The mayor of a town in England says DNA testing will confirm a link with Native Americans in present-day North Carolina.

Bideford Mayor Andy Powell is raising money to conduct the tests. He says residents of the town married into a local tribe after settling Roanoke Island in 1587.

“If we are right and there are descendants of those lost colonists alive in America today, then Bideford will become known for having played a pivotal role in the founding of America 33 years before the Mayflower set sail," said Powell, The Guardian newspaper reported.

Get the Story:
British settlers 'arrived in America before Pilgrim Fathers' (The Guardian 5/7)