And to muddy the waters further, I photographed her in 83 and 87 at Rotterdam and have her as a Newsprint Carrier (LR 87-88 definition)

Hi Bob and Phil

Thanks for your comments and explanations. When I took the photo in 1982 she was classed as a bulker, so I'm describing the vessel as she was classed when the photo was taken.

The other photos of her on site were taken after she was renamed Menominee and then Kathryn Spirit and which, quite correctly for the dates of the photographs, class her as a general cargo ship.

I'm not sure retrospective changes of class should be applied to photographs taken nearly 30 years ago, surely the category that applies must be the one at the time the photo was taken. Otherwise we could end up with lots of older generation general cargo ships being classed as livestock carriers !!

Allan

Yes you are right Bob but it's not quite so simple. IACS tends to define ships using constructional rules. In the (real) commercial world, open hatch vessels are still bulk carriers, or OHBCs, such as here:
http://www.konecranes.co.uk/portal/eng/news?bid=451
and here:
https://www.q88.com/Abbreviations_O.aspx
It's also true that the 'modern' database I help compile at work uses the term open hatch bulk carrier.
However, for the purposes of this site, open hatchers will be categorized according to IACS/Equasis - i.e. general cargo ships.
Phil

Allan:
All the modern references and data-bases call this ship a general cargo ship and that is what the Admins quite rightly go by. So should you, I think, when contributing pics of open-hatchers to the site. Otherwise, I am sure the Admins will change it.
Since your 1989/90 Lloyd’s Register was printed, the IACS (International Association of Classification Societies) has changed their definition of open-hatch bulk carriers to general cargo ships.
They now define a bulk carrier as being a single-hulled ship with topside tanks. The open hatchers are now seen as double-hulled general cargo ships (because they do have double-skinned hulls and no top-side tanks).
So you can call it a bulker if you like but, officially, it is now a general cargo ship.
I did, however, hear a rumour a couple of years ago that the IACS was thinking about calling open-hatchers bulk carriers again but, as far as I know, it hasn’t happened.
Bob