GOVERNOR WHITE'S COLONY.
A. D. 1586 TO 1590.
It must have been a sore trial to Sir Walter Raleigh when he
learned that his colonists had returned to England. He had sent
over a ship with abundant supplies, which reached Roanoke only a
few days after Sir Francis Drake sailed away with his fleet.
Finding no white people upon the island, the ships returned to
England. Sir Richard Grenville also touched at the same point,
with three other ships, about fifteen days later. The folly,
avarice and timidity of agents such as Ralph Lane have, in all
ages, crippled the noblest efforts for human advancement.
2. Sir Richard Grenville left fifteen men in the fort built at
Roanoke by Lane, lest the English claim to the country should be
lost through want of its being occupied. They soon fell victims
to Indian vengeance after Grenville had hoisted his sails and
gone in search of Spanish treasure ships.
1587.
3. Once again, in 1587, Raleigh collected a fleet of transports,
and, with John White as Governor, sent about one hundred and
fifty men, women and children to Roanoke for permanent
settlement. They brought over farming implements, wisely
determining to give up the useless search for gold, and to look
to husbandry as a means of livelihood in their new home. On
arriving at Roanoke, on the 22d of July, Governor White, with
forty of his best men, went ashore for the purpose of finding the
men who had been left there by Grenville. The fort was
destroyed, the houses were in a dilapidated condition and no
trace of the colonists was found except a single skeleton which
lay bleaching in the sun in front of one of the cabins,
indicating that some fearful tragedy had been enacted.
4. Sir Walter Raleigh had ordered White to go to Hampton Roads,
in the region of Chesapeake Bay, instead of Roanoke, but this
command was disregarded under the plea that, their pilot, a
Spaniard, would not show the way. But as Governor Lane had sent
a party there the year before, the location must have been known
to others of the expedition besides Fernando, the pilot. It was
like everything else done by John White while connected with the
effort of colonization--very foolish and culpable.
5. Manteo was still the warm friend of the English, and, with his
mother, welcomed them. to his home on Croatan. He was, on the
13th of August, as a reward for his faithful services, baptized
by order of Sir Walter Raleigh, and created a nobleman, with the
title of "Lord of Roanoke," which was the first title of nobility
ever conferred by the English in America.
6. Governor White had, among the colonists, a daughter named
Eleanor, wife of Ananias Dare, one of his assistants. On August
18th, a few days after their arrival, she gave birth to a little
girl, who, in honor of the land of her birth, was named "Virginia
Dare." This is about all we know of the little girl who will ever
be famous as the first of all the children born to English
speaking people within the borders of the United States. One of
the counties of this State bears the name of "Dare" in honor of
this little girl, and includes in its area the scene of her birth.
7. Governor White had been at Roanoke only a few weeks, when he
became convinced that he should at once return to England in the
interest of the people he had been sent over here to govern. He
said they would need provisions and additions to their numbers,
and a larger supply of implements of civilized life; therefore,
after a stay of but thirty-six days with the colony, he set sail
for England.
8. He should have manifested even more haste to return to
America, as members of his own family were included among the
settlers who were at Roanoke looking to him for guidance and
safety amid so many dangers. But when he reached England, and
Raleigh had furnished him with two ships and men and stores for
his speedy return, John White found excuse for long stay before
revisiting the stormy neighborhood of Cape Hatteras.
9. When he was ready to sail for America a great Spanish fleet,
called the "Invincible Armada," was drawing near the English
coast, with the avowed purpose of dethroning the queen and
subjugating the people. John White preferred to take the chances
of plunder in the coming engagement to fulfilling his duty to the
poor people at Roanoke who were waiting so anxiously for his
return.
10. British heroism, aided by a severe storm, drove off and
destroyed the great Spanish fleet, and Governor White, with his
two ships which Raleigh had with great difficulty fitted out for
him with stores for the colony, joined in pursuit of the
fugitives. He gained neither gold nor glory, and his ships were
so battered that they had to be carried into port and repaired
before they were fit to venture on a voyage across the Atlantic
Ocean. Sir Walter Raleigh expressed very great displeasure at
the conduct of Governor White.
1590.
11. Three years had elapsed before Governor White came back to
Roanoke. He found the "City of Raleigh" as desolate as upon his
first arrival. There was no trace of the colonists left except
the word "CROATAN," carved upon a tree. It had been agreed that
if the colonists should find it necessary to remove before his
return, they would thus designate the place to which they had
gone. Governor White, in his search, found three of his chests
which had been buried by the colonists and afterwards dug up and
partly broken open. They contained books, maps and pictures, all
of which were badly torn and spoiled.
12. Croatan was a peninsula about fifty miles from Roanoke
Island, and Governor White had good reason to believe that the
people whom he left had gone there; but he sailed down the coast
in sight of the place, and went back to England with no further
efforts to discover the nature of their fate. Thus, again,
Roanoke was left to the savage and the wild beast. It will never
be known what became of the colonists. Sir Walter Raleigh for a
long time did not despair of finding them, and sent out five
expeditions for this purpose, but all were unsuccessful. Their
fate is one of those sealed secrets which will only be known when
all our ignorance shall be enlightened and the sea gives up its
dead.
[NOTE--There was a tradition among the Indians that these people,
after great suffering for food, were adopted by the Hatteras
tribe of Indians, and became mingled with them; and, it is said
that later generations of these Indians possessed many physical
characteristics which indicated a mixture of the European and
Indian races; but this may be, after all, fanciful surmises of
the early historian. ]
QUESTIONS.
1. What ships had been sent over to relieve the colony?
2. How did Grenville continue English claims to Roanoke? What
was the fate of his settlers?
3. What was Raleigh's next attempt at settlement? Who was
appointed Governor? How many people composed the colony? How was
this colony better prepared for permanent settlement than any of
its predecessors? What became of this colony?
4. Where had White been ordered to make settlement? Point out
Hampton Roads on the map. Why did he land at Roanoke Island?
What is said of Manteo?
6. What is said of little Virginia Dare? How is her name still
honored in this State? Point out Dare county on the map.
7. What did Governor White do in a few weeks after his arrival at
Roanoke?
8. What was furnished to him on his arrival in England? Did he
at once go back to relieve the colonists?
9. Why did not Governor White immediately return to his suffering
people?
10. What became of the "Spanish Armada"? How did Governor White
become engaged in this conflict?
11. How long was Governor White away from Roanoke? What did he
find on his return? What is supposed to have been the meaning of
the word "Croatan"? What did Governor White find?
12. Where is "Croatan"? Can you locate it on the map? Did
Governor White go to this place to seek his people? Was any
settlement on Roanoke at this time? What effort did Raleigh make
to find these people?