A room hidden from the public and historians alike has been discovered on the Queen Mary by a maintenance crew. The 1,500 square foot space wowed Historic Resources Adviser John Thomas who says the room was used to hoist the ship's massive anchors.
"We need to get the public's eyes on this. This is an incredible area of the ship," Thomas told KFI's Kris Ankarlo.
In a post on Facebook, a spokesperson said the room was discovered in 'pristine' condition.
We rediscovered a room, in nearly pristine condition, that was chock full of massive equipment, gears and motors that had probably not been seen in decades, maybe since the renovation in the late ‘60’s. This mechanical space located beneath the Forecastle contains the original power equipment handling the anchors, each weighing in at 16 tons, as well as warping gear that served the Queen Mary’s impressive anchor deployment retraction system. As the pictures attached here show, this room is a true glimpse into history, demonstrating the engineering marvel that the Queen Mary was when she sailed the high seas, and letting us know that the last remaining ocean liner of its day still has a few surprises in store!
Workers were conducting repairs of a bathroom on the ship's A-deck above the main visitor entrance when they discovered a locked door that led them to the hidden space.
The Facebook post goes on to state that Urban Commons (the company that holds the lease on the Queen Mary, and manages operations on the ship and the area surrounding it) is working on preserving and restoring the rediscovered equipment.