Motorschip Verandering

The Verandering was built at one of the many shipyards in Boom on the Scheldt in Belgium for 'stone sailing' and was launched on 22 January 1914. The ship then had a dwelling at the front and a small wheelhouse at the back, above the engine room. She also had a round wooden hatch hood, typical of Belgian ships of the time. Dutch ships usually had a pointed hatch hood.

The dimensions of the Verandering are peculiar, but the 28.18 x 4.84 metres she measures is probably based on the locks that were prevalent in the sailing area. The ship has had several engines in her existence, but started with a Kromhout of only 35 hp. She has also had all kinds of names such as Joseph V, the Future, Mathilde, Eldria, Gerta II, and so now she is called Change.

At the end of the Second World War, Verandering passed into Dutch hands and after a few years, modifications came, including the installation of a deckhouse (small dwelling) and a large wheelhouse. The Verandering was mainly used for sand and gravel shipping and equipped with a 'self-unloader', which meant the skipper could always unload his cargo himself without the help of a crane on shore. Working with a self-unloader meant that someone stood at the barge in the hold and someone else operated the winch to unload the cargo from the ship. The sailing area then was mainly Belgium and Limburg.

When there was an increasing need for larger volumes in cargo shipping, it was decided to deepen the ship. This meant adding a 60-centimetre strip of height to it. The ship went into 'wild sailing', which meant taking in various types of cargo to be delivered throughout the Netherlands and Belgium. The round hood was taken off and the ship was fitted with a so-called 'Frisian' hood based on the Dutch model. The cargo that went into it could be anything; rolls of iron, tree trunks, fodder, fertiliser, salt, scrap iron, cement, etc. In those days, skippers mostly got their cargoes through the 'skippers' exchange'; a place where everyone had to register and wait their turn for a cargo.

In 1970, the ship was converted into a houseboat and from 1992, the current owner started refurbishing the Verandering. Nothing had changed since the 1950s, so everything was old and worn. That the ship is treated with a sense of history is clear to see, because the current appearance, despite living under the hatches, still suggests that cargo is sailed on it.