Pandt Lands on St. Eustatius

The last sole owner of English Quarter was David Young Campbell. Upon his death in the late 19th century he left 2/3 undivided share of it to his cousin, Thomas Nelson Cockfield Pandt, and the other 1/3 to his niece Marina Eliza Heyliger Macdonald.

In 1922 TNC Pandt passed away in Curacao.

In 1927 Peter John Macdonald Pandt, known as Mac, nephew of both TNC Pandt and Marina Macdonald, purchased the 2/3 undivided share of English Quarter from TNC Pandt’s heirs.

In 1929 Mac Pandt bought Mussenden, a 100-acre tract around the mountain.

In 1932 Mac bought Retreat, a 137 acre tract adjacent to Mussenden.

In 1933 Mac bought 60% undivided share of a 210 acre property known as Miss Tini’s Land. The other 40% was (and still is) owned by the Schrewhardt family in Statia.

In 1938 Mac Pandt passed away. His estate contained 2/3 of English Quarter, all of Mussenden and Retreat, plus 60% of Miss Tini, together comprising almost 700 acres. Mac had never married, so by law half of his estate passed to his recognized children and half to his seven surviving brothers and sisters:

Maria Arabella Macdonald Pandt Darrell (“Mamie”)

Aletta Campbell Pandt Beaujon (“Etta”)

Henry Herman Pandt (“Herman”)

Ida Eliza Pandt

Maude Eileen Pandt

Theodore Alfred Macdonald Pandt (“Alfie”)

Thomas Nelson Cockfield Pandt II (“Tom”)

There is documentation of each of the following transactions involving undivided shares of the Pandt Lands.

  • In 1938 Mamie Darrell gave her sister Maude all of her Statia property shares. The original documentation of this transfer was found in the papers Siegfried Lampe had received from Tom Pandt’s widow.
  • In 1939 Etta Beaujon transferred all of the shares she had inherited from Mac to Ida and Maude, her unmarried sisters who still lived on Statia. The original transfer record was also found in the papers Siegfried Lampe had received from Tom Pandt’s widow.
  • Also in 1939 Tom Pandt bought all of his brother Herman’s inheritance from Mac. The original stamped paper documenting this was found in the papers Siegfried Lampe had received from Tom Pandt’s widow.
  • In 1942 Marina Macdonald passed away in St. Eustatius. Her will left equal shares of her 1/3 portion of English Quarter to the same seven brothers and sisters of Mac. Mamie and Etta again each owned a share of English Quarter. It is not known whether either subsequently also gave this to their sisters. Since no record has yet surfaced, we assume they did not.
  • In 1950 Ida Pandt gave her brother Tom all of her sharesofSt. Eustatius property.
  • In 1965 the sale by Herman Pandt to Tom of all of his inherited property, including that from their Aunt Marina, was recorded on Statia. Herman no longer owned any part of the Pandt Lands.
  • Maude died in 1976 and left all of her shares to her brother Tom.

The only members of the Pandt family with Statia property shares remaining were Mac’s recognized children plus Etta and Mamie (who, we assume, had not given away the shares of English Quarter they had inherited from Aunt Marina), Alfie and Tom. Herman, Ida and Maude had sold or given all their sharesfrom Mac and Marina to other members of the family and these shares all eventually wentto Tom through purchases, gifts or inheritance.

Completely apart from the shares in the large properties, at the time of his death Tom owned two small lots on a cliff top in Oranjestadt that he had bought as an investment.

Tom passed away in 1982. His will stipulated that his estate wasto be divided equally amongsix of his nieces (or their children, if they had passed away.) Five of these 1/6 shares went to the five daughters of Mamie Darrell and the other 1/6 share went to the children of the daughter of Etta Beaujon. Tom had written several times that he felt it was unfortunate Ida and Maude, to whom Mamie and Etta had given their inheritances, never realized any value from these gifts and, therefore, that property should be returned to Mamie and Etta’s descendants. His choice of heirs may have been his attempt to remedy this.

110/6/2018