the spanish sailed past the chesapeake bay and landed in chincoteague (virginia) in 1524. spanish explorers also mapped the cape henry coast. the english soon followed with an exploration party under the auspices of sir walter raleigh. his men explored the area between cape henry and cape lookout in july and august 1584. the first english colony was established by john white on roanoke island. however, the colony disappeared, giving rise to the legend of a mysterious lost colony. it took more than a dozen years before england sent another expedition to colonize the area, but this attempt failed as well.