1929-1936 1936-1943 1943-1966 1967-1980 1983-1997 Queen Mary Statistics Titanic vs. Queen Mary

Queen Mary History: 1936 - 1943

• May 27, 1936: The Queen Mary departs Southampton at 4:33 p.m. on her maiden voyage, arriving in at Cherbourg, France at 8:47 p.m. and departing at 12:39 a.m. the following morning.

• June 1, 1936: Arrival at Pier 90 in New York at 4:20 p.m. Crossing time (Bishop Rock to Ambrose Light Vessel): 5 days, 5 hours and 13 minutes.

• August 19 - 31, 1936: On her sixth round-trip voyage, The Queen Mary wins the Blue Riband for the fastest North Atlantic crossings from the French Line's Normandie. The Normandie won the honor back in 1937.

• October 8, 1938: Docked without the aid of tugboats in New York, by Commodore Irving. Voyage #53 west.

• August 3 - 15, 1938: Won the Blue Riband back from the Normandie on her 48th round-trip voyage. Held it for 14 years, until July 1952, when the SS United States beat the record.
  

• August 30, 1939: Departed Southampton on final peacetime voyage, carrying her largest number of passengers: 2,552, including Mr. & Mrs. Bob Hope and million in gold bullion.

• September 2, 1939: Crew members black out ship's portholes.

• September 3, 1939: England and France declare war on Germany.

• September 4, 1939: Queen Mary arrives in New York.

• March 21, 1940: Departs New York for Sydney, Australia, to be fitted as a troopship. Accommodations increased from 2,140 to 5,500.

• May 5, 1940: First voyage as a troop transport. Sailed in convoy with AQUITANIA, MAURETANIA (II), EMPRESS OF BRITAIN, EMPRESS OF CANADA, and EMPRESS OF JAPAN, from Sydney, Australia, to Gourock, Scotland, with 5,500 troops.

• August 5 - September 16, 1940: Dry docked in Singapore. Paravanes fitted.

• December 13, 1940: Degaussing strip installed in Sydney.

• April 9, 1941: In convoy with QUEEN ELIZABETH and MAURETANIA (II) from Sydney to Suez, and return.

• January 27 - February 8, 1942: Hull damaged while entering dry dock in Boston Naval Shipyard. Troop capacity increased.

• February 18 - March 28, 1942: "40 DAYS AND 40 NIGHTS" voyage from Boston to Sydney, Australia. First time Queen Mary carried American troops (8,398 troops, 905 crew).

• May 11 - 16, 1942: First time more than 10,000 persons had traveled on any ship (9,880 troops, 875 crew).

• August 2 - 7, 1942: First time a complete division was carried on any ship. First Armored Infantry Division (15,125 troops, 863 crew).

• October 2, 1942: Queen Mary collides with British light cruiser CURACOA. 70 tons of cement are used to temporarily patch the bow in Gourock, Scotland.

• October 14 - November 2, 1942: Dry docked in Boston Naval Shipyard to install a new more permanent bow piece.

• December 23, 1942- April 22, 1943: "THE LONG VOYAGE" from Gourock, to the Suez, Sydney, Australia, and return to Gourock. Total mileage: 37,943 miles. Ship transferred to Atlantic Ocean.

• May 5 - 11, 1943: Winston Churchill transported from Gourock to New York, to meet with President Roosevelt. 5,000 German prisoners of war were also on board.

• July 25 - 30, 1943: Carried the greatest number of souls on a floating vessel: 15,740 troops, 943 crew. Total: 16,683.