David Beers Quinn (24 April 1909 – 19 March 2002) was an Irish historian who wrote extensively on the voyages of discovery and colonisation of America.
He played a major role in assisting the presentation of the historical aspects during the quadricentennial celebrations (1984–1987) of the first establishment of a colony at Roanoke Island.
He then completed a PhD on the early Tudor administration in Ireland at King's College London.
At that time historians relied uncritically on the works of Richard Hakluyt published around 1600.
At the instigation of America's Four Hundredth Anniversary Committee his Set Fair for Roanoke: Voyages and Colonies, 1584–1590 was published by University of North Carolina Press in 1985.