A True American Horror Story

A True American Horror Story

Lindsay King, Staff Reporter

Series creators Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk invented a formula that enabled “American Horror Story” to consistently exceed audience expectations. This horror-anthology maintains a focus on controversial topics such as addiction, oppression and infidelity, all while shifting the main theme of each season.
The current and sixth season of FX’s “American Horror Story” resurrects a 400 year old mystery; the lost colony of Roanoke.
The lost colony made history when 119 settlers mysteriously disappeared from Roanoke Island, North Carolina, between 1587 to 1590. Basing the storyline on a non-fictional American mystery is a first for “American Horror Story.”
According to “American Horror Story,” the settlers of the lost colony were killed by a lone village elder, the Butcher. She made a contract with a witch who haunted the nearby forest, enabling the Butcher to stay connected to the land even after death.
In actuality, the English settlers of the lost colony seemed destined for disaster. They were taken past their intended settlement in the Chesapeake Bay and left on Roanoke Island by the captain of their ship who was anxious to stay on schedule. The Roanoke site had been deemed uninhabitable by previous settlement attempts. The colony’s governor, John White, was forced to immediately sail back to England for much needed supplies, and was unable to return for three years. When he returned, all evidence of the settlement was gone except for the word “Croatoan” carved into a tree.
What really happened to the lost colony has remained a mystery for over 400 years.
“Probably whatever it was that happened, happened pretty quickly” said De Anza history professor John Hamer. “If they left, they left in a strange way because they didn’t leave any indication of where they were going.” The first official archaeological excavations did not even begin until 1941, and by then, the process of time had contaminated the site. No conclusive evidence as to what happened to the settlers was discovered until 2012.
According to Associated Press, a hidden location was discovered on a map created by John White. This new information prompted archaeologists to explore this new site. Artifacts pertaining to the correct period have been found and it is speculated that some of the settlers traveled to this unknown site.
With the new season of “American Horror Story,” it appears the lost colony is well on its way to becoming one of the most mysterious dark annals within American history; slowly morphing into an urban legend.
An abundance of sensationalism surrounds the legend of Roanoke; a story that in reality, is not that exciting. According to professor Hamer, our contemporary need for emotional appeal in situations we cannot explain causes our culture to create meaning where there is none.
Hamer stated that the simplest explanation is always what historians tend to accept. It is more than likely the people Roanoke were attacked by local Native Americans soon after White had left.
We are a nation of over-dramatization; we want the most exuberant and far-fetched theories. We choose to sensationalize the simplest of theories to entertain our minds. But that is why we have television. And that is why we have American Horror Story.