When most people think of the early colonies, they think of the first successful colony, Jamestown, but it was not the first colony in the New World. The Roanoke Colony was the first attempt to colonize the New World. The Roanoke Colony is often called the "Lost Colony" due to its unusual disappearance. The reason people often don't know about the first settlement of Roanoke is because it was abandoned, forgotten, and lost. The Roanoke Colony was located on an island on the northern coast of what is now North Carolina. Just over a hundred English first settled Roanoke Island in 1584. Conditions were difficult and between lack of supplies and problems with the area's natives, the colony was virtually doomed to failure from the start. Three years after the founding of the initial colony, in 1587, more English arrived, this time there were one hundred and ten settlers made up of not only men, but also women and children. Women and children were brought to the New World so that the colony could become a fully functioning society. Of course, this idea obviously didn't work out as planned. The ongoing war in Europe between the English and the Spanish caused a backlog of supplies and personnel. Had it not been for a prolonged delay in the resupply process, the entire course of American history might not have been the one we know today. If the war had started earlier or later, people would have been able to learn more about the first colony in the New World. All the evidence left when people returned to Roanoke after the war in Europe was the word "CROATOAN" carved into a tree. Historians believe these are marks left by Croatian Indians ... middle of paper ... arrival was shorter than the fate of the colony could have been different. The next expedition to Roanoke was led by "John White, a gifted amateur painter who preserved a remarkable pictorial record of his experiences" (A Muse of Fire). Within six years, this colony which was believed to be well located will have disappeared; “John White returned to England to seek food and relief. On his return, he blew the trumpet to announce his arrival, but there were no. answer. The Roanoke Colony was deserted” (A Muse of Fire). There are many different theories that many people have come up with over the years, including those that hostile Indians would attack the colony. which comes from “scientists studying tree rings have discovered that one of the worst droughts in eight hundred years occurred during the attempted colonization” (Elvin 16).