Roanoke: The Past through the Present

It is impossible to guess with certainty what may have raced through the mind of John White, the appointed governor of the Roanoke Colony, on the night of August 27, 1587 as he rapidly boarded the ship that was to take him away from his position, family, and possessions to make a hasty return to England.1 Surely his thoughts were with his daughter who had recently given birth to his granddaughter, Virginia Dare, the first English person to be born on the new continent.2 We also know that he was concerned about his personal possessions that he had been forced to leave behind at the colony. In fact his concern for his material goods was so great that he had only agreed to leave after securing a bond from the colonists that they would take care of his possessions in his absence.3 Perhaps he feared the lengthy voyages that he faced in making the round trip across the Atlantic Ocean since he knew that he would have to make the journey yet again after he obtained the desperately needed supplies for the colony. Perhaps White questioned why it was he who must leave, since he knew that the Colony’s proprietor Sir Walter Ralegh would be infuriated that he, the governor, had left his post when he shoul