The Lost Colony and Hatteras Island

The Lost Colony and Hatteras Island is a book by Scott Dawson.

The book attempts to dismantle the long-standing mystery of the Roanoke Colony by arguing that the colonists were taken in by the Croatoan tribe on Hatteras Island and assimilated into their society.

Dawson, a researcher from Hatteras Island, worked with archaeologists, geologists, botanists and other researchers,^[1] including archaeologist Mark Horton from the University of Bristol, to collect evidence for the colony's fate.^[2] They established the Croatoan Archaeological Society,^[1] and conducted archaeological fieldwork and historical research at sites like Buxton, Frisco and Hatteras.^[3] Evidence of English activity on Hatteras like guns, mixed architecture,^[4] and large-scale blacksmithing during the 16th century was presented by them as proof that the colonists had moved there.^[5][6]

The accounts of English explorers like Arthur Barlowe and John Lawson provided a basis for Dawson's hypothesis,^[7] including claims that blue-eyed people were found living among the Croatoans years later.^[8]

The book's claims were reported by multiple newspapers at the time of its publication, including The Virginian-Pilot^[9] and The New York Times.^[2] Peter Vankevich of the Ocracoke Observer wrote that "Dawson’s book is a good history/archeology primer. It is well-written and accessible for the lay reader."^[10]

However, some scholars rejected its claims due to a lack of solid proof, arguing that English material artifacts could have reached Hatteras Island through trade instead of settlement.^[11]