Virginia Dare

Have you ever heard of Virginia Dare?  She was the first child born to English colonists in the New World.  She was born on August 18, 1587, to Ananias Dare who was a clerk and Eleanor White who was a daughter of John White – Governor of the Virginia colony.

We don’t know a lot more about little Virginia.  Why you ask?  Because she was born in the Roanoke colony.  In the year Virginia was born, her grandfather the governor went back to England to get more supplies for the fledgling colony – and when he returned 3 years later, all of the colonists were gone.

440px-Maltese_cross.svg
Maltese Cross

Roanoke is now known as The Lost Colony.  When John White returned, there was no sign of a struggle or battle just the word “Croatoan” carved into the post of the fort.  The Governor had instructed the colonists to inscribe a Maltese cross into trees if anything happened to them – so the word Croatoan rather than the prearranged cross symbol started a mystery that endures to this day.

Want to learn more about the Lost Colony?  Check out these articles: