Susan Batt (née Neave)

Awarded the compensation for Galways estate on Montserrat as proprietor; she was the widow of John Thomas Batt (q.v.) and daughter of James Neave of Nunton, from whom ownership appears to have descended.

1. Galways estate has been the subject of much historical and archaeological work on Montserrat, resulting in a continuous history of the estate which shows ownership passing to James Neave in 1775: he was identified by the researchers as the son of the founder of the London firm of Neave and Willet, which had lent money to Henry Dyer to modernise the estate.

2. In 1841 Susan Batt aged 70 was living at South Audley Street with Sophia Neave aged 65, both Independent, with a dozen or so servants. Will of Susan Batt widow of Nunton Wiltshire proved 24/02/1843.

3. James Phipps Shiell was described as Attorney to the representatives of James Neave deceased in a certificate dated 30/01/1824 concerning the identity of runaway slaves returned to Montserrat.

4. The link made above to Neave and Willet of London suggests that James Neave of Nunton (d. c. 1794) was probably connected with Sir Richard Neave (q.v.) of London and Dagnam Park, although the nature of the connection has not yet been made.

5. John Thomas Batt (q.v.) of New Hall Wiltshire (c. 1746-8 March 1831) is in Rubinstein, reference 1831/5. Described as barrister and 'Auditor of Irish Accounts', and noted to be living at No. 12 South Audley Street in 1811. J. T. Batt was the husband of Susan Batt; he had married Susan, daughter of James Neave of Nunton 14/01/1794; intimate friend of Horace Walpole and the Misses Berry; executor of Edward Gibbon and of William Markham, Archbishop of Canterbury.

6. By 1870, New Hall belonged to Major-General Buckley; Buckley was the grand-nephew of William Batt, J. T. Batt's uncle. New Hall (enlarged, possibly replaced 1792, attributed to James Wyatt) and Nunton House appear to have flowed through the Batt family to John Thomas Batt.

1. Lydia M. Pulsipher and Conrad “Mac” Goodwin, with contributions from Jean Howson, '"Getting the essence of it": Galways plantation, Montserrat, West Indies', http://www.academia.edu/5702701/Getting_the_Essence_of_It_Galways_Plantation_Montserrat [accessed 31/12/2014].

2. 1841 census online; PROB 11/1974.

3. http://alangullette.com/lit/shiel/family/Shiell_Matthew_Dowdy.htm [accessed 13/04/2010]. For Galways estate, see e.g. Lydia Pulsipher, 'A proposal for knowledge-based tourism in Montserrat' [www.cavehill.uwi.edu/bnccde/montserrat/conference/papers/pulsipher.html acccessed 13/04/2010.

4. William Betham, The Baronetage of England (5 vols., London, E. Lloyd, 1802-1805), Vol. 4 pp. 297-99.

5. William D. Rubinstein, Who were the rich? A biographical dictionary of British wealth-holders Volume One 1809-1839 (London, Social Affairs Unit, 2009) reference 1831/5; Ancestry.com, Old Westminsters, up to 1927 [database online].

6. John Marius Wilson, Imperial Gazeteer of England and Wales (1870-1872), Nunton-with-Bodenham; Victoria County History, Wiltshire Vol. 11, 1980, which also gives Susan Batt's date of death as 1843.