HauntBound archive · catalog record
Reported phenomena, as catalogued
+ 5 further entries on record
The Grey Ghost: 1,000 Feet of Atlantic History
1126 Queens Hwy, Long Beach, CA 90802
Research updated October 2026
Age
All Ages (Paranormal Ship Walk 13+; Graveyard Tour 16+)
Cost
$$
General Admission $45 adult / $40 child (includes one guided tour). Off-Hours Admission is $15 for all ages. Paranormal Ship Walk $69 (ages 12+). Graveyard Tour priced separately. Hotel stays vary.
Access
Limited Access
Steel decks, stairs, narrow passageways throughout historic ship
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1934 · WWII Military Service · Blue Riband Atlantic Record · National Historic Landmark Candidate · Maritime Heritage
Construction on the Queen Mary began December 1, 1930, at the John Brown & Company shipyard in Clydebank, Scotland. The Great Depression halted work between 1931 and 1934; the ship was finally launched September 26, 1934, completing her maiden voyage to New York on May 27, 1936. In August of that year she captured the Blue Riband for the fastest Atlantic crossing.
When Britain declared war in September 1939, the liner was converted into a troopship and repainted battleship grey — earning the nickname 'The Grey Ghost' for her ability to outrun submarines. By the war's end she had carried an estimated 810,000 soldiers and traveled over 600,000 miles. On July 25–30, 1943, she set a still-standing record by carrying 16,683 people on a single crossing.
The war years produced the ship's most documented tragedies. On October 2, 1942, the Queen Mary accidentally sliced through her escort vessel HMS Curacoa off the Irish coast, killing 338 men. Under strict wartime orders prohibiting stops that might expose her to U-boats, the Queen Mary continued without turning back. In the engine room, at least two crew members were killed by watertight Door 13 during separate drills — a heavy automated door that closed with fatal speed.
After the war, the ship completed 13 'Bride and Baby Voyages,' transporting European war brides and their children to North America. The Cunard line retired her from transatlantic service in 1967; Long Beach, California purchased her for $3.45 million and she arrived in port in December of that year after a 39-day final voyage.
Following a closure during the COVID-19 pandemic beginning May 2020, the ship formally reopened to the public on April 1, 2023. The City of Long Beach currently operates her as a hotel, museum, and event venue. In February 2025, Long Beach approved a partnership with the Queen Mary Heritage Foundation for ongoing restoration work.
Sources
The engine room corridor leading to Door 13 is the most consistently reported location for paranormal phenomena on the ship. The heavy watertight door killed at least two crew members — including an 18-year-old during a door drill in 1966 — and investigators have since documented anomalous sounds and shadow figures in the corridor. Staff and guests arriving before other passengers have reported a figure in blue coveralls near the door before it opens to visitors.
The first-class swimming pool has generated the most public interest. Investigators have logged auditory phenomena — water sounds, laughter, footsteps in wet tile — in a pool that has held no water since the 1960s. A child, identified in recurring accounts as 'Jackie,' is most associated with the second-class pool. Paranormal investigator Cher Garman found no historical records of any drowning in either pool; the backstory attached to Jackie appears to have developed organically through successive investigations rather than from any documentary source.
Room B340 accumulated a reputation for cover-pulling and shadow figures standing at the foot of the bed. Investigation of the legend's origins found it likely dates to the Disney era of the 1980s and early 1990s, when cast members developed it as an entertainment piece. Despite this, the room remained closed for roughly 30 years before reopening on April 13, 2018.
The Queen's Salon produces recurring accounts of a dark-haired woman in a white evening gown seen dancing, then absent when observers approach. Additional reports describe a dark-haired man in 1930s attire in first-class staterooms and an infant's cry in the children's playroom.
The ship has accumulated more than 600 documented paranormal reports since opening as a hotel. It has appeared in multiple paranormal investigation television programs, which have contributed to and complicated the evidentiary record.
Notable Entities
Media Appearances
A daily one-hour guided introduction to the Queen Mary's paranormal residents — the young girl heard laughing near the second-class pool, the crew member in blue coveralls seen at engine room Door 13, and the woman in white glimpsed in the Queen's Salon. Non-scary in format; ideal for first-time visitors.
An after-hours walk through hidden rooms and compartments rarely open to the public — including areas near Door 13, where at least two crew members were crushed during the war years, and the first-class pool area, where temperature anomalies and auditory phenomena are frequently logged by investigators.
A two-hour late-night investigation through areas of the ship rarely accessible during standard visiting hours, focused on the most-documented paranormal reports: the engine room corridor near Door 13, the second-class pool, and lower crew quarters.
Two hundred staterooms restored to mid-century ocean liner style. Room B340 — reopened in April 2018 after roughly 30 years of closure — is bookable for those curious about its documented history of reported cover-pulling and shadow figures.
Access to 23+ exhibits covering the ship's 1936 Atlantic crossing career, WWII service as a troopship carrying 810,000 soldiers, and permanent mooring in Long Beach. The engine room walk-through passes Door 13, where the watertight-door accidents occurred.
Stay aboard the permanently moored 1936 Cunard liner. Restored first-class staterooms preserve the original Art Deco woodwork, ports, and shipboard fittings. Stateroom B340, restored to overnight booking in 2024 after years of closure, is the most-requested room for guests focused on paranormal history.
Multiple guided tour options cover the ship's engineering spaces, the WWII Gray Ghost troopship era, and the Art Deco public rooms. A separate Paranormal Ship Walk covers Stateroom B340, the first-class pool deck, and the engine room compartments most frequently reported.
Several restaurants and bars operate aboard the ship, including the upscale Sir Winston's, the Observation Bar Art Deco lounge, and the casual Promenade Cafe. Reservations recommended at Sir Winston's.
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