For centuries, the Lost Colony of Roanoke Island has been a controversial issue. There are many theories that explain the disappearance of the colony. Some theories suggest that the settlers left the island to live with friendly nearby Indians. Others suggest that a hurricane wiped out the colony or that a savage Indian tribe massacred them. The possibility of disease destroying them is also a debated topic. However, evidence indicates that the men and women left on Roanoke Island did not die from massacres, disease, or starvation but went to live with the Croatoan Indians. In 1587 a group of men, women, and children led by Sir John White sailed to America and landed on an island in North Carolina called Roanoke (Shirley 36). However, the colonists arrived in North America at the wrong time of year. The planting season was too far away to attempt to plant, grow, and harvest food, and the need for food was widespread in the colony (Worth 25). In the months following the colonists' landing, circumstances required that John White return to England to obtain more food and other much-needed supplies. The colonists were left to fend for themselves, and that was the last time John White saw the colonists. Three points in particular boldly highlight the settlers' orderly departure to live with the Indians. First, the settlers had a close relationship with the Croatoan Indians. This relationship is the result of John White's acquaintance with a scout named Manteo. An eminent historian says that Manteo and his tribe, the Croatian tribe, were the only Indians who remained friendly towards the settlers and, as indicated by one of their leaders, "the English christened 'our wild Manteo' and declared him lord by R. ..... middle of sheet ......P. "New discoveries at the Lost Colony." July/August 1993:38. Norman, Charles. Crowell, 1968.Payne, Patrick. “Roanoke: Genealogies, Family Trees, and Genealogical Records.” Payne's Ancestry Rootsweb, 2002. Web. October 15, 2011. Quinn, David Beers : U of North Carolina P, 1985. Print.Shirley, David. North Carolina: Benchmark, 2001. Print.Stick, David. The Beginnings of English America. 1983. Print.NA “What Happened to the Lost Colony of Roanoke?” Np, nd Web. October 5, 2011 Worth it, Richard. Life in the Thirteen Colonies: North Carolina. Canada: Scholastic, 2004. Print.Yolen, Jane and Elisabet Yolen Stemple. Roanoke: The Lost Colony. New York: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2003. Print.