The Roanoke colony is known for what?

• A. The site of Jamestown's founding
• B. The first English attempt at a lasting American colony that vanished
• C. The birthplace of the Pilgrims
• D. The first successful English settlement in America

Answer: (B)

Roanoke represents an early English effort to establish a permanent settlement in the Americas that ultimately vanished. It was intended to be lasting, but when relief arrived years later, the colonists were gone and the only clue left was the word Croatoan carved on a post. That combination—an early attempt that ended in disappearance—defines Roanoke as the Lost Colony.

It’s not the site of Jamestown’s founding (Jamestown was founded later, in 1607, as the first lasting English settlement), nor is it the birthplace of the Pilgrims (they settled Plymouth in 1620). It also isn’t the first successful English settlement.