Site icon Peter A. Hovis

The mystery of the ‘lost colony’

RJ Hamster

PRESERVING WILD RIVERS VIEW ONLINE
Hi friend, thanks for being a subscriber! Please make sure you are signed into unlock your full subscriber experience.
WHAT HAPPENED TO VIRGINIA DARE?
Tuesday, May 9, 2023
In today’s newsletter, we try to find America’s first English colony, save African apes from being sold as pets, discover woolly mammoth tusks … and ride a wild river that has been turned into a national park.
PHOTOGRAPHS BY MARK THIESSEN WITH PERMISSION OF BRENAU UNIVERSITY

What happened to England’s first colony in America, and the little girl named Virginia Dare?

For centuries, the main trace was three letters carved on a tree. Did it signify the place colonists had moved to or the Native Americans they had encountered?

It would be two decades before the first permanent English colony would take hold, but archeologists and others are still investigating the fate of Virginia Dare and her vanished community on Roanoke Island. They have a few theories.
WHERE DID THEY GO?
Unlock this article with Nat Geo Premium! Get access now to exclusive stories, plus a century of archives, photos, and videos. See subscription options starting at just $19/yr.
PHOTOGRAPH BY STUART CONWAY WITH PERMISSION OF TRUSTEES OF THE BRITISH MUSEUM


Clues: At top, a depiction of Virginia Dare’s mother; a stone that may provide a clue about the Lost Colony. Above, backlighting this 16th-century map of what is now coastal North Carolina may have provided another clue—a star-shaped symbol under a patch that could have marked fleeing colonists’s new home. Read more.
STORIES WE’RE FOLLOWING
PHOTOGRAPH BY PAOLO VERZONE
How did ancient cultures first discover iron (like the iron beads above)? It fell from the sky.
Hawaii rediscovers ancient healers who transcended gender—and inspire tolerance today
Why America’s greatest racehorse still dominates the track today
The James Webb Space Telescope captured a star unlike ever seen before
These foods can help you fight off everyday stress
Looking for a summer sport? Try rock climbing—it went from an ancient practice to Olympic sport
Who wore this pendant 20,000 years ago? DNA can now tell us
Why air travel needs to improve for passengers with disabilities
Why a WWII-era law, expiring Thursday, is such a focal point in U.S. immigration
IN THE SPOTLIGHT
PHOTOGRAPH BY SAMANTHA REINDERS, THE NEW YORK TIMES/REDUX
It’s a known problem: Great apes in Africa, like chimpanzees and gorillas, are increasingly poached for the international pet trade and zoo attractions, according to a new report (above, a chimpanzee is rescued from a smuggling operation). And people will pay a pretty penny for a stolen ape: up to $550,000, Nat Geo reports. Where do these creatures go once taken? Who’s watching? And what’s being done to stop it?
WILL YOU PAY ATTENTION?
PHOTO OF THE DAY
PHOTOGRAPH BY EVGENIA ARBUGAEVA
Mammoth ivory: When woolly mammoths roamed the Earth, ancient hunters tracked and killed them for their meat. Now, in Russia’s Arctic, people search high and low for these massive creatures’ valuable tusks. (Above, a searcher removes a tusk from a frozen riverbed.)
OF MAMMOTHS AND MEN
WHERE IN THE WORLD?
PHOTOGRAPH BY JONAS KAKO
No dams, no mining: What if there were a national park with a wild river and only tourism is allowed? This park in Europe (pictured above) is the first of its kind. Now, conservationists around the world are looking for other rivers to be granted this same status. Where is it?
CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT
Today’s soundtrack: River, Bishop Briggs

Thanks for reading our newsletter! It was edited and curated by Jen Tse, Hannah Farrow, and David Beard. We’d love to hear from you: david.beard@natgeo.com. Keep shining!
SHOPDONATESUBSCRIBETRAVEL

Clicking on the Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and National Geographic Channel links will take you away from our National Geographic Partners site where different terms of use and privacy policy apply.

This email was sent to: peter.hovis@gmail.com. Please do not reply to this email as this address is not monitored.

This email contains an advertisement from:
National Geographic | 1145 17th Street, N.W. | Washington, D.C. 20036

Stop all types of future commercial email from National Geographic regarding its products, services, or experiences.

Manage all email preferences with the Walt Disney Family of Companies.

© 2023 National Geographic Partners, LLC, All rights reserved.
Exit mobile version
Skip to toolbar