History of the Queen Mary
The RMS Queen Mary I was launched from Glasgow on May 27, 1936. It was retired from the Cunard Line in 1968 and in 1971 it was purchased by the city of Long Beach California. Today, it is permanently anchored and serves as a hotel and museum. During its active service, this ship carried thousands of troops across the Atlantic during World War II. It was nicknamed the “Grey Ghost” because it had to be painted grey as a camouflage for ocean crossings. After the war, the Queen Mary went back to a luxury liner carrying famous people like Sir Winston Churchill, members of the British Royal family and many movie stars.
Television Shows About the Queen Mary
Over the years, eyewitnesses report identical phenomena occurring in the same places. TV programs such as Most Haunted, Dead Famous, and Ghosts & Legends have conducted investigations, all bearing similar results. Psychic Peter James, the former ghost tour guide, identified over 150 separate entities and amazed tour participants with visual and auditory phenomena.
Shaft Alley on the Queen Mary
One of the most haunted places on the Queen Mary is in the engine room, known as “Shaft Alley”. An 18 year-old crew member was crushed in doorway number 13 when they were having a watertight door drill in 1966. Many eyewitnesses have seen the ghost of a bearded man wearing coveralls walking along Shaft Alley and disappearing at Door 13. Records show that the appearance and clothing of the ghost are the same as what the crew member was wearing the night he died.
The Queen Mary's Salon
Another frequent sighting is in The Queen’s Salon which was once the First Class lounge. Many people have seen a lovely young woman dressed in a white evening gown dancing alone in the shadows. At the front desk area of the hotel, a woman dressed in white is seen walking around and when she passes behind a pillar, she disappears. In the hotel lobby, piano music is heard but the grand piano’s lid is closed.
Queen Mary First Class Swimming Pool
The First Class Swimming Pool area is extremely active. There have been sightings of a lady walking around the balcony dressed in a 1930’s style bathing suit. It is believed she drowned in the pool. She also looks over the balcony wall to observe activities at the pool. Another sighting is a lady on the pool deck who drowned there in the 1960’s. Many psychics claim the swimming pool area is the vortex of the ship. A vortex is the place of entry for spirits from other realms. In the dressing room and pool deck, witnesses have seen wet footprints appear on the floor and dry up. The pool was drained when the ship was sold. You can view the pool on a web cam located at the Ghost & Legends website.
Walking Tours on the Queen Mary
Guests can take an inexpensive self-guided walking tour or pay for a more expensive investigative tour with psychic Erika Frost. The guided tour includes dinner with Erika and an exploration of areas not open to the general public. If you are a believer or a skeptic, the Queen Mary appears to be a place that can prove you right or wrong!
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Maureen K. Fleury - Maureen joined Suite101 in March 1999 as a Contributing Editor and worked her way up as a Managing Editor and Senior Managing Editor. In ...
