Name/Title
B+W photo of QE2 penthouse unit being constructed, Bethlehem Steel Shipyard, Bayonne, Oct.-Nov. 1977.Entry/Object ID
2011.025.0380Description
Black-and-white photo of aluminum penthouse being constructed for ocean liner Queen Elizabeth 2 at Bethlehem Steel Shipyard, Bayonne, October-November 1977. 8" x 10" print. Photographer not indicated; photo number penciled on reverse 68639A-6. Attached: photocopied press release; full text below.
The work was done in Bayonne, but that yard was managed by the Beth Steel Hoboken Yard per donor Joseph Cangelosi who worked on this project. He was Chief of Estimating, Negotiating, and Contract Administrating 1976 - 1979 and based in Hoboken. See notes for his recollections of this project.
[text of press release - obviously issued prior to Jan 16, 1978]
WAITING FOR A QUEEN. The most luxurious accommodations ever
to be placed on an ocean liner are now being readied for the QUEEN
ELIZABETH 2 by workers at Bethlehem Steel's Bayonne (N.J.) shipyard.
Two penthouses, each costing a half-million dollars, will be installed
on the ship's highest level, the signal deck. When the QUEEN arrives
on December 3 the yard will have only 17 days to hoist the previously-
made house on board, complete every detail, including drapes and
carpeting, so that the new accommodations are ready for occupancy. The
QUEEN will sail on January 16 for a 90-day Pacific cruise.
#
Photo No. 68639A-6
779011-La
BETHLEHEM STEEL CORPORATION
News Media Division
Public Affairs Department
Bethlehem, PA 18016
(215)694-3711
[end press release]
The fabricated unit seen would have been work done ahead of the planned docking for 1977 repairs and refits scheduled for December 3rd as stated in the press release. By referring to the reference photo attached to this record, it can be seen that the unit was just one part of a much larger module to be assembled for installation. See notes for other details.Acquisition
Accession
2011.025Source or Donor
Cangelosi, JosephAcquisition Method
GiftCredit Line
Gift of Joseph Cangelosi.General Notes
Note
Notes: Reference photo is penthouse unit being lifted onto the QE2 at Bayonne is as found posted in 2011: http://www.thecaptainslog.org.uk/ShipGalleryIndex/QE2PhotoGallery.html
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In April 2011, Joseph Cangelosi, a senior manager based at Bethlehem Steel Hoboken Shipyard and who worked on this project, recalled that the work schedule was extremely intense and the company was under enormous pressure to complete the work on schedule or face heavy penalties. It was completed on schedule, but problems with plumbing connections in the penthouse installation were discovered shortly after sailing. Necessary repairs and replacement of materials damaged by water leaks were carried out by Bethlehem Steel to the satisfaction of the the customer. As it turned out for Beth Steel, it was not a profitable job. See archives 2011.025.0002 for caricature of Cangelosi and the QE2 related to a Dec. 1979 refit done at Bayonne; he was then the General Superintendent.
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The project took place between Dec. 3 and 20, 1977 and Jan. 3 to 14, 1978. The press release stated it arrived on Dec. 3 and made it sound as if the passenger ship was there continuously until the Jan. 16 scheduled sailing. It actually left for a scheduled Christmas / New Year's sailing which was lucrative for the Cunard Line. This work is often referred to in the ship's timeline as the 1977 refit, but it did extend into 1978. The penthouses were only one part of other major repair and refitting done at this time. (Online references and tribute sites offer more information plus the book, QE2, by Ronald W. Warwick (NY:Norton, 1999) refers to the refit on pages 108-109 plus a small photograph.)
The penthouse modules were the only major additions to the ship's superstructure ever done in America.
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Original or Copy: Original
Status: OK
Status By: dw
Status Date: 2011-05-03
