The First Class Swimming Pool


You can read more about the swimming pools (1st and 2nd Class) in the "Hidden Treasures" section of this web site


The First Class Pool Looking Aft

The Queen Mary's first class pool was built inside the ship so that it could be used all year round. It is 25 by 32 feet in size, but the use of balconies and a vaulted ceiling help to create an idea of space. Being subject to the rolling motion of the ship, it was only half filled with water (salt water) during rough weather. During the last war, the pool was used as a dormitory for servicemen. Their bunks were stacked seven high all the way up to the imitation mother-of-pearl ceiling (which they picked apart).

The First Class Pool Looking Forward

There was originally a second class pool too on the Queen Mary, but today this has been removed to make way for offices and museum space.

The 2nd Class Pool

The third class passengers did not have a pool, but did not go without a swim. They were allowed to use the first class pool briefly in the afternoons, but the water was changed before the first class passengers used it again. Originally, a sandblasted glass panel of cranes in flight occupied the space in the stairway, but today that is lost. It has been replaced with another panel from the second class stairway.

The Cracked Pool Edge

Many people ask why there is no water in the pool today (the first two pictures above were taken some years ago).

The pool has suffered both from corrosion and the removal of structural beams during nearby conversion work. It might not be strong enough to hold a huge weight of water. Cracking is evident in both sides of the pool today, but plans are under way to restore the pool in 1997. The picture shows the port side of the pool. You can see cracking in the starboard side of the pool if you click on the previous picture.

Thanks very much to Dave Champagne for sending in the first two photos here.


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