[w_over_w]

4. Jamestown was the first English settlement in the U.S.

I did a little bit of research on this and it seems the distinction is successful colony. Roanoke, NC was more an exploratory expedition that didn't take hold whereas Jamestown was colonized for the purpose of settlement.

"Meanwhile, Grenville was delayed in leaving England for the supply of the Roanoke colony. This placed the colonists in a desperate predicament. This fact, the troubled state of Europe and America, making war with Spain now practically inevitable, and the unaccountable delay in the arrival of Grenville's supply fleet caused Lane to ask for passage to England. When Drake sailed, on June 18, 1586 he carried the colonists home with him."
State Library NC

"They sailed up stream for fifty miles, and, on the 13th of May, 1607, began the settlement of Jamestown, which was the first English Colony successfully planted in America."
Colonial Ancestors

Granted, it's a minor distinction but one that any proud Virginian would want to assert. IMHO.

[PAR35]

I agree that Jamestown was the first successful English colony, but that wasn't the claim. While the first group went home with Drake, a small force arrived to maintain English presence. Thin in 1587, a new batch of colonists arrived. That is the group that disappeared during the war between England and Spain. They were probably either killed or enslaved by the 'friendly' natives.