
Raleigh was disappointed by the abandonment but determined to establish a colony. He sent 117 settlers who landed on Roanoke Island in July 1587. Governor John White returned to England for supplies. England’s war with the Spanish armada delayed his return until August 1590. He found the colony plundered and deserted. The colonists were never found. It is believed they may have joined the local Indians or been taken captive by them. Later, there were reports of blue-eyed Indians in the area to support this theory.