A battle of the American Civil War battle was fought on this island in February of 1862. Union forces had the advantage because they outnumbered the Confederate defenders. The Confederate Army believing that the swamps on the island were impassable did not post guards there. Union soldiers then approached the Confederate defenders on their sides, forcing the Confederate commander Henry Shaw to surrender. Union soldiers stayed on the island until the war. It was during these years (1862-1865) the Freeman's colony of black slaves was founded and created. After the war the freeman's colony was dispersed. Some of the African Americans on Roanoke Island today trace their heritage or descent back to freeman's colony. 