Lumbee

Lumbee, largest Native American tribe east of the Mississippi River. A popular academic theory holds that the Lumbee are descended from the Hatteras tribe and the English colonists who settled on Roanoke Island in 1587. Other theories cite the Cherokee, Sioux, or Tuscarora as possible ancestors. Today, more than 40,000 Lumbee live in and around Robeson County in southeastern North Carolina. Many are farmers.