Fort Raleigh

Junior Ranger
Activity Book
The activities in this book have been designed with you in mind. We are here to
help you on your journey to learn about the history of Roanoke Island.

Directions: Complete the following pages for your age group and
attend a ranger program or see a park video.

Ages 6 and under: Complete pages 2-5.

Ages 7 – 11: Complete pages 1, 5-10.
Ages 12 and up: Complete pages 1, 5, 9-15.

What is one thing you have learned today?

_____________________________________________________

What is one thing you are still wondering about?

_____________________________________________________

What video or program did you watch today?

_____________________________________________________

1
The journey across the ocean was very dangerous. The colonists made the
trip in a ship just like this one. Color the ship as it sails across the Atlantic
Ocean to the New World.

If you were going on the ship, draw or write one thing that you would
bring on your journey!

2
Connect the Dots
With the help of an adult, connect the dots to find this monument in the
park.

What is the name of the monument? (Hint: It’s a number!) __________

3
Roanoke Bingo
As you walk the trails outside of the visitor center, look for these items.
When you see one, circle it. Try to find three in a row!

Trash The American Flag Earthen Fort

(Remember to Leave
No Trace!)

Freedmen’s Monument NPS Arrowhead Thomas Hariot

Nature Trail

1896 Monument Waterside Theater Other Visitors

4
Protecting Something Special
What do you believe is worth protecting?

Each item on the arrowhead symbolizes something that the

National Park Service was created to protect. The SEQUOIA
TREE and BISON represent plants and wildlife. The
MOUNTAIN and LAKE represent scenery and places for
recreation. The shape of the ARROWHEAD represents culture, history,
and archeology our parks preserve.

Design an arrowhead for something that you think is important.

5
Treasures in the Dirt
Since 1896, archeologists have been attempting to
discover the site of the Lost Colony on Roanoke
Island. It is a difficult but rewarding activity,
involving many scientific methods.

Pretend you are an archeologist on Roanoke

Island. What items might you find that relate to
the 1587 Lost Colony? Draw three of the items
you might find.

(Hint: You can discover examples in the visitor center!)

Learn more about archeology and what it’s taught us about life on
Roanoke Island by exploring our exhibits and answering the
questions below.

1. What did the Algonquian people use for trade? How do we know this?

____________________________________________________________

2. Why do archeologists use simple tools, like a dustpan or whisk broom?

____________________________________________________________

3. If you were to start a new archeological site, where would you go?

____________________________________________________________

6
Use Sign Language

When English explorers encountered American Indians, they did not share
a common language and found other ways to communicate. You can
communicate by talking, writing, gesturing, or drawing pictures. Another
way to communicate with others is through sign language. Use the sign
language chart above to break the code below.

7
Road to Freedom
The Underground Railroad was a secret network to help enslaved people
escape to freedom. Those traveling to freedom were called passengers,
and the people who helped them were called conductors. Through the
Underground Railroad, passengers were able to find food, shelter, and a
path to safety. Harriet Tubman was a conductor who escaped from slavery
and guided over three hundred others to freedom.

Many enslaved people found freedom here on Roanoke Island, and today
Fort Raleigh is recognized as part of the Underground Railroad Network to
Freedom. Read the timeline below to learn more and fill in the blanks
using the vocabulary box.

1861
The _________ ________ officially
began when confederate forces fired on
Fort Sumter in South Carolina.

Brigadier General ______________

1862 ___________________ led the Union Army to
a victory on Roanoke Island.

The ____________ _______ of

1862 gave freedom to enslaved
President Abraham Lincoln people who crossed Union lines.
issued the ______________
1863 ___________________, which
gave freedom to all enslaved
people.

Vocabulary Box
The ______________ Ambrose Burnside
_____________ of Roanoke Civil War
Island was established by
1864 formerly enslaved people. Confiscation Act
Many people found freedom Emancipation Proclamation
there. The colony existed Freedmen’s Colony
until 1867.

1865 The Civil War officially ended.

8
Recruiting for Roanoke
Watch the videos in the Elizabethan Room of the visitor center. Pay
special attention to the video where John White speaks with the Viccar’s
family in 1587 about why people would come to the new world.

What are some reasons you would go to the new world?

____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________

Slogans are memorable phrases used in advertising. They help you

recognize a product right away, and they may give you a positive feeling.
Here are a few examples of slogans:

“Taste the Rainbow!”

“The Few. The Proud. The Marines.”

Using the space below, help John White write a slogan that will grab
the attention and encourage English people to become a colonist in the
1587 colony.

9
Voyage Cartoon
After reading the display in the visitor center about the three English
voyages to Roanoke Island (1584, 1585, and 1587), pick one of the
voyages and make a cartoon strip using your imagination of the
sequence of events on that voyage.

Voyage Year: _________

10
The Lost Colony Symphonic Drama
Do you like the theater? The Lost Colony is a symphonic drama about the
English exploration of 1584 to 1587.

Paul Green was the man behind the new experimental art form that
combined the elements of story, acting, music, dance, pageantry, action,
and poetry in an outdoor production. The Lost Colony opened on July 4,
1937, the 350th anniversary year of the colonists arriving on Roanoke. Take
the time to read more about this historical drama in the main room of the
visitor center.

Think about all the jobs associated with putting on a theatrical performance.
List four jobs associated with the theater:

A. ____________________ C. ____________________

B. ___________________ D. ____________________

Now if you were to pick a job in the theater, which job would you pick
and why?
____________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________

11
The Father of Voice Radio
In 1893 Reginald Fessenden read of the radio
experiments of Guglielmo Marconi.
Radiotelegraphy, sending dots and dashes by radio
wave instead of wire, intrigued him. Soon after,
Fessenden began his own experiments. He wanted
to transmit the human voice and music.

In 1900, Fessenden was hired as an agent for the

U.S. Weather Bureau on Roanoke Island. He was to
adapt radiotelegraphy to forecast the weather and
provide storm warnings to the ships in the area.

In 1901, Fessenden sent and received radio waves from his

tower on Roanoke Island to Buxton on Hatteras. In 1902 he achieved his
goal of transmitting the human voice and music. Fessenden is credited with
developing AM radio signal (AM = amplitude modulation).

Fessenden has had a significant impact on our lives with his invention
which lead to things like radio, television, and nautical inventions such as
depth sounding (sonar) and signaling devices for submarines.

1. Locate and read the information on Fessenden in the exhibit room found
in our visitor center. What was the name of the Christmas carol that was
broadcast on the radio in 1906?
__________________________________________________________

2. Name four things you use today that were made possible by
Fessenden’s experiments.
a. _______________________
b. _______________________
c. _______________________
d. _______________________

12
Inventors on the Outer Banks
Locate the two Fessenden towers on
the Outer Banks by circling them.

Next, draw a straight line between

these two towers, but don’t follow the
Island!

The map that you see is not drawn to

scale. The distance between these two
antenna towers is approximately 50
miles.

North Carolina’s Outer Banks have many

stories to tell. While Reginald Fessenden
was working on his experiments, two
other innovators were working on
scientific advancements close by.

Who were they and what did they

create?

______________________________

______________________________

13
What is an ACROSTIC poem?
It’s one where the first letter of each line spells out a word!

In February 1862, Brigadier General Ambrose Burnside overtook the

Confederate fortifications on Roanoke Island. This allowed the Union to
control the waterways to further impede, or stop, the Confederate army.
Many enslaved people had been sent to the area in order to assist with the
fortifications. The enslaved people were labeled as “contraband of war” and
the Union Army freed them. A colony was started which allowed enslaved
people to become free just by stepping on the shore.
Here is an example of an acrostic poem:
Ambrose Burnside
Commanded a fleet for
Roanoke
Out in the water with
Ships
To
Impede
Confederate troops

Now it’s your turn to make an acrostic poem, using information you
learned about the Freedmen’s Colony:

14
Timeline of the Roanoke Voyages
A timeline is a graphic depiction of a series of
events that helps us understand history in a
linear fashion. Create a timeline of the
Roanoke Voyages by labeling the other
historical dates below. Answers can be found
in the visitor center and in the brochure.

Create your own timeline: Start with your birthdate in the first block on the
timeline. Then add other special dates from your life. Explain what
happened on those dates. Don’t forget a title for your timeline.

Title: ______________________________________________________

15
 16
Fort Raleigh
Junior Ranger
Pledge

As a Junior Ranger I, promise to preserve and protect our natural

places and continue to learn about our history and heritage.

I will share what I have learned with family and friends and
continue to explore our National Parks.

_________________ _____________________

Junior Ranger NPS Official Signature

(Place Stamp Here!)