Miriam Walmsley Cooper | tugster: a waterblog

You might have known that I had the good fortune to gallivant most of last week, and it’s tough to gallivant without recording some images. I took several hundred photos, and not only of boats and ships. As with infants, humans in unfamiliar places detect patterns, familiar details.

Pattern recognition kicked in when I glanced across the Mississippi toward the Algiers side and saw Bouchard colors, although a little digging yielded info that Robert J. Bouchard, name notwithstanding, is now a Centerline Logistics vessel. I suppose she’ll be painted soon. Robert J. has worked in the sixth boro, but the most recent time she appeared on this blog was over 12 years ago here.

Dann Ocean colors are also familiar, but the profile is as well. Rodney is one of several formerly Moran boats dating from class of 1975. Rodney at one time was Sheila Moran. Of that same class, Moran’s Heide is now Dann Ocean’s Helen and Moran’s Joan is now Dann Ocean’s Roseada. There may be others I’m unaware of, like the barge Carolina.

“Diaspora” refers to those who depart from a location, and they should be distinguished from the incoming (I’m wondering if there’s a word for them more general than immigrant) . And as I understand it, Courageous, downbound here a few days ago on the Mississippi, was on its delivery and will be arriving in the sixth boro early this week, maybe today. I didn’t notice her on AIS, but FB reports her departing Charleston SC for the sixth boro yesterday, Sunday. She’s sister vessel to Commodore, involved in a mishap this past summer.

I’d never have guessed that Crescent’s Miriam Walmsley Cooper had a sixth boro connection, but a little digging shows the 1958 boat once worked in the boro as Harry M. Archer M. D., an FDNY boat. Anyone have a photo of her in FDNY colors? Was she single screw already then?

I saw a pattern in the photo below because another formerly huge Bouchard tug saw transformation in the same drydock, Donna J. Bouchard to Centerline’s Robin Marie.

As it turned out, this was the former Kim M. Bouchard, now to be Lynn M. Rose. Her eventual appearance will match Susan Rose.

And it appears that next in line for rehab and transformation, Robert J. will become a Centerline vessel as well.

All photos last week, WVD, who is happy to be back in the boros, any of the six.

Gallivants are intended to stimulate change, a path forward for which I’m seeking. How strange it was then when I exchanged business cards with a Nola gentleman yesterday and his card was in the form of a Tarot card; it was Death, the Grim Reaper signifying imminent major change in one’s life. The old has to die for rebirth to be possible, like with plants.

Speaking of change, the calendar year too is about to change and in preparation, I recently created a 2022 calendars, of which 15 are left for sale. I’m expecting the shipment will arrive at Tugster Tower shipping office today. More details later but if you’re interested, email me your interest and your address. Send no money at this time, please, but prices will likely be up a tad because, of course, (fill in the blank here with your favorite scapegoat).

Unrelated: Grain de Sail is back in the boro, their third time calling here in less than a year.

Crescent has fleets in at least three southern cities, and I’ve featured some of them previously here.

Providence, built 1953, has quite some history in the Northeast, including the sixth boro. Port Allen was built in NYC at Consolidated in 1945, and Angus R. Cooper dates from 1965.