Just Cruises Plus

  -This ship holds the record for most people carried on a single voyage (16,683).

  -Over her career, 49 people have died on board and some of their ghosts are said to be on board today.

-One of the most often seen (and photographed) spirits is of John Pedder who was crushed to death by a closing watertight door. 

The correct response is the RMS Queen Mary.  Congratulations to Walter Baker of Warminster, PA whose name was randomly selected from the 23 who answered correctly.

RMS Queen Mary was a transatlantic ocean liner that sailed  from 1936 to 1967 for the Cunard Line (known as Cunard-White Star when the vessel entered service).  This ship was built along with her running mate, RMS Queen Elizabeth, as part of Cunard’s planned two-ship weekly express service between Southampton, Cherbourg and New York City.

Queen Mary was officially retired from service in 1967.   In October of that year, she sailed from Southampton to the port of Long Beach, California where she has become a permanent attraction featuring restaurants, a museum and hotel.  In her current space, she has has struggled through multiple owners/operators.  She shares dock space with a Russian submarine.

Following Queen Mary’s permanent docking in California, the ship became a subject of rumors that it was haunted. Anecdotal reports of paranormal activity have included children crying in the nursery room, once used as the third-class playroom, and a mysterious splashing noise in the drained first-class swimming pool. In 1966, 18-year-old engineer John Pedder was crushed by a watertight door in the engine room during a fire drill, and his ghost is said to haunt the ship. One of the most “haunted” spots of the ship is Cabin B340, which is aparently no longer rented out due to the extreme paranormal activity, which is believed to be the result of the murder of an 8 year old girl.

 

Other Interesting Tidbits

 

 – RMS Queen Mary held  the “Blue Riband” transatlantic speed record in 1936, gave it up temporarily to France’s beautiful and tragically short-lived Normandie, regained it in 1938 and held it until 1952 when the SS United States took it from her.

– In 1942, off the Irish coast, Queen Mary accidentally sliced through one of her escort ships, the light cruiser HMS Curacoa, resulting in a loss of 239 lives. Queen Mary was carrying thousands of American troops of the 29th Infatry Division to join the Allied forces in Europe.  Due to the risk of U-boat attacks, she was under orders not to stop under any circumstances and steamed onward with a fractured stem. 

 – She was used in The Poseidon Adventure (the original movie).  In fact, the story was based on a true episode in the life of the Queen Mary.  She was hit broadside by a rogue wave and nearly capsized.  She was carrying 16,082 American troops at the time.