The Dare Stones and America’s oldest mystery

The Dare Stones and America’s oldest mystery

From The Broadside by WUNC News

March 5, 2026 · 24 min

About this episode

The episode explores the mystery of the Dare Stones and the controversy surrounding their authenticity.

In 1937, a man claimed to have discovered a rock in eastern North Carolina with a 400-year-old message carved into it from survivors of the Lost Colony of Roanoke. The announcement created an international media circus. And it led to one of the biggest archeological scandals in American history, one that would forever tarnish the artifact’s reputation. But was the Dare Stone authentic? Featuring: David La Vere , history professor at UNC-Wilmington and author of “The Lost Rocks: The Dare Stones and the Unsolved Mystery of Sir Walter Raleigh’s Lost Colony” Bill Miller, geologist and professor emeritus at UNC-Asheville Links: The 1937 Chowan River “Dare Stone”: A Re-Evaluation by David La Vere Double Deception: The 1937 Hoaxes of the Chowan River Stone and the Drake Plate of Brass, by Melissa Darby Cover image: The front of the first Dare Stone, aka the Chowan River stone, courtesy of Brenau University in Gainesville, Georgia See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

People in this episode

Guests: David La Vere, Bill Miller

Topics covered

  • Dare Stones
  • Lost Colony
  • archeological scandal
  • Roanoke
  • historical mystery

Keywords

  • Dare Stones
  • Roanoke
  • historical mystery
  • archeology
  • David La Vere
  • Bill Miller

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: UNC-Wilmington, UNC-Asheville

Books & works: The Lost Rocks: The Dare Stones and the Unsolved Mystery of Sir Walter Raleigh’s Lost Colony, The 1937 Chowan River “Dare Stone”: A Re-Evaluation, Double Deception: The 1937 Hoaxes of the Chowan River Stone and the Drake Plate of Brass

Places: eastern North Carolina

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