14 October 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Archaeologists find new clues about North Carolina’s ‘Lost Colony’ from the 16th century

Archaeologists from The First Colony Foundation have yielded a tantalizing clue about the fate of the Lost Colony, the settlers who disappeared from North Carolina’s Roanoke Island in the late 16th century.

The story of an English settlement known as the “Lost Colony” of early explorers of Roanoke and Sir Walter Raleigh is one of the most fascinating mysteries in American history.

John White led a party of roughly 115 English settlers who arrived on Roanoke Island, which is located slightly off the east coast of modern-day North Carolina, in 1587. The first attempt to colonize the island had failed a few years prior, so the settlers were the second group to try.

Even from their first days, the settler community had a rocky relationship with some of the Indigenous tribes that lived in the area. Eventually, White returned to England to request more help for his burgeoning community. Along with the other settlers, he left his wife, daughter Eleanor Dare and her husband Ananias Dare, and his infant granddaughter Virginia—the first English child born in America—to continue building the colony.

White arrived in England at the same time as the Spanish Armada prepared to invade the nation, which unfortunately caused a delay in his return to the colony. By the time he returned to Roanoke in 1590, his family and the other settlers had vanished. The word “Croatoan” carved into a tree provided the only meaningful hint as to what had happened to them. The word probably referred to Croatoan Island, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) south.



📣 Our WhatsApp channel is now LIVE! Stay up-to-date with the latest news and updates, just click here to follow us on WhatsApp and never miss a thing!!



There are various explanations for what happened to today the “lost” Roanoke colony settlers. Some believe the colonists attempted to return to England on smaller ships, some argue that the Spanish attacked them, while others contend that the local Indigenous communities killed them all. Still, the most plausible response is the only one that genuinely observes the evidence at the location. Most likely, the colonists just became part of the local Indigenous communities and eventually blended in.

Archaeologists from The First Colony Foundation uncovered what they believe are tantalizing clues.
Archaeologists from The First Colony Foundation uncovered what they believe are tantalizing clues.

Recently, researchers have concentrated their efforts on the Elizabethan Gardens in Manteo in an attempt to learn more about the fate of the English settlers. There, they found additional evidence of a farmstead that belonged to the Indigenous community known as the “Algonquian village of Roanoke” (also spelled Roanoac), which hosted the explorers in 1584.

Excavations in March 2024 followed discoveries in the summer of 2023, when archaeologists from The First Colony Foundation uncovered what they believe are tantalizing clues. They dug up shards of Algonquian pottery dating back to the 1500s, along with a ring of copper wire they believe could have been an earring once worn by a warrior from an Indigenous tribe.

“Finding domestic pottery—the type used for cooking—in close proximity to an apparent piece of Native American jewelry strongly confirms we are digging in the midst of a settlement,” said Dr. Eric Klingelhofer, the First Colony Foundation’s Vice President of Research. “And Roanoac is the only known village at that site.”

“The copper ring indicates contact with the English,” Klingelhofer continued.

The ring was made of drawn copper, and Klingelhofer believes it was brought to America by English explorers as part of their trade goods. Indigenous peoples did not have the technology to produce such rounded strands, and neither the French nor Spanish explorers ventured as far north as Roanoke Island to trade.

The copper ring would have made for a valuable trade item. Historians say copper had spiritual significance for Indigenous tribes.

Jeremy Bliven stands in the 16th Century – on the dark soil of the ground level back then, anyway. Photo: The First Colony Foundation
Jeremy Bliven stands in the 16th Century – on the dark soil of the ground level back then, anyway. Photo: The First Colony Foundation

While artifacts were discovered last summer, the objective of the more recent dig was to find evidence of a farmstead where Algonquian families lived, worked and farmed. Archaeologists recovered charcoal and shards of Algonquian cooking pots.

Evidence from the past two digs appears to confirm a theory that the village of Roanoke was palisaded (surrounded by high walls) with about nine houses where the elite warrior class lived. The working class lived outside the walls on farmsteads, raising crops for themselves and the ruling class.

“The objects we found are important, but it’s their relationship to different soils which are evidence of links to the past, and together that’s what tells the story,” said Klingelhofer. “And we’re beginning to see that this site was more of a capital with a tribal seat where a ruler or chief lived, and it would be palisaded to keep him safe.”

The chief presided over a territory that comprised present-day Dare County, Roanoke Island and parts of the mainland at the time of English exploration and colonization.

“The new findings confirm a theory that matches what we know of the village,” added Klingelhofer. “It was described as a palisaded village because the explorers came here and recorded it. And these findings add to our story.”

History shows the colonists said they intended to move about 50 miles into the mainland; Salmon Creek is about that distance. The First Colony Foundation has been working at two sites in that area for years, and researchers are looking for a third site. Another exploration is scheduled for this summer at nearby Fort Raleigh National Historic Site. The goal is to find evidence of the colonists’ original settlement.

The First Colony Foundation

Cover Photo: John White finds the message “CROATOAN” at the abandoned Roanoke colony, 1590. The Lost Colony, design by William Ludwell Sheppard, engraving by William James Linton.

Related Articles

Digitally Reconstructed: Roman Roads That Shaped 1,000 Years of Travel Across Medieval Britain

21 May 2025

21 May 2025

Researchers digitally reconstruct medieval England and Wales’ travel routes, revealing how Roman roads shaped post-Roman mobility over a thousand years....

Unprecedented Large Burial Urns in the Amazon May Reveal a Previously Unknown Indigenous Tradition

21 June 2025

21 June 2025

A remarkable archaeological discovery in the heart of the Amazon—seven giant funerary urns buried beneath a fallen tree—is offering fresh...

Rare biblical ‘balsam tree’ found depicted on ancient Jerusalem amethyst seal

21 October 2021

21 October 2021

Archaeologists working in the Old City of Jerusalem have discovered an engraved amethyst seal in the Second Temple, thought to...

Researchers may have found 3,000-year-old evidence of Yue (Amputation), one of the five punishments practiced in ancient China

4 May 2022

4 May 2022

According to the South China Morning Post, researchers in China believe a skeleton discovered in a tomb in the country’s...

Syria uncovered a large intact mosaic that dates back to the Roman era

12 October 2022

12 October 2022

Syria uncovered a large intact mosaic that dates back to the Roman era, in the central town of Rastan, describing...

1800-year-old marble inscription found in Turkey’s Aigai excavations deciphered

2 October 2022

2 October 2022

The 1800-year-old inscription, consisting of 3 pieces of marble, found in the excavations in the ancient city of Aigai in...

The remains of two new Doric temples are discovered under the Italian site of Paestum

15 January 2024

15 January 2024

Archaeologists have unearthed two new temples in the Doric style in Paestum, an ancient Greek colony in southern Italy. The...

9 Synagogues in Izmir to Reopen as Museum

26 March 2022

26 March 2022

As part of a Jewish heritage project in Izmir, Turkey, nine historic synagogues will be reopened as museums. Built by...

Largest-Known Flower Preserved in Amber Is Nearly 40 Million Years Old

20 January 2023

20 January 2023

The largest-known fossilized flower encased in amber, dating back nearly 40 million years, was again discovered in the Baltic region...

A 42,000-year-old pendant found in northern Mongolia may be the earliest known phallic art

20 June 2023

20 June 2023

An international team of researchers has found a pendant in northern Mongolia that may be the earliest known example of...

Archaeologists Uncover 8 Graves Dated 6,500 Years Ago in Lausanne, Swiss

30 October 2021

30 October 2021

Archaeologists have unearthed eight prehistoric tombs between 5,500 and 6,500 years old in the Swiss town of Pully. The site...

Explore 1,400-year-old ruins, submerged in Eastern China – Atlantis of China

10 June 2023

10 June 2023

Deep in Qiandao Lake, between China’s Five Lion Mountains, lie the mysterious ruins of two ancient cities, dating back to...

At a dig site in western Turkey, a centuries-old Byzantine fortress will be revealed

24 December 2021

24 December 2021

Excavation of vast Byzantine-era fortifications considered to be about 900 years old has begun at a dig site in western...

Lost Egyptian City Unveils Ancient Tower Houses: A Glimpse into Early Urban Innovation

15 July 2025

15 July 2025

A recent archaeological excavation in Egypt’s Nile Delta has uncovered the remains of a long-lost city featuring rare and substantial...

Archaeologists discover traces of ancient Jalula, the city that witnessed the famous battle of the same name 1386 years ago

23 November 2023

23 November 2023

The  Iraqi State Board of Antiquities and Heritage (SBAH) has announced the discovery of the boundaries and various structures of...