4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Job Well Done!, May 4, 2006
This review is from: Roanoke Island: The Beginnings of English America (Paperback)
It is often thought that the Jamestown settlement was the beginning of English America, and in some ways, this may be correct. However, more than twenty years before Jamestown, Roanoke was established by Sir Walter Raleigh for England. In an intriguing story, David Stick narrates the accounts of the early settlers in a way that pulls us into the experiences as readers.
From the beginning of the book, Stick acknowledges the question of why England was so delayed in exploring the Americas. In his long-winded introduction, he provides a concise history of the European encounters with America which ultimately concludes in the lack of understanding in the world geography.
Based largely off of the accounts of Thomas Hariot, and later, John White, who eventually became Governor, one can see how the early English settlers interacted among themselves as well as the Indians. Mystery appears to surround the different expeditions, with the first retreating from Indians leaving three men behind. When Grenville journeys to Roanoke shortly after, one of the men is found dead while the other two's fate remains a mystery. Grenville then leaves even more men behind on the island, most of which also end up mysteriously vanishing with the exception of two who get killed by Indians. In the manner that this is written, one can see how, in some ways, there are more members to the "Lost Colony."
A possible shortcoming is the lack of connection with the "characters." One may find it quite easy to identify with John White, for instance, but men like Ferndinando, Grenville, and Lane lack personality. Admittingly, this is a difficult task because personal narratives from these men are not available. As a result, at times, it may have been easy to accidentally confuse these adventurers with the wrong voyages.
Credit must be given, however, to Stick because he took the approach of using personal narratives. Alan Taylor, author of "American Colonies," wrote a brief history of Roanoke in his book, but went out of his way to cast these early explorers in negative light. Taylor criticizes their selection of land as well as their alleged laziness that culminated in bad relations with Indians. Mistakes, obviously, were made but David Stick's method helped the reader sympathize with the difficulties of these men without pointing fingers.
Both the Spaniards and the Indians appeared to evoke fear from these English colonists. This somewhat thematic aspect plays throughout the book. However, relations with the Indians were more ambiguous and Stick shows the use of two Indians, Wanchese and Manteo, who help the English build relations with certain tribes. He then goes beyond his mild tentativeness to show that friendly Indians offered the idea of being given something to wear for the English to identify them with, which was refused. Stick has trouble understanding the logic and presents an instance of confusion following this proposal that mistakes friendly Indians for enemies.
The most outstanding feature of this book is his chapters that follow the story. Because Roanoke is notorious for the "Lost Colony," David Stick presents the readers with clues and theories about the Lost Colony ranging from enslavement by the Spanish to the possibility that Roanoke was mistaken for another island and that the descendants of this colony live there today. While he rules these two conclusions out, he provides the readers with points that three experts agreed upon but does not make any conclusion himself. As a result, the reader will be fascinated to be left to speculate about what may have become of the colonists.
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4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A flotilla of substance, September 17, 2005
This review is from: Roanoke Island: The Beginnings of English America (Paperback)
Sir Walter Raleigh landed in the Outer Banks, North Carolina, in 1584. Until 1587 there was a steady stream of shipping from England. Sir Francis Drake and Sir Richard Grenville took part. The area was named Virginia in honor of Queen Elizabeth. A colony arrived at Roanoke Island in 1587 and permanent residency seemed assured, but for the next three years efforts to provide releif for the settlement were thwarted by the war with Spain. An expedition arrived in 1590 and found everyone had disappeared. Subsequently it became known as the Lost Colony.
England made a late start in exploring and settling the New World. Irish Monks sailed north and west as far as Iceland in the 5th and 6th centuries. Norsemen probably came to North America a thousand years ago. Eric the Red established a settlement in Greenland. The exact place on the mainland of Vineland, the settlement of Lief Eriksson, has been the subject of speculation.
Eventually the attempts at colonization were given up and nearly five hundred years later Christopher Columbus discovered America. Columbus wanted to go west to be in the east to trade. He made four voyages between 1492 and 1506. Ferdinand Magellan was killed circumnavigating the globe in 1521. Hernando de Soto led an expedition on the mainland of the American continent. He landed on the west coast of Florida in 1539.
The leaders of the Raleigh expedition were given information about Roanoke and Ocracoke and other areas of the Outer Banks by the Indians Wanchese and Manteo. White, an artist, and Hariot, a scientist, reported on the Lost Colony. Hariot's contribution included navigation skills and linguistics. The missing colonists-- the palisaded settlement was deserted when the Englishmen arrived August 18, 1590-- may have intermingled with the Chesapeake Indians living near present day Chesapeake and Virginia Beach.
A note on sources, glossary, and index appear at the back of the book. The author presents an excellent survey of a half century of recent efforts to determine the fate of the inhabitants of the Lost Colony. A very comprehensive background to the undertaking by the English to settle America is also provided.
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2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The first English colony in America, August 17, 2005
This review is from: Roanoke Island: The Beginnings of English America (Paperback)
This is a history of the first English settlement in America - the Roanoke Island settlement in North Carolina, organized and sent by Sir Walter Raleigh in 1584. After most of the colonists returned to England after the first year, it was years before a relief party returned; by then the settlement had become The Lost Colony. What happened? No one knows for sure, and many have expressed different opinions. Probably they simply mixed with the local Indians around Chesapeake Bay. Stick recounts what's known about the story of the Roanoke Island settlement in a straightforward fashion, but without much flair. A good introductory study.
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