Virginia Dare was born in 1587. She was the first person born to English parents in what is now the United States of America. She was born on Roanoke Island in present day North Carolina. It was then called Virginia colony.
Sir Walter Raleigh, who was resident in Ireland from 1585 to 1602, began to explore North America. He played a major role in the colonisation of the new world. He helped prepare for settlements to be established in what is now North Carolina. Raleigh sponsored a group of 120 settlers who left England on May 8th 1587 and landed on Roanoke Island on July 22nd. The settlement was named Virginia, in honour of Queen Elizabeth 1 who was often referred to as the virgin queen.
Three weeks after the colonists arrived on Roanoke Island Eleanor Dare, wife of Ananias Dare, gave birth to a baby girl. The couple named their new daughter Virginia. However, by 1590 the colony had disappeared and Virginia Dare’s life remains a mystery. The settlement became known as the ‘Lost Colony’ and it is thought the settlers may have been absorbed into the local native Croatan people.
Virginia Dare was born, the first child of English parents in the Americas, in the year 1587 On This Day.
Virginia Dare Monument 001 by State Archives of North Carolina on 2012-01-25 09:29:31
Virginia Dare by dbking on 2008-05-05 16:30:22