All language subtitles for America Unearthed S01E07 Mystery of Roanoke

The history that we were all taught
growing up is wrong.

My name is Scott Wolter, and I'm a
forensic geologist.

There's a hidden history in this country
that nobody knows about.

There are pyramids here, chambers,
tombs, inscriptions.

They're all over this country.

We're going to investigate these
artifacts and sites, and we're going to

the truth.

Sometimes history isn't what we've been
told.

Many people think they know the story of
the lost colony of Rona.

But chances are they don't know this.

48 clues to the case that have been
sitting untouched for half a century.

48 stones inscribed with messages that
could tell us exactly what happened to

the lost colony of Rona.

They're called the Dare Stones.

allegedly carved by colonist Eleanor
Dare.

They were scattered throughout the
South, a trail of clues to the settlers'

fate.

All of the stones were found during the
Great Depression over a period of just

four years.

The short time frame of discovery for so
many artifacts led scholars to declare

them fakes.

But academics have been wrong before,
and that's why I'm going to study them

myself.

This is the original dare stone found in
1937.

Jim, this is an amazing stone. Can you
tell me, what does it say? It talks

the difficult times they had for a
couple of years or so.

There was misery, and they were attacked
by Indians.

There were a number of people killed.

Wow.

The front of the throne has a cross at
the top, and underneath it says, Ananias

Dare in Virginia went hence unto heaven,
1591.

I can read that pretty easily here. Once
you tell it, it's right there. And then

on the bottom, any Englishman show John
White, Governor Virginia.

John White is Eleanor Dare's father, and
when the colonists had hard times, he

goes back to England to ask his boss.

Sir Walter Raleigh for more supplies.

When White finally returns, everyone had
disappeared.

So tell me, what is the consensus of
opinion?

Is this real or not?

The general consensus is that this stone
is fraudulent. If this stone were

considered to be authentic, then all the
American history textbooks would

include this story of what happened to
the lost colony.

But they do not.

Well, maybe they should.

That's what I intend to find out.

If forensic geology shows significant
weathering, then there's a chance this

stone is authentic and that Eleanor Dare
really did carve this clue.

My cursory look at this rock, it looks
like a quartzite.

So quartzite's very hard, very durable.

It really doesn't chemically weather. It
will physically weather, but it's

really not going to give us a nice
linear weathering profile that we might

other rocks.

What I want to do is generate a three
-dimensional image so we can actually

at the profile of this groove.

Okay, so it's a nice rounded groove.

And we can add some color. And the blue
is the lower depths, of course, and the

red is the topographic highs.

So we can get a nice image here.

We can get some indication of age by
looking at what we call coatings or

secondary deposits that get laid down
both on the surface and down into the

cracks and in between the crystals.

If you look, you see these red rust
areas? Yes. Sometimes you'll generate a

mineral called pyrite. And when it
weathers, you get rust.

Yes. Okay. And this is the original
exterior surface of the rock.

But if we look in the grooves, it gets
lighter, more white. So you're getting

now into the fresh, unweathered rock. It
doesn't have that rust.

Yes. So that, to me, would be consistent
with having been in the ground for a

while. Sure.

I have to say, Jim, right now, I like
stone number one.

I'm leaning towards authenticity.

Very good. I said in 1979 in an
interview that I thought there was a 50

chance that this stone was authentic.

But maybe you've given me a different
perspective here.

Even though this stair stone, the first
one found, looks authentic to me, I need

to see all the others.

If I see the same level of weathering on
the other 47 stones as I

did on the first, then they might be
legitimate clues to the lost colony.

And those clues paint a grisly picture
of colonial life.

Sickness.

Misery.

And finally, murder.

Well, I tell you what, one of the things
that jumps out at me right away, this

geology here, here, here, and here is
different than the other stone we've

already looked at.

The fact that I'm seeing these different
rock types could mean they're more

likely to be genuine.

It makes me think they were carved in
the areas where they were found.

This one here has what looks like some
organic material and mud that might have

collected over time, and it's in the
grooves.

This one also does, and I suppose if we
looked at the others, we might see

evidence that these things were
underwater, maybe during flood time.

And you know what?

I mean, that looks weathered. I mean,
just my gut feel, it just looks

weathered, as does this one. I mean, my
God, that's weathered like crazy.

Interesting. I'll tell you what, after
looking at these stones in here, I'm

liking what I'm seeing.

Do we have a map that shows where these
artifacts were found? Yes.

Here's a map showing the locations.

Here's the original settlement, Roanoke,
and about 60, 80 miles away, the

original stone was found.

And then southwest down Greenville,
South Carolina, 15 more stones were

Remaining 33 stones were found north of
Atlanta, primarily.

Have people questioned why these are
spread out over such a large distance?

People are concerned about the
likelihood of this many stones found

long distance.

The counter to that would be, here's
where they were found.

Something must have compelled them to
travel that great distance.

You know, at that time and place, a
stranded colony, and you can imagine all

kinds of things. But what's interesting
is it seems, starting at Roanoke, it's

almost like we have a breadcrumb trail
of these stones leading to wherever they

ended up.

God, this is amazing.

So far, I don't see any evidence that
the Dare films are fake.

I think it might be another case where
history has it wrong.

These stones could spell out where the
colonists went and how they died.

But why would they travel so far inland?

Before I can understand the end of the
story, I need to travel back to the

beginning. The place where the colonists
were last seen alive.

There have got to be clues here, but I
have no idea what they are.

What I do know is that right now I have
a puzzle where none of the pieces seem

to fit.

So Rob, I just got back from looking at
the Dare stones, and geologically I

really liked what I saw.

My understanding is most of these stones
were carved by Eleanor Dare, and on one

of the stones she chronicles the death
of her husband.

and her child, Virginia.

Now, was it true that Virginia was born
at this site?

That is the case, that she was born on
Roanoke Island.

Okay. So when the colonists first got
there, what would they have had for

research? A lot of timbers for making
ships, making houses and furniture.

And there's also medicinal plants.

such as that sassafras we see over there
at the base of that pine tree.

Okay, I thought they used that for root
beer, but actually you're telling me

medicinal purposes. Okay.

So there's the big question, Rob.

What happened to the colonels?

I know there's a lot of theories out
there, but what do you think?

If they left here in an organized way,
eventually they're going to fall prey to

an attack by native people.

To bad weather, like a hurricane, if
they're traveling across the water,

are survivors would have assimilated
into local Native tribes.

So this brings up the whole notion of
the Native Americans and the

that they had with them.

Was it contentious? Was it good?

What do we know about that?

Not a very good relationship.

They're finding that they're not welcome
here.

In fact, if you stray too far away from
your group, you're going to likely get

killed.

And there was one colonist we know of
who did stray away two miles along the

shore crabbing, and he's found later,
and he's not alive.

They would learn the hard way, really.

Clearly, things didn't go as planned. I
mean, we could all agree on that.

I keep looking down the axis of this
thing here, which when I look at the

enclosing walls, I think it looks like
defensive posture and maybe a lookout,

what do we think this was? Yes, that
protrusion that goes out from the rest

the earthworks is going to be a good
place to post someone and keep note of

anything that might be worth getting
concerned about.

You know, when I look at this structure
and these walls, this has an

interesting, almost geometric shape to
it.

There's an intelligence, obviously, but
a strategy behind the way that they

built this fort.

Here's that protrusion that we just
talked about. There's the gate. And you

what? There definitely is the geometry
here. It kind of looks like a diamond.

Wow.

All right. What do we know so far? We
know that John White went back to

and three years later, he came back.

And they were gone. What other clues do
we have that tell us anything about the

colony that was found here?

We've got the clues left behind by those
colonists, evidently.

Large letters C -R -O -A -T -O -A -N
along the north shoreline. On a palisade

post that surrounded the location of the
houses.

So the word Croatoan was carved into a
post here at Roanoke.

I know Croatoan was the name of a Native
American tribe who was friendly to the

colonists, and it was also a physical
place somewhere in North Carolina.

Maybe this is where the colonists went
after they left Roanoke.

One thing is for sure, I need to check
it out and get some answers.

My investigation into the lost colony of
Roanoke began with the dare stones.

48 stones with messages that could be
clues telling us what happened to

America's first European settlers.

Some people think the stones were part
of an elaborate hope.

But the weathering of the inscriptions
suggests to me they're genuine.

Another clue to the case cropped up in
the opposite direction of where the

stones were found.

The word Croatoan carved in a post.

I'm on my way to what was once Croatoan
Island, today known as Hatteras Island.

I need to know if the colonists actually
came here.

And if they did, how this clue connects
with the darestone.

How you doing? Scott Dawson. I put all
this together.

Okay. I don't know if you have any
questions about it. This is a great

here. I'm a forensic geologist, and I've
been investigating the Deerstones and

the Lost Colony.

They mentioned that some clues might be
found here. I guess there was a carving

left by the colonists. Sure. The
colonists in 1587 carved out the word

on a palisade. And a palisade is a
circle of what looks like telephone

trees that went around where the
settlement was to protect it. And so the

obvious place to leave a message would
be on the palisade. And that's why they

put it there.

And Croatoan is the name of the island
we're on now, which is actually where

English. had lived and traded.

Now they call it Hatteras, right? They
call it Hatteras now.

And we've been digging on the Croatoan
village for four years now. But I have

some things I'd probably be interested
in. I would love to see them. That'd be

awesome.

These are glass trade beads, and they
started making them around 1550.

And we know that the English brought
lots and lots of these things over to

to get deer skins and pearls.

So these are dateable items, right?
These have a dateable range, so they're

prior to 1650, but we don't know exactly
how old they are. Sure.

This glass, however, they quit making
this glass in 1600, and you can tell

been worked and nipped with iron tools.

Oh, napped, kind of like an arrowhead?
Right, exactly.

Now, this type of glass would be in a
window. It's window glass.

Wow. Cool.

So we have here artifacts that are found
in the time period, but we don't have

anything that is a deadlock, if you
will, connection to the lost colony.

correct. We have not found Virginia
Dare's pinky ring or anything of that

nature. But for me, the proof is not in
the archaeology. It's common sense. They

went to Croatoan, as they indicated.

You've got a situation that these
colonists are walking into where the

on the mainland want to kill them and
have attacked and killed them twice.

And they actually came to this island to
get help.

You don't really think they were lost,
do you?

No, I think they were never lost. They
came to Crowley Town. The problem with

your thesis, from my perspective, is
that we have the darestone standing

squarely in the way of that. So what
that means to me is that you've got a

pretty compelling story. You've got
documents, you've got artifacts, and yet

have the darestones that stand in
conflict with that. So to me, what seems

a logical explanation for that is that
perhaps...

To me,

that's the logical explanation, because
that's the one thing that doesn't fit,

is the stone. So all of this is wrong
and the stone is correct, or all of this

is correct and the stone is fake. No,
there's another explanation.

They split up.

We have a strong evidentiary trail that
leads to this party splitting up, one

going west, the other coming south.

That's where I'm at right now.

Don't know much about the stones. I
don't put a lot of weight into things

come after the fact. You can argue that
they split up and these different

things, and all of that is just
speculation.

But as far as what is written down and
what makes logical sense, going west

not make sense.

The only thing that I can do is testify
to factual evidence. The whole thing

about, well, you know, at that time in
1937 when that stone was found, there

were all these stories, romanticism, all
that stuff.

is irrelevant.

Facts are the things that carry it. No,
they are irrelevant.

In a court of law, they're irrelevant.

And so if the facts stand in the way of
speculation, the facts win.

The dare stones suggest that somebody,
including Eleanor Dare, went west from

the Roanoke colony.

So until we can clear that up, we have
to investigate.

Hi, honey. Hi, Scotty.

How's North Carolina?

Well, it's a little overcast right now,
but you should be heading out of here

coming your way soon. Good, good.

What did you find out about the last
colony?

I'll tell you what, I had a chance to
look at the dare stones, and they are

amazing. I didn't have high expectations
going into it, but the geology was

varied, the weathering of the
inscriptions was varied, and...

I have to tell you, if I had to make a
call today, I would say they look

to me.

Really? Wow.

That's amazing. The downside is I was a
little pissed off with one of the guys

that I ran into who wouldn't listen to
anything I had to say about the

Deerstones or the geology.

He was totally convinced that the
colonists came down south of Roanoke to

area and absolutely was closed -minded
to any of the geologic work. So that was

disappointing. Oh, I bet. That would be.

Yeah. Well, I might have another clue
for you. Oh, yeah? What's that?

Did you get my email?

No, I didn't. Let me just pull up my
computer here.

I just read this in the morning paper.
It's hot off the press.

I need to open up Stevenist.

Ancient map could solve colony cold
case.

What's this all about?

This map was drawn by the colony's
governor, John White.

Oh, yeah.

A patch?

Yeah. It might be hiding something
underneath there.

It says right here, this map may hold
the answer to one of the most famous

mysteries in American history.

Well, I tell you what, if that's true, I
need to see it.

I mean, this could be the next clue that
I need.

I guess I'm not coming home right now
after all.

I'm going to England.

I'm investigating the disappearance of
the lost colony of Rona. And so far,

followed up on two leads.

First, the dare stones.

48 stones carved with clues that suggest
the colonists abandoned their

settlement and moved west.

The second, the word Croatoan carved on
a post, which could mean they went east,

the opposite direction of the dare
stones.

Now, I'm following a new lead.

My wife Janet told me about a map drawn
by the colonist governor, John White,

that could turn this whole investigation
on its head.

Apparently, there's a mysterious patch
on a map drawn by John White here in

England, and I want to know what's
underneath it.

Maybe for the last 400 years, everyone
has been looking for the lost colonists

in the wrong place.

So, Dr. Pratt, I've been investigating
the lost Roanoke colony, and I spent

time looking at the Dare stones.

There are a bunch of stones that have
been found beginning in 1937 up through

1940, up to 48 stones that most of them
were carved by Eleanor Dare that

tell the story of the lost colony of
Roanoke. I've heard about them. Okay.

I was looking to see if there was
evidence of forgeries many people have

claimed. And I didn't see that. I think
you can tell fakes pretty quickly.

Oh, yeah. You know, you can see where
things have been added or weathered

artificially. I really believe it's
pretty easy to tell. Well, I know it's

to tell because I have looked at fakes.
And the fakes reveal themselves quickly.

It's the ones that are real that seem to
hang around.

People never quite get it right.

But what I want to know today and talk
about your area of expertise is about

this map that John White made.

And can you tell me a little bit about
that map?

Well, it's called the Virginia PARS map,
and I believe that means Virginia

Country in translation.

And it is probably one of the earliest
and most accurate for that period.

They've actually laid a modern -day map
over the top of it, and it's very, very

similar, even with all the shifting of
the sand.

It's really accurate.

That makes the person who made it quite
an extraordinary character, and that's

John White. And it's probably dated
sometime between 1585 and 1590 when it

engraved.

Here we have a copy of the map for us to
look at.

So we can see the whole coastline
starting up here in the Virginia area

coming down into North Carolina.

This is Albemarle Sound and the Chowan
River.

And then also indicating Roanoke Island,
Croatoan. In red. In red to show that

these might be friendly areas where the
Indians were more friendly.

Right at the junction of these two
rivers. What's that? Yes, that's the

which has recently come to light. We've
looked at that at the British Museum.

And we also have some details here where
you can see through x -ray analysis

that there's actually something
underneath that patch. There is. And you

what? If I look close on here...

I can see something. It looks like a
pattern.

That's right. See, the X -ray analysis
will reveal the drawing underneath,

looks like a sort of a shape of a star
shape. With four corners. You know what?

I've seen that before. I've seen
something very similar. It was on

Island.

Now, this is my first initial sketch.

Oh, that's interesting.

That's very similar. That kind of looks
familiar, doesn't it?

This was the entrance back then, and
there was a push out here they thought

for defense purposes and a lookout type
of thing.

Could that have been a fort?

Well, that's certainly a possibility.

Certainly looking from an aerial
perspective, that would follow the shape

fort.

But wait a minute here. Okay, so could
this map?

indicate that the colonists moved inland
and did not go down to Croatoan or

maybe planned to go there at some point.
Yeah, I think that's a reasonable

supposition that it's more protected
inland.

It makes a lot of sense from a strategic
point as well.

Right now, there are a lot of locations
with clues about the lost colony.

There are the 48 deerstones found
scattered throughout the southeast in

Carolina, South Carolina,

And Georgia.

Then, there's the original fort site on
the coast of North Carolina.

There's Croatoan, the island that
corresponds with the clue John White

carved on a post.

And finally, further inland is the spot
where the Virginia Pars map shows a

hidden fort.

Why would it have been covered up?

Because there was huge competition
between England and Spain at this time,

Spanish ships were in the area looking
for English.

So the idea that the English were
getting ahead of the Spanish by making

colonies here would have been very
dangerous. So I think covering up

like a fort would make sense.

You know, Stephanie...

Both the Deerstones and this map
suggest, in my mind, that the colonists

have gone inland.

If so, why did they do that?

Could it have been because of the
natives? They were in danger from them?

Or could it have been some well -laid
-out plan? Could it have been John White

involved? Or was it his boss, Sir Walter
Raleigh?

Well, I think that that's plausible, and
I'm sure he would have plans about how

to establish a colony and how to protect
it and how to keep it safe.

We've learned a little bit about John
White, but the person I need to find out

about now is this Sir Walter Raleigh. I
need to know more about him.

I can't help but wonder if Sir Walter
Raleigh figures into this mystery

He was the man behind Rono, the man
handpicked by Queen Elizabeth to

the first colony in the New World.

I wonder if he had anything to do with
the hidden symbol on the map.

Maybe there were strategic motives in
play for moving the colony, or even

its true location.

investigating the lost colony of
Roanoke.

And, of course, the story starts over on
this side of the Atlantic in England.

What I really want to know is more about
Sir Walter Raleigh. Sir Walter is not a

lazy man.

Everywhere you look, Sir Walter's hand
is in the action.

And that, I think, is what makes him so
interesting, so attractive. He's a true

Renaissance character.

He's in there at the beginning, the
first... phases of European involvement

what's now North Carolina.

My understanding is that Sir Walter
Raleigh financed this colony. Is that

correct? Yes. He put a lot of money into
the venture.

During this period of the latter half of
the 16th century, there were other...

people trying to establish colonies in
the New World, not just Sir Walter

Raleigh. Is that correct?

Yes. In fact, one of them was from this
very college, a man called John Dee, Dr.

John Dee. He wrote advocating the
establishment of an English or British

and advocating colonization.

There were many like him. It was in the
air at the time.

So John Dee was a British expansionist.
Would this have been a forerunner to the

colony? One of Dee's arguments was that
the English, the British, had

been in North America long before
Columbus's voyages. And so the British

have a prior claim. His argument of the
case, of course, makes it easier for Sir

Walter Raleigh, Queen Elizabeth I, to
claim the New World.

What were Raleigh's motives for sending
the colony over, do you think?

Well, for his own personal motives, of
course, it's land and property.

Well, the land grab is important for Sir
Walter.

He's a younger son, and in the way of
things, the estates have all gone to

brothers, and he doesn't get anything.
So now he's a favourite of the Queen, he

wants to make something for himself and
for his family.

From the point of view of the state,
what he's looking for is a military

The other thing, of course, they're
looking for is something that the land

produces that is worth exploiting back
home.

Silver and gold would be ideal, but if
you can't find those, then useful crops,

useful plants, for example, faster
brass, comes up in the early accounts as

useful plant.

You know, I was just over at the colony
site at Roanoke and in the area, and we

saw lots of sassafras.

So if they're looking for sassafras,
why?

Well, sassafras is a versatile plant. It
can be used as a food flavoring.

At the time, it is also given a lot of
curative properties for diseases,

particularly for syphilis.

I know that syphilis was running rampant
in England at that time.

What a lot of people don't know is that
some scientists believe it was a disease

introduced to the continent by none
other than Christopher Columbus after

voyage to the New World.

At that time, sassafras was considered
the only treatment for this New World

disease.

One of the rumors...

was that the queen had syphilis. If
that's true, obviously this is one way

can please the queen by treating a
condition that she may have had or may

have had. Yes, this rumor comes, of
course, from the idea that Henry VIII,

father, had it and so passed it on to
Elizabeth. There is no evidence that the

queen suffered from syphilis.

So do you think that sassafras might
have been a motivation for them to move

inland? It might have been.

If you are...

If it's on the list of commodities to go
and look for, then you have to go where

the Sassafras is.

I recently looked at a map that John
White made, and there's an area that's

covered up with a patch. And looking
carefully underneath that patch, it

to be a symbol of what looks like a
fort.

Any thoughts about that? Those
tantalizing, mysterious clues, which

we need to work further on.

You know, when I look at that symbol on
the map, what I think is that this was

where John White wanted to build, or Sir
Walter Raleigh wanted to build a fort.

We have a lot of clues here that the
colony went inland.

And if there's a place where the secret
symbol on the map, the sassafras, and

the deerstone clues all come together,
we just might find the lost colony.

I'm headed to the place where I think
the clues to the lost colony all

It's a golf course called the Scotch
Hall Preserve, and it's a place that

corresponds with the secret symbol on
John White's map.

I want to know if there's any evidence
the colonists ended up building a fort

here, and if there's a connection to the
dare stone.

Scott Wolfer. Jim Hughes, Scott. Nice to
see you. Say, I'm looking into the lost

colony of Roanoke. Does that ring a bell
at all? Yes, sir. That's big news

around here. The reason I'm here today
is I recently looked at a map over in

England that led me to here.

And I'm looking into the possibility
that maybe the lost colony came here.

And I was wondering if I could take a
look around or if it would be possible,

maybe you could show me? Absolutely.

So when was this golf course built?

Golf course opened in 2009 and was
recognized as one of the top ten best

courses in the country.

So that was just three years ago. A lot
of earthwork was done here. Did they

ever find any evidence of colonial
settlement or maybe the remnants of a

You know, I think they moved over a
million cubic yards of dirt. They dug

12 or 13 ponds and all that.

No evidence was ever found of a fort or
any colonial settlement.

Nothing at all. Nothing at all. You
know, I'm not surprised. But it doesn't

that some of the colony didn't make it
out here.

Beautiful spot.

This is the Chowan River.

And back there is Salmon Creek.

Okay, and this leads out to the ocean.
Right, this is the Albemarle Sound. If

you follow it on out, you'll hit the
Outer Banks. Okay, so this area where

map was repaired and John White drew
what appears to be a symbol representing

fort is covered up. That would be here.

So what do you think? Was there a fort
here?

There's no evidence of a fort being
here, Scott.

I think we would have found some
evidence of that or some other colonial

activity, but it just hasn't appeared.

A lot of people have speculated on what
this covered -up fort -like symbol was

or is. And to be quite honest with you,
I think what happened here is that this

spot is where John White wanted to put a
fort and wanted the colony to be, but

it never happened.

However, that doesn't mean that some of
them didn't get here. Which brings me to

the next map.

And that's a modern -day map. And what
we have plotted on here is where the

deerstones were found.

There were a total of 48 stones found
over a 300 -mile stretch beginning in

up to about 1940.

Now, here's where the first stone was
found, and the only reference that we

says it was found near a town called
Edenton.

Right across there. Right across the
river on the north side.

Oh, you've got to be kidding me. So
we're right in the same area. My theory

right. Because I believe Eleanor Dare
must have known that there was going to

a colony here or a fort here. And so
maybe she tried to get back to the one

place that she knew her father might
look for her.

Wow.

There's one other thing that came to
mind here.

Sassafras. Do you have any sassafras
around here? We have a lot of sassafras.

You do? That's another piece to this
puzzle. The reason that sassafras would

have been important to the colonists and
to John White specifically is

because...

Sassafras was thought to be used for
medicinal purposes, specifically in

treating syphilis.

I'm sure that had something to do with
this whole desire to eventually

and bring back sassafras to England.

That's a hell of a story, Scott.

After discovering the place where the
map, the stones, and the sassafras all

come together, my search for the lost
colony is coming to a close.

But geology is key to putting this case
to bed.

Something I learned in my forensic study
of the Dare film was that the original

stone found in Eden was carved on a
piece of quartzite.

And now I need to find out if quartzite
is native to the area.

If Eleanor Dare really carved these
messages, she would have used whatever

stones were nearby.

Hey, how are you doing? Hi, I'm Scott
Walter. How are you doing? Paul Walker.

Nice to meet you.

I'm sorry to bother you here this
morning, but this may seem like a

request, but I'm interested in your rock
garden, the rocks specifically.

What is the origin of these? Did they
come from Edenton here?

Yes. They did?

Yeah, along the banks of the Join River.

Okay. Is there any place nearby where I
could take a look where they're actually

coming out of the ground?

Sure. Right out on the river there.
Okay. Along the bank.

If Paul can show me some indigenous
quartzite, it would bring me one step

to solving this mystery.

Got it.

Yeah.

Glacial quartzite.

Finding quartzite along the riverbank in
Eden is like finding the last piece of

an elaborate puzzle.

Forensic geology told me that the
message on the first darestone is likely

old. The discovery of quartzite is also
consistent with the message being carved

on stone local to the area.

And both those discoveries suggest to me
that the first darestone found, and

maybe the others, are genuine.

I'm convinced that the colonists moved
throughout the region and left the

behind as a breadcrumb trail marking
where they'd been.

Maybe they did go to Croatoan for a
time, but the stones suggest they

moved inland.

I believe the dare stones should have
been taken seriously a long time ago.

History ignored them because they didn't
fit into the story we've been told.

But now, my science.

Tells a new story.

Next time on America Unearthed. I'm
dying to take a look at this chamber.

landowner does not want you on their
property.

What the hell is that?

Holy shit. Look at that.

More than one way to skin a cat and
we're going to skin him.

If you have a mysterious artifact or
site I need to see, I want to know about

it. Go to history .com slash unearthed.