# So what did happen to the settlers at Roanoke? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [November 13, 2009, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-did-happen-to-the-settlers-at-roanoke/517434 "2009-11-13T12:43:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![SiXSwordS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/49beb7/32.png) [@SiXSwordS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SiXSwordS)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2009, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-did-happen-to-the-settlers-at-roanoke/517434/21 "2009-11-20T23:09:07Z")
> [@md2000](#): > > I think the wonder is that they found anything at all. I guess the Indians couldn’t be bothered to burn the place completely down. So instead they dismantled it? I do think flooding as a result of hurricane is very likely and fits the profile. [Hurricanes](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_North_Carolina_hurricanes_(pre-1900)#Pre-1700) affected Sir Walter Raleigh’s decision to leave with the first colonists and White’s attempts to search for the missing colonists. A [hurricane](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_North_Carolina_hurricanes_(pre-1900)#1870.E2.80.931879) that struck Florida in 1877 was no longer a hurricane by the time it got to N.C., but it caused severe flooding in Albemarle Sound, exactly the area we’re talking about. Based on [direct hits](http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/paststate.html) between 1900 and 1996 my best try is to say that the chance of a major hurricane (Category 3, 4, or 5) hitting N.C. in a three year period would be very close to 33% and the chance for _any_ hurricane hitting N.C. in a three year period would be about 73% Of course, using the wiki descriptions of hurricanes, some of those would not cause much damage and non-hurricane can cause disaster. Also, those estimates are for the entire state and some claim that hurricane frequency is increasing. I do think a flood is a likely scenario. The colonists would be forced to leave but after the storm passed and the waters receded they would likey return to salvage what they could and they might have cleaned up, possibly hoping to return to the site later. They may not have carved the Maltese cross or any other message because they didn’t go far. Croatoan might not have been a message for White at all. ---
**Author:** ![Quintas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/48db29/32.png) [@Quintas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quintas)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2009, 7:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-did-happen-to-the-settlers-at-roanoke/517434/22 "2009-11-21T07:28:41Z")
Any credence to the idea that the Lumbee tribe in N.C. are descendants of the Roanoke colony and the natives? Blue eyed Indians and all that? > **[melungeons.com - This website is for sale! - melungeons...](http://www.melungeons.com/lumbeeproject/croatan.html)** > > This website is for sale! melungeons.com is your first and best source for all of the information you’re looking for. From general topics to more of what you would expect to find here, melungeons.com has it all. We hope you find what you are... ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2009, 8:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-did-happen-to-the-settlers-at-roanoke/517434/23 "2009-11-21T08:04:21Z")
> [@Quintas](#): > > Any credence to the idea that the Lumbee tribe in N.C. are descendants of the Roanoke colony and the natives? Blue eyed Indians and all that? > > [melungeons.com - This website is for sale! - melungeons Resources and Information.](http://www.melungeons.com/lumbeeproject/croatan.html) Oddly they also claim descent from the African slaves mentioned above. It’s a very diverse tribe; William Shakespeare’s LOST:p ---
**Author:** ![SiXSwordS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/49beb7/32.png) [@SiXSwordS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SiXSwordS)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2009, 12:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-did-happen-to-the-settlers-at-roanoke/517434/24 "2009-11-21T12:01:40Z")
> [@Quintas](#): > > Any credence to the idea that the Lumbee tribe in N.C. are descendants of the Roanoke colony and the natives? There is something called the Lost Colony [DNA](http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~molcgdrg/index.htm) project that looks for [Indo-European](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lost_Colony_DNA_Project#DNA_project_plan) ancestry, but I have not been able to find any positive results online. From your link: > [@](#): > > But most astonishing was the fact that they spoke nearly perfect Elizabethan English. These Indians said that their ancestors “talked from a book.” This sounds fantastic to me. Even those who came from Elizabethan England would not speak “perfect” Elizabethan English over one hundred years later if they had been living in isolation. Learning a language from a book does not lead to speech patterns that conform perfectly to the speech of people using the language for everyday needs. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2009, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-did-happen-to-the-settlers-at-roanoke/517434/25 "2009-11-21T15:21:01Z")
The Lumbees are generally considered 1- triracial (Indian, Euro, Afro) 2- Indians (their own self-identification and the state of NC recognizes them) 3- not Indians (they’re not recognized as a tribe by the Feds; some of my ancestors were Saponi which is the same story- some Saponi are also Lumbee) [Many](http://www.lumbeetribe.com/government/reps/images/carterd.jpg) [Lumbee](http://www.lumbeetribe.com/government/reps/images/locklears.jpg) [have](http://www.lumbeetribe.com/government/reps/images/locklearl.jpg) obvious [triracial](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/95/Lumbee.jpeg/202px-Lumbee.jpeg)[ancestry](http://docsouth.unc.edu/nc/butler/croatan52.jpg). Some also have thick Jewish accents when saying “I’m Lumbee damn it!” Of course the black ancestry could have come in at any time as many slaves who ran away from plantations sought refuge with the Indians well into the 19th century (the only successful slave revolt in U.S. history was the [Black Seminoles](http://www.johnhorse.com/)). However, ancestral ties to that 16th century revolt are not inconceivable. If you’ve ever seen the movie PORKY’S 2, the Natives vs. the KKK sideplot was- I am guessing- inspired by the [Battle of Hayes Pond](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Hayes_Pond) in 1958- one of the KKK’s few armed engagements. Let’s just say that no Klansman has yet to receive the medal of valor for that one, though some did qualify for Olympic sprint team. This is one of my [favorite pics](http://www.lumbeetribe.com/images/kkk_flag.gif)(though you’ll have to read the wiki to find out why it’s funny). The event is actually re-enacted each year using the original abandoned KKK regalia. ---
**Author:** ![SiXSwordS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/49beb7/32.png) [@SiXSwordS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SiXSwordS)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2009, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-did-happen-to-the-settlers-at-roanoke/517434/26 "2009-11-21T16:45:04Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > This is one of my [favorite pics](http://www.lumbeetribe.com/images/kkk_flag.gif)(though you’ll have to read the wiki to find out why it’s funny). Poetic History! Thank You. ---
**Author:** ![John\_W.Kennedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_w.kennedy/32/1031_2.png) [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2009, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-did-happen-to-the-settlers-at-roanoke/517434/27 "2009-11-22T01:58:05Z")
> [@SiXSwordS](#): > > This sounds fantastic to me. Even those who came from Elizabethan England would not speak “perfect” Elizabethan English over one hundred years later if they had been living in isolation. Learning a language from a book does not lead to speech patterns that conform perfectly to the speech of people using the language for everyday needs. True enough; the “book” part seems off. But it is true enough that isolated cultures tend to be linguistically conservative – consider Iceland. ---
**Author:** ![Nars\_Glinley](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nars_glinley/32/8177_2.png) [@Nars\_Glinley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nars_Glinley)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2025, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-did-happen-to-the-settlers-at-roanoke/517434/28 "2025-06-07T13:11:39Z")
Scientists have found evidence of iron work in trash pile on Croatoan island, indicating that the colonists were assimilated. [Linky.](https://www.foxnews.com/travel/mystery-americas-lost-colony-may-finally-solved-after-440-years-archaeologists-say) ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2025, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-did-happen-to-the-settlers-at-roanoke/517434/29 "2025-06-07T13:37:46Z")
There’s a more current active thread here - [What happened to Roanoke?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happened-to-roanoke/333680) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-what-did-happen-to-the-settlers-at-roanoke/517434.md?page=1)