Capt. Jacques Cartier - here we go again

We are stuck with historical characters  - warts and all - whether we like it or not. Denying that these characters existed doesn't work - sweeping them under the carpet is not possible. Nor is it desirable to keep them in the spotlight by glorifying them despite their defects, faults and obedience to cultural norms of the time.
Nevertheless there must be ways of naming ships without being controversial!

The Canadian Coast Guard has "put its foot in it" again with the choice of names for the latest offshore fisheries science vessel . CCGS Capt Jacques Cartier [there is no period after the abbreviated "captain" in the ship's official name*] recognizes the French navigator, cartographer, explorer and colonizer of the early 1500s. It is Cartier we have to thank for being Canada (he misunderstood the Iroquoian word kanata meaning village to mean the entire country).  The ship arrived at BIO March 6 for the first time after completion by Seaspan.

Capt Jacques Cartier at its new home at BIO.

There is no disputing Cartier's navigating skills - he charted much of the Gulf of St. Lawrence and St. Lawrence River for the first time and never lost a ship. His relations with indigenous people were mixed, particularly after he attempted the first year-round colonies near Quebec. Even though those same people saved Cartier and his crews from scurvy by sharing the recipe for what was likely spruce beer, he managed to alienate them by claiming the land for the King of France (as he was ordered to do.)

The CCGS had to use the term "Capt" because there was already a Jacques-Cartier registered in Canada.




That significant ship has born the name since 1924, and is a virtual floating landmark. See my Navigation Quebec blog http://navigationquebec.blogspot.com/2015/10/post-2-jacques-cartier.html.
That particular ship has been laid up for several years and was to be brought back into service this year, but that is certainly in doubt now due to the pandemic. Nevertheless do we need two ships named for this man?

Coast Guard ship naming policy requires that sizable ships in the Offshore Oceanographic or Fishing Science category are to be named for "former Canadian scientists or explorers of Canada." To me that means that scientists should be the first choice. Surely the name of a former Canadian scientist could be found, perhaps Sir Frederick Banting? [No scientists are perfect either.]

I know I am "famous" for carping about ships names, but the current policy is not only subject to political interference, but brings the Coast Guard and the federal government into disrepute by its poor, and in some cases thoughtless, choices. Naming ships after people has to be dangerous territory. Why not name ships after species of fish or marine life? One of the ships to be replaced in the current program is the Teleost named uncontroversially after the large class of ray-finned fishes. There are apparently 26,000 species in that group - lots of name choices there!

The other ship is named - wait for it - a former distinguished scientist, Dr. Alfred Needler CM, OBE, FRSC.

CCGS Alfred Needler, built in 1981 was named for a noted scientist.

*Another curiosity about Capt Jacques Cartier's name is that despite being named after a Breton, and resident of St-Malo, France, the name on the ship is rendered "en anglais".  A ship named after a person, in current French usage, should have a hyphen between the first and last names. The abbreviation "Capt" is presumably supposed to do double duty for Captain and Capitaine, but it would also be followed by a hyphen if rendered according to French usage. Interestingly the other ship named for the same explorer has had a hyphen since 1924.

Names for the other two ships in the series Sir John Franklin and John Cabot (aka Zuan Chabotto) are somewhat less controversial choices.

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Long Weekend Roundup

Thanks to an interruption of internet service from March 23 to 28, I was unable to post my usual weekend round up until now. Here are the highlights on a better late than never basis:

The Atlantic RoRo Carriers ship Warnow Star made its first Halifax call on Good Friday March 25, no doubt discharging Its usual cargo of  depleted radioactive material. ARRCC ships usually make only a brief call of a few hours, but this time it remained over night and sailed on Saturday.

After leaving Fairview Cove Warnow Star lines up for the MacKay bridge on a windy morning.

The ship was built in 2010 by Zhejiang Ouhu Shipbuilding Co in Zhoushan, China and carries four 60 tonne cranes. It measures 22,863 grt, 33,150 dwt. It is a sister of Warnow Sun that was in port February 28-29, but for some reason is not listed on the Atlantic RoRo Carriers web site, nor does it appear to be owned by ARRC of Hoboken, NJ, but by Atlantic Ship Manangerment of Odessa, Ukraine.
As I mentioned before the Warnow name comes from Warnowerft yard in Warnemunde were ARCC's Astrakhan class RoRos were built.[see below for more Warnow.]


A rare visit of a bulk carrier took place on Saturday March 26. JS Missouri was on its way to Baie-Comeau and stopped in for bunkers.  The ship will be loading grain in Baie-Comeau and the crew was busy cleaning and airing the holds, so the ship arrived looking a bit like an accordion as the hatch covers were cracked open.

JS Missouri strides in to port with anchor ready to let go, and hatches ajar.

The 35,812 grt, 63,500 dwt bulker came from the Yangzhou Dayang shipyard in Yangzhou, China in 2013. It flies the Singapore flag for Greenship Bulk Manager Pte Ltd of the same port. Sister ship JS Sanaga called in Sheet Harbour March 15.


Also a rare sight these days is an Indian flagged ship. The tanker Swarna Mala is a typical handysize product tanker built by STX in Jinhae, South Korea. It was laid down for Greek owners as Zefiros,  but SCI purchased it "on the stocks" and it was launched and delivered as Swarna Mala.

The ship's typical handysize measurements are 29,993 grt, 51,196 dwt.

It has been a long time since the bicycle wheel funnel mark has been seen in this port.


The Shipping Corporation of India was once a frequent caller in the general cargo ship days, and operated its own cargo liner route under the Scindia label. The ships all had names begining with "Jala".
 

Jalamani was built in 1970 by VEB Warnowerft in Warnemunde, East Germany It carried one 60 ton jumbo derrick and sixteen 10 ton derricks on bi-pod masts. It measured  9556 grt, 13814 dwt and was broken up in Calcutta in October 1986. It is shown at what is now navy pier Bravo, but was then a National Harbours Board pier in the spring of 1971.


Back from mid-life refit at the Davie Quebec yard, CCGS Earl Grey was tied up at BIO on Easter Sunday.

Earl Grey joins Louis St-Laurent at BIO, filling up available pier space.

 

The Canadian Coast Guard is planning a major Search and Rescue exercise off Nova Scotia this week and CCGS Sir Wilfred Grenfell came in from Newfoundland to participate. There was no room at BIO so it tied up at pier 9A.

 Sir Wilfred Grenfell at pier 9A this afternoon.

The Newfoundland based Teleost was also in Halifax recently as was the Cape Roger.

Teleost sailed on Friday March 25.

Arriving Easter Sunday morning, Wilhelmsen's Talia proceeded directly to Autoport. However Autoport is so full of new cars that unloading took much longer than normal as each car had to be driven a much greater distance to a remote storage facility. Demand for cars is so high in Canada (with low interest rates and lengthy payment periods) that it is hard to keep up with demand.

CN which owns and operates Autoport and also provides the rail service to move the cars inland has had some weather challenges this winter, but it is more  the shear volume of imports that is stretching their ability to move the cars out.

Talia dates from 2006 when it was built by Gdynia Shipyard in Poland. Its capacity is listed as 6,658 cars in Lloyd's but 6500 on Wilhelmsen's site. Its gross tonnage is 57,692 and deadweight tonnage is 21,021.

Talia was finally able to sail Tuesday afternoon March 29 - surely a lengthy stay! It will be followed almost immediately by Manon with more of the same.

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