'Junella' GY.28, sailing from Grimsby 1949

A rare detail from an original 2¼-inch square negative showing the steam trawler 'Junella' GY.28. The photograph was taken during the remarkably brief period in 1949 when the vessel carried both the name 'Junella' and her new Grimsby registration, GY.28.

Built in 1947 by Cochrane & Sons of Selby for J. Marr & Son of Hull, the 550-ton trawler initially carried the Hull registration H.497. She was sold to the Alsey Steam Fishing Co. of Grimsby on 11 April 1949 and registered at Grimsby as GY.28 on 29 April 1949, while retaining the name 'Junella'. She was renamed 'Kirknes' on 4 November 1949, before becoming 'Ross Hunter' GY.28 in 1960. She was broken up in Blyth in 1963/1964.

This photograph is therefore especially significant: it captures GY.28 during the short-lived interval when the trawler was still named 'Junella'. The survival of an original negative showing this particular combination of name and registration appears to be exceptionally rare.

The image has an added resonance today. GY28 is now the name of Grimsby's bid to become UK Town of Culture 2028, deliberately taking its name from the GY registration letters historically painted on Grimsby fishing vessels, with “28” referring both to a trawler number and the target year, 2028. Grimsby is currently one of 15 towns shortlisted for the inaugural title and one of four shortlisted in the large-town category.

Collection: Grimsby & Cleethorpes Museum Original: 2¼-inch square negative Date: 1949