The Queen Is Elegant

When you are an enthusiast for paranormal places and happen to be visiting Southern California, pretty much the main hotspot you will find in any online search is the Queen Mary- a luxury ship that has been docked in Long Beach for decades. Now a hotel and museum with classy rooms, timeless hallways, and so many exhibits to see, there is plenty of room to get lost and find yourself... or something else.
Music from an older era plays in the lobbies, helping to lend an antique feel to the environment. Stairways and corridors go on for hours, and one can easily find themselves in places they did not expect.

Some of us leave with fantastic experiences to store in the memory banks. Others leave in the middle of the night.




The lights of Long Beach are incredible from the bow. There is plenty on the surface to discover.  Preserved quarters of the captain and his mates, along with old communication rooms can be found in random places along the deck. There are perfect locations to watch sunset, smell a cool ocean breeze, and see where past ceremonies have occurred- such as this pavilion near the rear of the ship.

But upon further searching, I found that the room in which I had the least interest became the spot where I felt the most overwhelming energy.
A sense of fear pervaded my mind and body the moment I stepped into that darkness. A dim, greenish light shined in water down below where you could see the large propeller at rest. Around it were coins and floating dollar bills, as if people considered the room to be a wishing well. Perhaps it was my phobia of enclosed areas filled with water, or perhaps the stories of men who died in the propeller's grinding twist are not legends after all.
The moment I went around to the next entryway and exited back into the museum, I felt immediate relief.

Although the entire ship is said to be haunted in one way or another, the area where most evidence has been recorded would be the first class pool- said by some to be a gateway for entities. Now off limits for safety reasons, it was saddening to not be granted access and witness this area in all its eerie glory. The pool is currently under renovations to be returned to its original state and may open some time in the next year. Fingers crossed.
In the meantime, all we have to indulge our fascination is the locked doors leading inside.

I explored all night and could not decide if I should be happy or worried that people seemed to disappear after 1AM. When I finally did retire to the room I woke up hours later in one of the most chilling cold spells I have ever suffered. My travel companion had to wrap around me to stop the shivering, and even she became frozen trying to warm me.

What an amazing feeling when it subsided.

The next day we were allowed access to the infamous B340- a room surrounded by rumors and no shortage of paranormal tales involving death, poltergeist tampering, and activity so prominent that guests are no longer privileged to stay. We found a gutted, empty room. And we were not allowed to hang around long.

The paranormal tour was intriguing. It included the tale of a security guard who still works his shift there, even after a small child held up its arms then walked right through him.  The tour guide also mentioned ghosts in a front lobby area, the aforementioned propeller room, and the spirit of a man who was crushed in the engine room #13 door.

  It wasn't just the comfy accommodations and their cool portholes that allowed me to leave smiling the next day. It was not the surreal experience of a place that has long been on my bucket list. It was the thought and further realization of this strange world that, many times, the most elegant and gorgeous places also have plenty of ghosts to hide.

Have you visited the Queen Mary? We'd love to hear your experience.  Comment below to tell us all about it....

A.L.P.S. and Solano County Paranormal Explore Mare Island, California

INVESTIGATORS:

ANNA Hill

SCOTT WOLF

FAYE NAVARRO

DUSTIN MANSFIELD

CALVIN ANSTED

OLIVIA KEY

Angels of Light Paranormal Society teamed up with our good friends Scott and Beth Campbell and Melissa Rashid from Solano County Paranormal for a fun filled day at Mare Island.

Mare Island isn’t actually an island. It’s actually a peninsula, but that doesn’t make it any less impressive. It is located 25 miles northeast of San Francisco, California in the city of Vallejo.

Until 1996 it housed the Mare Island Naval Shipyard. It was the first US Navy base established on the Pacific Ocean. Shipbuilding operations actually began in 1854. 

The Naval Shipyard built over 500 sea-going vessels to include the USS Jupiter which was re-named the USS Langley when it was converted to be the first aircraft carrier, two battleships the USS California and USS Montana, as well as some of the first US nuclear powered submarines.

 

The First US Aircraft Carrier the USS Langley

Today the former Naval Shipyard is used by commercial businesses and government agencies. Some of the shipyard facilities, such as the dry docks, are still in use. It appears that very little has changed since it’s Navy days.

Our first stop, before we headed to our investigation location, was at a few of the mansions which used to house the Naval Bases highest ranking officers. Some of these mansions are used as offices and others are used as private homes. They are quite amazing. Next we checked out the shipyard. 

The Mansions

 

The Inside of One of the Mansions

The shipyard was nothing short of amazing. I have never seen buildings that large, I can only imagine what it was like to be around when thousands of workers were working round the clock to build ships to support the war effort during World War II. 

 

One of the Massive Buildings at the Shipyard

Next we stopped at St. Peter’s Chapel, renowned for it’s beautiful Tiffany designed stained glass windows. We also stopped at some of the many concrete bomb shelters that were littered all over the base. The bomb shelters were built right after the attack on Pearl Harbor. 

 

St. Peter's Chapel

 

WWII Bomb Shelters

It was finally time to head to our final destination, the former Naval Weapons Storage Area. The storage area was a series of bunkers located on top of a large hill. The views of the coast from up there were incredible!

Views from the Top of the Storage Area

As we walked around and went into some of the smaller bunkers we came upon the old cemetery. A lot of very old graves from sailors that had died from accidents and just old age. We even found six Russian sailors who had all died around the same time. The grave stones looked like they were brand new. They were all the same so I am guessing a group replaced the old headstones because they were falling apart.

Russian Sailor's Graves

While we walked through the cemetery we came to a section that was different from the others. Many of the graves had fences around them which usually signifies someone wealthy or well-known was buried there. As we looked we found the grave of Anna Arnold Key, the daughter of Francis Scott Key, the writer of the Star Spangled Banner! A very cool find!

Grave Site of Anna Arnold Key, Daughter of Francis Scott Key

The main focus of our investigation were the two large underground storage bunkers on top of the hill. I didn’t know it at the time ,but apparently a woman was gang raped and murdered up there. A terrible crime!

Underground Storage Bunker

We spent a lot of time in those two bunkers conducting EVP sessions and trying to see if we could have any personal experiences. I don’t know that anyone did, but we gave it our best shot.

I can tell you that being inside those large concrete underground bunkers after the sun went down was a little spooky. You couldn’t even see your hand in front of your face and the acoustics were insane in there! Every little noise was amplified to a crazy level!

I am not sure anyone was able to capture anything believed to be paranormal on their audio nor did anyone have any personal experiences in those bunkers. We did get some strange K2 hits while in there.

We didn’t mind that we may not have captured anything. Sometimes it’s just the thrill of being able to explore the location you are at that makes it worth the trip. It’s all about being able to explore historic locations and see things that the general public doesn’t often get to see.

Mare Island is incredible! It is a monument to the men and woman who served our country in order to protect our freedom and way of life. It is also a monument to the American spirit. Men and women who gave their blood, sweat, and sometimes their lives to build something incredible that lives on today.