After his ships became involved in the war with Spain. He was able to return in 1590, but by then the colonist were gone, He found the word "Croatoan" carved into a tree trunk. But there was no cross carved into the trunk. So he had hopes that they had just moved to a nearby island occupied by the Croatan Indians. However the settlers were never found.
Step-by-step explanation:
Before leaving, Governor White and the colonists planned that, if the colonists had to leave the Cittie of Raleigh for some reason, they would leave a message by carving a sign into a tree trunk.