The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1898-02-14
HE WAS NOT A NEGRO.
Former Senator Eevels Said to Have
Been a Croatan Indian.

Former Senator Hevels Said to Have
Been a Croatan Indian.
Former United States Senator Hiram
r. Revels. of Mississippi. was always
classed as a negro. He was tall, we'll
built man, with the chocolate skin and
curly hair of an African, and the devout
bearing of his professionally minister
ial. He was in the Senate during the
reconstruction period. never being
known as prominent but always as a
representative colored man. Revels was
not negro, according to DR.. c. A. Peter
son, of St. Louis, who has made a study
of the lost Roanoke (Va.) colony. DR..
Peterson says that Revels is a descend
ant Of that mystery shrouded band that
Sir Walter Raleigh sent to Roanoke Is
land in 1857.
THE historian has Usually contented
himself with dropping his investigations
when he reached the point where Gov
ernor John White returned from. Eng
land and found his colony had disap-
peared from Roanoke Island said DIR.
Peterson, land you will find in about
every history you pick up the statement
that the colonistS were probably Killed
by the Indians.
..The Roanoke colony consisted of us
unma rried men and 20 who had families.
They were sent out by Sir Walter Raj
eign in 1887. in charge. of John White,
who was appointed governor Ananias
Dare, his son-in-law, was vice governor,
and during 1887 his wife gave birth to
a daughter the first white child born In
America, and she was called Virginia
Dare.
During the summer tribe Of Croatan
Indians. who lived some 30 miles away
on the east shore of what is now North
Carolina-the whole country was theh
called Virginia-visited the colony on
Roanoke Island. and proposed to the set
tiers that they remove TO the nome Oh
the Indians intermarry and become
members of their tribe. The ll5 unmaf-
ried men were willing TO accept the prop
osition. and Ii was only with difficulty
that Governor White induced them 10
remain.
''When everything was compieteu
White returned to England and got pro-
visions and re-enforcements. BEFORE go
ing he instructed the coloniSts 10 leave
some testimony if for any reason they
should conclude to move during MS ap-
sence.
THE next year, 1888, was the year
of the Spanish Armada, and Whlte
boat and every other sea-golng Nessei
was impressed into service. so IL was
inpossible for Gov White TO set san
for America again until l5ss- Nhen
he arrived at Roanoke he found the
stockade and the houses there. but eVr
erybody lad gone. on one tree he
found the word 'Croatan' carved, ana
on one stockade post merely the begin
ning-Crot' He was about TO pro
coed in search of the Croatans when
q Hatteras storm came up, ana, AFTER
beating about for some time, the ere"
mutinied and insisted on going down
to the Spanish main and engaging IN
priVateerinc.
In ITO. when the Huguenots and
cavaliers started to penetrate the lnt
terror of North Carolina they found,
some seventy-five miles from the
coast. in what is now Robson county,
y. G.. a colony of English-speakins
people. many of whom had blue eyes
and light hair. They inquired where
they came from. and they replied
From Croatan.' How does it como
that you speak English Our fathers
We're English
These people have always been call
ed Croatans. There are some 1000 of
them living in Robson County. y. c..
at the present time, but they have
scattered all over the South and West,
/ have found Croatan names among all
the five civilized tribes, living in the
Indian Territory.
Several Huguenots remained with
the Croatans and intermarried. There
are many names of French origin
found among them today
The most eminent of the Croatans
was United States Senator Revels. who
elected from MiSCicCi,,r;
the reconstruction days. He was class,
ed as a negro. but he was in reality A
Croatan. one of those with a Hugue
not name and ancestry"