The building of the Dutch floating sheerleg Walcheren and her sale to the Soviet Union according to the Dutch newspaper Nieuwsblad voor Gorinchem en Omstreken dated Wednesday 16 July 1947

An item reported that the day before in the afternoon at the shipyard IJsselwerf of Bijker’s Aannemingsbedrijf N.V. the Walcheren one of the largest floating cranes ever built in the Netherlands. She was built for the shipyard De Schelde at Flushing. Maximum lift capacity was 250 ton and maximum working height of 22 metres. Using the top tackle was she able to lift a weight of 25 ton to a height of 53 metres. Captain and engineer had each their own living- and bedroom while for the other crewmembers 4-2 persons cabins and a mess available were. She was launched at 15.44 o’clock and further towed by the tug Jo.

The archive of the shipyard De Schelde 1875-1970 (Gemeentearchief Flushing 214) inv.no. 557 supplies more details. Her building was ordered in January 1945 to be used for salvaging wrecks and lifting bridges. The dimensions of the pontoon were 35 x 15¾ x 3-3,5 (height) metres with a displacement of 1164,45 tons (full loaded). The main crane could lift to a height of 23 metres and had a maximum range of 18,5 metres. The top arm could lift to a height of 53 metres and had a maximum range of 35,3 metres. The pontoon was built by Bijkers at Gorinchem, the structure, winches and boiler were manufactured by the shipyard De Schelde.(1) On 19 April 1945 started what was called the depreciable work. On 8 December was the first transport with material sent to Bijkers and her keel was laid down in March a year later. On 30 September 1948 was she tested in the presence of a Polish commission interested in buying her. Due to an accident was she not sold.(2) She received in the meantime allready her Polish name Bartosz Between 29 October and 4 November 1949 was she investigated by a Soviet commission. At the shipway of the Firm Boele at Bolnes was she docked between 21 and 23 November 1949.

In inv.no. 655 are more details available dealing with the sale to the Soviet Union making clear that already in May between the yard and Machino-Import at Moscow negotiations were going on. In several letters were the technical demands discussed. On 25 May was the Soviet trade representative invited to inspect the floating crane on Friday 3^rd June. On 26 July the USSR offered for the crane complete with two Harbormaster-units fitted to the pontoon to pay 1.000.000 Dutch guilders. The crane was to dismantled for the journey over sea included assembling in the USSR again. The board of the shipyard refused however this offer asking 200.000 guilders more and another 33.000 US dollars for the harbourmaster units. On 24 October was with the trade representative a test program discussed which should executed between 29 October and 3 November. Of these test are the results preserved. Present for Machine Import were Hangaldian, Teleguine and Egorov. On 23 November visited the captains of the icebreaker Ilja Murometz and the tug Appolon the shipyard at Gorinchem to inspect the ‘Floating Shirleg no. 238’. However she was not ready for delivery or transport. Finally the Dutch towing company L. Smit&Co’s Internationale Sleepdienst was contracted to tow her from Rotterdam towards Leningrad or Libau to depart before or on Wednesday 14 December that year. De Dutch tug De Schelde indeed left that day with the crane towards Kiel, Germany where she was to be replaced by the tug Ganges. On 31 December wrote the towing company that she was still off Helsinki. Leningrad adviced in the meantime to go Tallinn regarded the worse weather conditions. In January was she towed from Helsinki to Tallinn.In 1948 was indeed negotiated with Polymex (Polsike Towarsystwo Eksportowo Importowe Maszyn i Narzedi) of Warshaw of buying the crane for an sum of 1.500.000 Dutch guilders. Although she was sold to Poland the actual transfer was never executed.

The newspaper Provinciale Zeeuwsche Courant dated 24 November 1949 reported the arrival of the Russian icebreaker Ilya Muhomets and the Russian tug Apollon at Rotterdam coming from Austria. They waited in the Waalhaven there for the floating crane built at Gorinchem by a subsidiary firm of the shipyard De Schelde which was to be sold to Russia. Both Russian vessels were to take over the towing from smaller tugs and to tow her towards Leningrad where she was to be used in the harbour works.

Notes

1. In the collection documentation of the same shipyard (block 500) inv.no. 186 are documents available with more technical specifications.

2. The nieuwsblad voor Gorinchem en Omstreken dated Friday 1 October 1948 reported that there were trials going on a with the lifting capacity of a floating crane without supplying her name. On last Thursday broke the arm due to lifting a too heavy weight. There were none people hurt.