We’ve all been taught from a young age about the settlers of Jamestown and Plymouth.

But, what most don’t know is that they aren’t the first to come to the New World. In its sixth installment, American Horror Story is shedding some light on the “Lost Colony” of Roanoke Island and its mysteriously disappeared inhabitants.

So, what happened to them?

In August of 1587, over 100 English settlers moved to Roanoke Island, just off the coast of modern day North Carolina. It included 89 men, 17 women, and 11 children. The governor of this new colony, John White, sailed back to England and was supposed to return with some new supplies. However, upon arrival, the English and Spanish were engaged in a war and White would not be able to return to Roanoke for three more years. When he did, he found no sign of the colony or his family, including his granddaughter Virginia Dare who was the first English child to be born in the Americas. The only thing remaining was the word “CROATOAN” carved into some wood.

Croatoan was an island just south of Roanoke, so a lot of theories say that the settlers relocated there to wait for White’s return. Other theories say that they were abducted or killed by Native Americans with the same name after many unfriendly encounters. Some say that they were wiped out by a disease caused by microbes they’ve never been exposed to in the New World or that they tried to sail home to England themselves but got lost at sea.

Today, researchers are excavating the site, known as Site X, where they believe the settlers resided. Artifacts, like nails and ceramics, were also uncovered just southeast of Roanoke Island and some believe that there is a very good possibility that the colonists broke down into smaller groups and assimilated with different Native American tribes. They also analyzed rings from cypress trees and determined that the worst drought in 800 years occurred just after White left for England. This may also be a clue why they abandoned the island prior to his return.

The mystery of the “Lost Colony” has spawned documentaries, TV shows (such as American Horror Story), ghost stories, and even Facebook accounts to locate ancestors of those who’ve disappeared. No one knows exactly what happened to the lost colony of Roanoke Island, even 400 years later, and perhaps we never will.