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New Clue in Case of Sir Walter Raleigh Lost Colony

New Clue in Case of Sir Walter Raleigh Lost Colony

Monday, May 14, 2012 5:27

New Clue in Case of Sir Walter Raleigh Lost Colony

What became of the 120 explorers who tried to establish England’s first colony on the north east coast of America has baffled historians for more than 400 years.

The enterprise took place in the 1580s, was carried out by the English explorer Sir Ralph Lane and was organised and financed by the celebrated voyager Sir Walter Raleigh, who had hoped that the expedition would establish a capital in the New World. (1)

But instead of establishing a permanent English settlement on Roanoke Island a mystery arose; The explorers involved in the voyage disappeared, alongside any evidence of a settlement.

One popular theory behind the explorers’ disappearance is that natives executed them. Although the fate of the colonists has never been determined and what has became known as the infamous ‘Sir Walter Raleigh’s lost colony’ has become rooted in American folklore.

sir walter raleighThis month, researchers working on solving the infamous and ancient ‘lost colony’ mystery have become a step closer to a solution that could be sitting right under a golf course in Bertie County.

Historic Map Offers a Clue

According to the Chicago Tribune, researchers at the British Museum in London, acting at the request of archaeologists and historians in North Carolina, found a symbol on a map that was created by John White, lead explorer of Sir Walter Raleigh’s Roanoke Colony expedition.

Asides being an explorer, White was a distinguished artist and according to the Daily Mail, his map is ‘considerably accurate’, and some of White’s other works are also held in the British Museum. (2)

Brent Lane, a professor of Heritage Education at the University of North Carolina Kenan Institute and a scholar with the First Colony Foundation, was analysing the map and was intrigued by two small patches of paper that were pasted on the map. (3)

Read more:New Clue in Case of Sir Walter Raleigh Lost Colony

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if it's not on video

it didn't happen,....

Off topic for subforum, but

Off topic for subforum, but just pointing out that on the map the researchers used and the colonists had is croatoan. That seems a more likely location to look since it was carved into the tree and fort, and they had a prior agreement with John White to carve their location on a tree if they had to move; and the croation indian chief had previously gone to england in a ship and was an ally as well as an english speaker, and the colonists were at war with an opposing indian tribe, and might have to move --

it seems the more obvious place to look. Online news articles mention that in the last 10-20 years they have found many english artifacts in that exact indian location on the map, including a gold signet ring of one of the colonists. An explorer 100 years after the colonists moved documented the same indians had a family legend that the colonists had settled among them, and that there was european features in some of the indians.

What if there never was a lost colony? (good article)

Also this side comment is plausible, King James threw Raleigh into prison.

A Plot by King James?
Sir Walter Raleigh's rights to the profits of the New World could not be killed simply by killing Raleigh, which King James did by beheading. Raleigh's rights to the riches would pass to his heirs unless the colony was never contacted again. This is why the English never returned despite knowing the colony had moved to the Island of Croatoan.

Haven't looked at it yet, but I suspect the below youtube has the same information.






FYI - the radio interview

FYI - the radio interview above is totally valid. I did source document research myself before finding it, and the author came to the same conclusion himself years ago - and is a local from the area.

Fascinating night's research. Another made up piece of history, they always knew where the colony was - so the question becomes why they "lost it". Probably the grant that they gave Raleigh, although I can think of some other reasons. Research for another night. definitely an out of way museum I'll stop by if I am in the area.

Also, if you listen to the whole thing, you find out they are Ron Paul supporters at the end.


FYI - if you like researching charters and valid legal claims in history that are ignored, Croatoan island may have a valid legal claim to Virgina, since they weren't really lost. Hmmm..
