The establishment of the Roanoke Colony ( ROH--nohk) was an attempt by Sir Walter Raleigh to found the first permanent English settlement in North America. The English, led by Sir Humphrey Gilbert, had briefly claimed St. John's, Newfoundland in 1583 as the first English territory in North America at the royal prerogative of Queen Elizabeth I, but Gilbert was lost at sea on his return journey to England. Roanoke colony was founded by governor Ralph Lane in 1585 on Roanoke Island in what is now Dare County, North Carolina, United States.(pp45,5459) Following the failure of the 1585 settlement, a second expedition, led by John White, landed on the same island in 1587, and set up another settlement that became known as the Lost Colony due to the subsequent unexplained disappearance of its population.(ppxx,89,276)Lane's colony was troubled by a lack of supplies and poor relations with the local Native Americans. While awaiting a delayed resupply mission by Sir Richard Grenville, Lane abandoned the colony and returned to England with Sir Francis Drake in 1586. Grenville arrived two weeks later and also returned home, leaving behind a small detachment to protect Raleigh's claim.(pp7077)In 1587, Sir Walter Raleigh sent White on an expedition to establish the "Cittie of Raleigh" in Chesapeake Bay. During a stop to check on Grenville's men, flagship pilot Simon Fernandes forced White and his colonists to remain on Roanoke.(pp8182,89) White returned to England with Fernandes, intending to bring more supplies back for his colony in 1588.(pp9394) The Anglo-Spanish War delayed White's return to Roanoke until 1590,(pp94,97) and upon his arrival he found the settlement fortified but abandoned. The cryptic word "CROATOAN" was found carved into the palisade, which White interpreted to mean the colonists had relocated to Croatoan Island. Before White could follow this lead, rough seas and a lost anchor forced the mission to return to England.(pp10003)The fate of the approximately 112121 colonists remains unknown. Speculation that they had assimilated with nearby Native American communities appears in writings as early as 1605.(pp113114) Investigations by the Jamestown colonists produced reports that the Roanoke settlers had been massacred and stories of people with European features in Native American villages, but no hard evidence was produced.(pp116125)Interest in the matter fell into decline until 1834, when George Bancroft published his account of the events in A History of the United States. Bancroft's description of the colonists, particularly White's infant granddaughter Virginia Dare, cast them as foundational figures in American culture, and captured the public imagination.(pp128130) Despite this renewed interest, modern research has failed to find archaeological evidence to explain the disappearance of the colonists.(p270)

John White (c. 1539 – c. 1593) was an English colonial governor, explorer, artist, and cartographer. White was among those who sailed with Richard Grenville in the first attempt to colonize Roanoke Island in 1585, acting as artist and mapmaker to the expedition. He would most famously briefly serve as the governor of the second attempt to found Roanoke Colony on the same island in 1587 and discover the colonists had mysteriously vanished.

During his time at Roanoke Island he made several watercolor sketches of the surrounding landscape and the native Algonkin peoples. These works are significant as they are the most informative illustrations of a Native American society of the Eastern seaboard; the surviving original watercolors are now preserved in the print room of the British Museum.

In 1587, White became governor of Sir Walter Raleigh's failed attempt at a permanent settlement on Roanoke Island, known to history as the "Lost Colony". This was the earliest effort to establish a permanent English colony in the New World. White's granddaughter Virginia Dare was the first English child born in North America. In late 1587 White returned to England for supplies. The return expedition was delayed due to various reasons, including the Spanish Armada. Governor White finally returned to Roanoke Island in August 1590, but found the colony had been long deserted.

After the failure of the colony, White retired to Raleigh's estates in Ireland, reflecting upon the "evils and unfortunate events" which had ruined his hopes in America, though never giving up hope that his daughter and granddaughter were still alive.