Our ancestors came in steerage from the Old World to the New. Then their children and grandchildren crossed back: first for business, then for war and finally for pleasure.

My niece (our 4th generation Cunarder) and I crossed this summer on the QUEEN ELIZABETH 2 (QE2) delighted to be at the pleasure, rather than the steerage end of things.

My family, Cunard and America have shared 150 years together. So, this is the story of not only of a recent crossing, but also of that history.  Click here if you're only interested in the QE2 today.

In 1840, Cunard's BRITANNIA, a paddle steamer with sails, crossed from Liverpool to Halifax in 14 days. It was the first scheduled service across the pond. Other ships were waiting till their holds were filled, delaying passengers and mail for weeks. The BRITANNIA could accommodate-but none too commodiously--63 passengers.

Cunard began to build bigger and faster ships. Increasingly, however, the cargo was people: rich and famous on top and emigrants in steerage below.

My Great Great Grandparents, for instance, left Scotland in 1854 with--get this!--nine children. They traveled steerage to Halifax. They brought their own food as the good ship Camis furnished only hardtack, a dry and tasteless cracker. My Great Great Grandmother discovered other passengers weren't eating their hardtack and so she squirreled it away to take to Illinois. I guess the Scotch come by their reputation for thrift honestly.

For entertainment the boys terrified their parents, daring each other to climb ever higher on the rigging. My great Grandmother, then six-year-old Agnes, sang so sweetly, other passengers gave her pennies.

Fierce competition and turbine engines drove the development of ever bigger, faster and more luxurious liners. Cunard lead the way in speed and size. In 1907, their MAURETANIA crossed in under 5 days to win the coveted Blue Ribband for the fastest ship. For 22 years, she held this record for speed.

First class passengers were wined and dined and caviar-ed, but I don't have to tell you--you saw THE MOVIE. Right? (Actually, the TITANIC was built to challenge the MAURETANIA for the Blue Ribband. And it was Cunard's CARPATHIA that raced through that terrible night to pick up the survivors.)

The emigrant, however, was the bread-and-butter customer on whose trade the caviar-and-champagne menus of first class were built. Cunard alone carried over 2 million emigrants to America.

Like the railroads, the steamship companies built their ships and then proceeded to build the demand. Advertising enormously embellished the glories of the "promised land. Cunard even paid Austria-Hungary a stipend to deliver 20,000 emigrants a year. As a result, bounty hunters routed out thousands of undesirables to fill their quotas.

This type of scheme, and most companies had them, is part of what drove the United States Congress to place severe restrictions on immigration.

Cunard's part in World War I was no less dramatic. Their LUSITANIA, sunk by a German submarine, is popularly credited with bringing the United States into the war.

By the 20's, the majority of transatlantic passengers were Americans. Steerage, emptied by the Immigration Acts, was converted to Tourist Class cabins: 2 bunk beds, 1 sink, and a bath down the hall.

Tourist Class was dubbed the Left Bank class because of its mixture of arty European-bound Americans and "old home traffic," successful immigrants returning for visits to the old country.

Prohibition likewise played a role. European steamships became a haven for those with a taste for champagne. Ships' doctors of the time reported that the crossing proved too much for some who had to be carried ashore on stretchers.

Steamships were still the only choice for business. My grandparents often took my father to Europe on buying trips for the family furniture business. My grandfather's first moving pictures (circa 1925) are of my 10-year-old father, dressed in his knickers, learning to fence on the aft deck of an unknown ship. Everyone appears to be having a good time.

When WWII broke out, the QUEEN MARY was safely in New York, but the QUEEN ELIZABETH lay unfinished in Scotland. Under Churchill's direct orders, she was made seaworthy. Then by a stupendous subterfuge, she avoided the German U-boats and made it safely to New York.

THE QUEENS when refitted as troop carriers, did not just carry troops; they transported entire divisions. Together they moved over 1.6 million men to and from combat.

Hitler offered $250,000 and an iron cross to any U-boat commander who sank a QUEEN. It went unclaimed.

Churchill crossed to Quebec on the QUEEN MARY for the D-day planning conference. He had with him models of the artificial harbors to be used on the beaches of Normandy. With an Admiral making waves in the tub, Churchill spent so much time testing the models; Mrs. Churchill was forced to bathe next door.

At war's end, the QUEEN MARY and her new nursery, carried 22,000 war brides to the US and Canada. The QUEEN ELIZABETH returned the Magna Carta to England. It had been exhibited at the 1939 World's Fair and then kept in the states for safety during the war.

By 1949, the QUEEN MARY (breaking the four day record for the Blue Ribband) and the QUEEN ELIZABETH were both sold out in Tourist for nearly a year. The fetters of war were off and everyone, it seemed, wanted to go to Europe.

The student, Jackie Bouvier (a.k.a. Kennedy, a.k.a. Onasis) traveled in Tourist. The summer months saw many students on their way to European tours partying hard in Tourist Class. The chaperones were reportedly none to effective.

Greta Garbo, traveling incognito, disembarked from the QUEEN MARY disguised as a stewardess. Charlie Chaplain started his self-imposed exile on The QUEEN ELIZABETH. Helena Rubinstein tossed her 20-carat diamond earrings out the porthole. She forgot she had hidden them in the tissue box she was discarding.

Most people knew never, never to play poker with a stranger on an ocean liner. Card sharks of all descriptions worked the liners and so did confidence men. In one extortion ploy, a woman would lure the mark into a situation "in flagrante delicto" and `the outraged husband' would then burst in with a revolver. The mark paid up to keep his wife in ignorance.

In 1958, a Pan American jet crossed the Atlantic in 6 hours and the liner became an anachronism nearly overnight. By 1959, more people crossing by jet than liner. The QUEENS tried to cope, refitting themselves to cruise part of the year. By 1967, however, they gave up. They could just not overcome the lack of air conditioning and private baths.

As luck would have it, the QUEEN MARY Farewell Voyages were announced at the same time that my mother decided to take my sister and me to Europe. My father, having had enough as a boy, went fishing.

We went second class and my mother complains to this day that I spent all my time in tourist. But hey, that's where the action was. I remember swimming, going to movies, and being entranced by meeting Europeans for the first time. Indeed, my niece and I visited a friend in England whom I met on that trip.

There were also flaming desserts, cheese courses, pate and English speaking waiters whose Cockney accents we couldn't understand, all fascinating and hitherto unknown to me. It was glorious.

Here we all are, dressed as songs, ready for the Funny Hat Contest. Mother only appears to have gotten a kick from her champagne.

Ocean liners, one must understand, are not mere cruise ships. A liner can be decked out (so to speak) like a cruise ship, but it must have speed, strength and a pointed bow to slice through the North Atlantic--the most dangerous ocean in the world. Floating hotels can only make the periodic crossing- slowly.

QUEEN ELIZABETH 2 is an ocean liner. She has the speed, strength and gorgeous bow she needs for the North Atlantic. She is designed, however, for a double life. She also cruises comfortably, very comfortably, on the world's warmer oceans.

The QE2 is not about glitz and glitter. It continues the Cunard tradition of British restraint and the overall effect is one of quiet elegance. Our first-class cabin was refined, spacious and extremely comfortable. We had enough closet space for a small theater company. My bed may have been the most comfortable bed I have ever graced. The sheets were even changed after my nap.

My niece announced upon her first glimpse of the marble and glass, art deco bathroom that she could live there.

And, my dear, the food we were fed. Our dining room, the Queen's Grill had the feel of a formal club.

The QE2 is also a veritable plethora of activity. The Daily Program slipped under our door each evening, itemized our choices.

I went to several entertaining and informative lectures and became friendly with the librarian--you have to love a ship with a full-time librarian. I took afternoon tea and was served watercress sandwiches by gloved waiters.

Sitting and staring at the ocean took up quiet a bit of time. Then of course I had to dress for dinner, attend the Captain's Cocktail party, and what all. I found it all quite lovely and serene.

What a way to go. The QE2 was, indeed, half the fun. But a bit poignant because as the brochure says, "She is the very last."

In July, Cunard announced Project Queen Mary. A classic Cunard project: a bigger, faster transatlantic liner. They plan to recreate The Golden Age of sea travel for those who missed it the first time around. I say BRAVO! And sign me up for her maiden voyage.

Cunard Lines – Cunard's own site with schedules, information, heritage and pictures. Sign me up!

QE2 Homepage – Capt. Warwick’s son, Samuel, keeps this site of history, statistics, pictures and links.

Cutty Sark Tall Ships – Site of the tall ship’s races, check out the pictures.

Cruise Critic – Currently only on AOL, but coming soon to the Web. An excellent site for information and straightforward reviews of Cruises, good chat/questions sections on each company.

The Encyclopedia Titanica – Everything you ever wanted to know about the Titanic and then some.