Facts About "The Queen Mary" Ship
"The Queen Mary" has been both a cruise liner and a wartime vessel. Now a tourist attraction in Long Beach, Calif., it lures visitors with its rich history, the sumptuous rooms in its hotel, educational attractions and a taste of the macabre via ghost stories and phantom activity.
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Origins
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The Queen Mary was the brainchild of the Cunard Cruise Line, a British-American company founded in 1839, when Samuel Cunard secured a transatlantic contract. The following year, he formed the British and North American Royal Mail Steam-Packet Company. During the 1920s, the Cunard line began to plan a series of lavish ocean liners that would be able to provide weekly service between England and New York City, an endeavor that would lead to the launching of the Queen Mary.
Pre-World War II
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Movie stars Mary Pickford and Clark Gable sailed on the Queen Mary. In 1931, work began on the Queen Mary at England's Southampton dry docks but was halted by the end of that year when the Depression had a domino effect on the global economy. Construction resumed in 1934. On May 25, 1936, the liner had a royal visit. King Edward VIII, Queen Mary, Princess Elizabeth (who would become Queen Elizabeth II), the Duke and Duchess of Kent, the Duchess of Gloucester and the Duke and Duchess of York visited the finished ship and the Queen presented her personal standard, affirming the ship's name. Two days later, the ship set sail on its maiden voyage. During these early glory days of travel, the Queen Mary's star-studded passenger list include Mary Pickford, the Duke and Duchess of Windsor and Clark Gable.
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World War II
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During World War II, the ship became a wartime vessel. The ship's days of grandeur halted on March 21, 1940 when the Queen Mary set sail to Sydney, Australia from New York City to be revamped as a warship. Originally the liner was intended to house 2,140 passengers. After its wartime refurbishment, it was set to quarter 5,500 soldiers. According to the Queen Mary's time line on the official website, on a voyage that started on May 11, 1942, it was the first time that a ship had transported more than 10,000 passengers at once. The passenger list consisted of 9,880 soldiers and 875 crew members. In August of the same year, the Queen Mary was the first vessel to transport a complete division, the First Armored Infantry Division, that totaled 15,125 troops. The Queen Mary's wartime fame was cemented in 1943 when the ship sailed from New York City with 5,000 German prisoners of war and Winston Churchill on board. By the time the war ended, it was estimated that the Queen Mary transported 800,000 people and covered 600,000 miles.
Post-World War II
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On July 31, 1947, the Queen Mary returned to vacationing civilians. However, with air flights becoming more common, transatlantic cruise ships began to wane in popularity. By the 1950s, Queen Mary's future looked bleak, according to the ocean-liners website. In April, 1966, the Cunard Line put the Queen Mary on the market. On July 27, 1967, the city of Long Beach purchased the ship for $3.45 million, to revamp the vessel into a hotel and museum. After stopping at such ports of call as Rio de Janeiro and Acapulco, the Queen Mary arrived on California's shoreline that December. In 1972, the first 150 rooms opened. By 1993, another 365 rooms debuted.
Identification
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The Queen Mary's hotel has 314 staterooms and eight suites. The Art Deco decor, a style noted for its sharp colors and eye-catching geometric shapes, has been carefully maintained. Other highlights include the Britannia Salon, with a parquet dance floor and original art work; the 4,600-square-foot Queen's Salon complete with golden onyx fireplaces and parquet dance floor; and the Board Room, with paintings detailing England's seafaring history. The five-deck Exhibit Hall, now used for entertainment, once housed the forward engine room, the number-five boiler room, the pantry for the main galley and the ship's hospital.
Attractions
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In addition to its Art Deco éclat and grandeur, the Queen Mary tempts tourists with daily ghost tours. Despite the fact that the first-class swimming pool has been drained and dormant for the last three decades, women in vintage swimming suits have been seen strolling around the deck and wet footprints have been spotted. During the Queen Mary's early days, a young girl named Jackie drowned in the second-class pool. Since then, her voice has been heard near the scene of her death. In the majestic Queen's Salon, a lady in a 1930s evening gown has been seen dancing alone. Annual events on the Queen Mary include a New Year's Eve fete, February's Scottish festival that celebrates the ship's ties to Scotland and September's Art Deco festival that educates visitors about the artistic movement and its presence on the ship.
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References
- Photo Credit queen mary 2 image by Roy from Fotolia.com c�?¡mara_0204. image by torugo from Fotolia.com date of the beginning of world war ii image by Alexey Klementiev from Fotolia.com
