The original earthen fort was likely built in 1585, though its exact purpose and time of construction remain a mystery.
NPS/Kurt Moses
Home to Carolina Algonquian peoples for centuries, Roanoke Island became known to the English on an exploratory voyage in 1584. The initial exploration was followed by the establshment of a military colony in 1585 and a settlement colony in 1587. The settlement colony would become famous as the "Lost Colony of Roanoke."
