When White arrived in England the English were in preparation for The Spanish Armada. White got the supplies that were needed for the colony and wanted to go back to Roanoke as quickly as possible. But John couldn't get back to Roanoke, as a small ship couldn't be spared, because of the Spanish Armada. It took Sir John White three years before he could get back to his colony and granddaughter on Roanoke Island.
When John White returned to Roanoke Island he found no colony. The only evidence was the letters 'CRO' carved into a tree. People think that 'CRO' meant 'CROATOAN' as if they had gone to Croatoan Island. The Roanoke colony only left some evidence, but nothing of a struggle. The colony were talking about moving 50 miles inland, but also if the colony had to move they had to leave a Maltese cross and their destination carved into a tree. When Sir John White found the letters 'CRO' White thought of going to Croatoan Island so see if the colony was there. So John White went over to Croatoan Island, the problem was that John White never found out if the colony was there. This happened because he went over by water (by boat) to Croatoan Island and the weather got so bad, with storms and heavy and strong rains. As the weather was so bad they turned back and never found out if the first colony was on Croatoan Island.
Lots of different people have found out lots of different theories to how the Roanoke Colony went missing, were they went to and how they lived their lives or how they didn't. Some people believe that the Roanoke Colony went up northwards to what is owned by the Chespian Indians. People thought that the colony stayed on the Chespian Indians land for up
to 20 years. All this is what is thought to be true and then after the 20 years Powhatan, the father of Pocahontas ordered the Chespian Indians and the English colony to be destroyed. But most of the colonists were believed to have escaped from Powhatan and his tribe and they moved to Croatoan Island, what is believed some where round that area. They also believed that they were moved on again and most of them went to Chesapeake Bay with the Chespian Indians. If this theory is to be the real then why did the Roanoke Colony carve the letters 'CRO' into a tree at the destination where they were last seen? Another lot of theories are that the Roanoke colony went to what is now called 'North Carolina' to find more food and better settlement to live. They believe that unfamiliar tribes attacked the men from the colony of Roanoke Island. Also the women and children had become separated from the men of the colony.
Another theory is that the Indians attacked Roanoke Island and the inhabitants were massacred. The Indians carved the letters 'CRO' onto a tree to name a place of murder. The attack may have taken place just after Sir John White had left, this could then allow for nature to decompose of the bodies, this make take something like three years.
The colony knew that there was the possibility of being attacked and were afraid of this. But there were no traces of a massacre, but if three years had passed then nature would have taken change. Another theory that could be put forward is that; The Spanish were in Florida and they were planning to attack the English colony after White had left for England. The officials in St. Augustine had planned all this. The Spanish governor send a boat over to America to locate where the English colony was, so they were ready to attack at anytime. They only found evidence of English occupation and they saw a harbor that was in use at the time. This attack got postponed and never took place. But for all we know they could have attacked the colony while Sir John White was in England.
The colony's enemies were the Roanoke Indians as the colony was taking over their territory of the Roanoke Indians. The colony of Roanoke Island swapped food with the Croatoan Indians, but then the Croatoan Indians wouldn't swap their food with the colony any more.
I think that the first theory about the colony going to Croatoan Island is the more believable.