Archaeological findings are providing new insights into the fate of the Lost Colony of Roanoke. For years, the disappearance of the 115 English settlers has remained a mystery. Recent excavations near Buxton on Hatteras Island suggest that the colonists integrated with the Croatoan tribe.
Led by Scott Dawson and Mark Horton, the team has unearthed artifacts dating back to the 1500s, including hammerscale, weapons, a Tudor Rose emblem, and a European coin. The presence of hammerscale is particularly compelling, as it indicates blacksmithing, a practice not known among Native Americans at the time.
Horton suggests the artifacts indicate that English settlers lived among the Croatoans on Hatteras Island and were assimilated into their community. The artifacts are on display at Dawson's Lost Colony Museum in Buxton. These discoveries offer a revised understanding of the Roanoke colonists' destiny.