The town is named for an
American Indian named
Manteo, a
Croatan. Manteo traveled with the English to London in 1584 where he and another Indian,
Wanchese, learned to become the liaisons between the
Roanoke Colony settlers and the Indians. He also had favorable interaction with British colonist
John White. In fact, Manteo was christened and given the name Lord of Roanoke, making him the first American Indian to receive a title of nobility. Eventually, John White's daughter Eleanor married
Ananias Dare, and they had the first American-born English child,
Virginia Dare. In 1587, Manteo was friendly to White when he returned to find what the final stage of the
Roanoke Colony became. When the colonists disappeared after supplies from England were delayed for three years, the ongoing mystery of "
The Lost Colony" began. Manteo was named the seat of government for Dare County in 1870, and was incorporated in 1899.
Dare County is named for
Virginia Dare. In 1999, North Carolina public radio (
NPR),
WUNC, began broadcasting in Manteo as part of an effort to bring public radio to one of the largest areas on the
East Coast of the United States without such service. In 2005, Manteo restored its
coastal warning display tower, and it is now operated by the Manteo branch of the
North Carolina Maritime Museum. The
George Washington Creef House,
John T. Daniels House,
Fort Raleigh National Historic Site, and
Theodore S. Meekins House are listed on the
National Register of Historic Places. ==Geography==