Colonist Settlement of 1587
Based on Governor John White's Narrative of the 1587 Virginia Voyage, on July 22, 1587, the second colony to arrive in Roanoke with White consisted of 117 men, women, and children, which did not include Manteo and Towaye, Indians, who returned to Virginia with them (See: The Colonists' Names). Among the colonists were 14 families, four of which had children, and two women were pregnant.
The colonists' mission was to settle in Chesapeake Bay, but they first had to make contact with the 15 men left at Roanoke by Greenville the year before. Upon their arrival, John White discovered the fort destroyed, bones of one of the 15 men, and no other sign of the remainder 14 men. Simon Fernandez, the ship’s captain, refused to carry the colonists to the Chesapeake Bay, for reasons unknown; therefore, they stayed in Roanoke (Quinn & Quinn, 1982, p. 97-98). |
On July
28th, one of White’s assistants, George Howe, was murdered by “savages” while
he was alone and unarmed in a river just two miles away from their fort. The “savages” shot Howe with 16 arrows and
beat his head with wooden swords (Quinn & Quinn, 1982, p. 98).
Two days after the discovery of Howe’s death, White decided to meet with the Croatoan Tribe to renew their friendship. With Manteo and several other men, they departed to the Croatoan Islands. When the Croatoans saw the English coming, they turned and walked away fearing for their lives, until they heard a familiar language from Manteo. With Manteo, the Croatoans and the colonists were able to renew their friendship.
Through their conversations, White learned that the Roanoke Indians (Aquascogoc and Dasamunkepeuc) lead by Wanchese, killed the colonial men at Roanoke along with Howe (Oberg, 2008, p.108). White asked the Croatoans to send a message to the other tribes (Secotan, Aquascogoc, Pomeioke, and Dasamunkepeuc) that they were willing to forgive and forget all of the wrongdoings done to each other and become friends. They were to give their response within seven days. Nothing was heard after seven days, so White, Manteo, and 23 men went to the Roanoke Village for revenge. While attacking who they believed to be the Roanoke Indians, White, Manteo, and his men came to realize that they were in fact the Croatoans who were in the act of pilfering the village that the actual Roanoke Indians deserted many days earlier in fear of revenge from the colonists. It was a case of mistaken identity which caused the colonists to unintentionally harm their newfound friends. Manteo told the Croatoans it was their (the Croatoans) fault for not returning to White with a message from the other tribes whether or not they have agreed or disagreed with the message sent within the agreed upon seven days. The incident could have been avoided (Quinn & Quinn, 1982, p. 99-101). |
August 13th, a few days after the incident, Manteo was rewarded for his faithful service by being christened in Roanoke and called Lord of Dasamunkepeuc.
August 18th, Eleanor Dare, gave birth to a daughter. She was the first to be born in Virginia and was called Virginia Dare. She was also White's granddaughter.
Just seven days after the birth of White’s granddaughter, the colonists asked White to return to England for more supplies. White refused at first because he did not want to leave his family, be perceived as abandoning the colonists, or lose all of his belongings. He wanted to be there to move the colonists from their current location to a location 50 miles north of Roanoke. However, the colonists continued to beg him to return to England and then wrote a letter to her Majesty regarding the return of White. August 27, 1587, John White departed from Virginia to return to England (Quinn & Quinn, 1982, p. 93-104), but before leaving he instructed the colonists to do the following: Should they leave the fort willingly, they should leave a sign of their destination; should they leave the fort under duress or danger, they should leave a sign of their destination along with a maltese cross. |