Editing Roanoke Colony (section)

===1607–1609: John Smith===
[[File:Zúñiga Map by Ashe 1908.jpg|thumb|Reproduction of the Zúñiga Map]]

Following the establishment of the [[Jamestown, Virginia|Jamestown]] settlement in 1607, [[John Smith (explorer)|John Smith]] was captured by the [[Powhatan]] and met with both their leader [[Powhatan (Native American leader)|Wahunsenacawh]] (often referred to as "Chief Powhatan") and his brother [[Opechancanough]]. They described to him a place called "Ocanahonan", where men wore European-style clothing; and "Anone", which featured walled houses. Later, after Smith returned to the colony, he made arrangements with Wowinchopunk, the king of the [[Paspahegh]], to investigate "Panawicke", another place reportedly inhabited by men in European dress. The colony produced a crude map of the region with labels for these villages. The map also featured a place called "Pakrakanick" with a note indicating, "Here remaineth four men clothed that came from Roonocok to Ocanahawan."{{Sfn|Fullam|2017|pp= 128–133}}

In the summer of 1608, Smith sent a letter about this information, along with the map, back to England. The original map is now lost, but a copy was obtained by Pedro de Zúñiga, the Spanish ambassador to England, who passed it on to [[Philip III of Spain]]. The copy, now commonly referred to as the "Zúñiga Map", was rediscovered in 1890.{{Sfn|Fullam|2017|pp= 129, 131}}

Smith planned to explore Pakrakanick, but a dispute with the Paspahegh ended the mission before it could begin. He also dispatched two search parties, possibly to look for the other villages reported to him, with instructions to find "the lost company of Sir Walter Rawley". Neither group could find any sign of the Roanoke colonists living in the area.{{Sfn|Fullam|2017|pp= 151, 154}}

By May 1609, word had reached England's Royal Council for Virginia that the 1587 colonists had been massacred by Wahunsenacawh.{{Sfn|Virginia Council|1609|p= 17}} The source of this allegation is unknown. Machumps, Wahunsenacawh's brother-in-law, is known to have provided information about Virginia, and he had recently arrived in England.{{Sfn|Lawler|2018|p=121}} It has been speculated that the same voyage could have also delivered a letter from Smith, although no evidence for this exists.{{Sfn|Quinn|1985|p= 365}}

Based on this intelligence, as well as Smith's earlier report, the Council drafted orders for the Jamestown colony to relocate. These orders recommended "Ohonahorn" (or "Oconahoen"), near the mouth of the [[Chowan River]], as a new base. Among the purported advantages of this location were proximity to "Riche Copper mines of Ritanoc" and "Peccarecamicke", where four of Raleigh's colonists were supposed to be held by a chieftain named "Gepanocon".{{Sfn|Virginia Council|1609|pp= 16–17}} These orders, along with the new acting governor, [[Thomas Gates (governor)|Thomas Gates]], were delayed due to the shipwreck of the ''[[Sea Venture]]'' at Bermuda. Gates arrived at Jamestown in May 1610, several months into the [[Starving Time]]. The crisis may have deterred the colonists from attempting the proposed relocation. An expedition was sent to the Chowan River, but there is no record of its findings.{{Sfn|Lawler|2018|pp=120–122}}