Roanoke Island
Roanoke Island was the site of the Roanoke Colony, an English settlement initially established in 1585 by Sir Walter Raleigh. A group of about 120 men, women and children arrived in 1587. Shortly after arriving in this New World, colonist Eleanor Dare, daughter of Governor John White, gave birth to Virginia Dare. She was the first English child born in North America. Governor White returned to England later that year for supplies. Due to impending war with Spain, White was unable to return to Roanoke Island until 1590. When he arrived, the colony had vanished. The fate of those first colonists remains a mystery to this day and is one of America's most intriguing unsolved mysteries. Archaeologists, historians, and other researchers continue to work to resolve the mystery. Visitors to the Fort Raleigh National Historic Site can watch "The Lost Colony", the second-longest-running outdoor theatre production in the United States, which presents a conjecture of the fate of Roanoke Colony.
SS Roanoke
SS "Roanoke" (1882–1916) was a passenger and cargo ship built by John Roach & Sons in Chester, Pennsylvania. The "Roanoke" was built for the Old Dominion Steamship Company's service from New York to Norfolk Virginia. In 1898 the ship was sold to the North American Transportation and Trading Company to take miners, supplies and gold between Seattle and ports in Alaska. Later the "Roanoke" was sold to the Oregon-based North Pacific Steamship Company. In 1907, the "Roanoke" helped to rescue the survivors of her former running mate "Columbia". On May 9, 1916, the "Roanoke" sank in heavy seas off the California coast near San Luis Obispo with the loss of 47 lives. There were only three survivors.