Two fires at 16th century historic site in NC were ‘human caused,’ national park says

Two fires were discovered simultaneously at a North Carolina historic site dedicated to England’s first settlements on the continent — and investigators say they were “human caused.”

It happened Sunday, April 14, at a section of Fort Raleigh National Historic Site dedicated to a “Freedmen’s Colony,” the National Park Service said in a news release. The colony became a “safe haven” for thousands of escaped slaves during the Civil War.

“At 9:02 a.m. this morning, the Dare County Sheriff’s Office notified the National Park Service that two separate wildfires were occurring at Fort Raleigh National Historic Site,” the National Park Service reported in a news release.

“The fires occurred in the woods adjacent to Fort Raleigh National Historic Site’s Freedom Trail . ... Both fires were safely extinguished and pose no risk to public safety.”

The fires covered 0.07 and 0.06 acres, officials said.

Investigators are seeking tips at 252-473-2111 to identify a suspect.

Fort Raleigh National Historic Site, about a 190-mile drive east of Raleigh, covers 355 acres and preserves portions of “ England’s first New World settlements from 1584 to 1590,” according to the National Park Service.

Roanoke Island’s role as a colony for freedmen began when it was occupied by Union Army forces in 1862, historians say.

“This colony, similar to others established by the Union army, gave African Americans their first tastes of independence and freedom. However, like other sites, it was short-lived and soon faded from the pages of history,” the National Park Service says.

“A local census in 1864 reported that 2,212 black freedmen resided on the island. A church and several schools with seven teachers were established, as well as a sawmill operation. The next year, the superintendent reported 561 houses had been built and the population had increased to 3,901.”

The colony “dwindled to a few families” after failing to become self-sufficient after the Civil War and it was decommissioned in 1867, historians say.

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