USS Colhoun (DD-85/APD-2)
The USS Colhoun (DD-85/APD-2) was a Wickes class destroyer in the U.S. Navy during World War I and was pressed into service as a high-speed transport (APD-2) in World War II. She was the first U.S. Navy ship named for Edmund Colhoun (1821-1897), a Rear Admiral in the U.S. Navy.
Construction
In September of 1917, Colhoun was laid down at Quincy, Massachusetts, by the Fore River Shipbuilding Company. The completed vessel was launched five months later in February 1918. Colhoun was commissioned under the command of Commander B.B. Wygant the following June.
Naval History
From June to September 1918, Colhoun escorted convoys crossing the Atlantic between New York and Europe. In November, she arrived in New London, Connecticut to perform experiments with sonar equipment. January of 1919, Colhoun came to the aid of the transport Northern Pacific, which had run aground off Fire Island. After assignments along the eastern seaboard and the Caribbean, Colhoun reported to the Philadelphia Navy Yard in December and was placed in reduced commission status. Subsequent to an overhaul at Norfolk Navy Yard and a reserve period at Charleston, South Carolina, Colhoun returned to Philadelphia where she was decommissioned in June 1922.
In June 1940, Colhoun was towed back to the Norfolk Navy Yard where she underwent conversion to a high-speed transport and was then recommissioned APD-2 in December 1940. Colhoun serviced ports between Norfolk, Virginia, and the Caribbean while carrying out training exercises. She arrived at Nouméa, New Caledonia, in late July 1942. Serving as both a transport and antisubmarine vessel, Colhoun fortified the Guadalcanal invasion, delivering units of the 1st Marine Raider Battalion in the initial assault landings. On August 30, 1942, while on patrol off Guadalcanal, Colhoun was struck in a Japanese air raid. The first attack wrecked the ship's boats and the after davits and started a diesel fire. In the second raid, numerous hits struck the starboard side and brought down the foremast, blew two 20mm guns and one 4” gun overboard and damaged engineering spaces. Additional hits killed all the men in the after deck house. Tank lighters from Guadalcanal rescued the crew before Colhoun sank. Fifty-one men were killed and 18 wounded in this action.
Colhoun received one battle star for her participation in World War II.
Asbestos Risk on the USS Colhoun (DD-85)
Since asbestos was used in so many products, asbestos fibers could be found throughout naval vessels. Sections aboard Colhoun containing boilers and power plants used high amounts of asbestos insulation and fireproofing. Steam conduits used asbestos pipe wrap, and pumps and valves were packed with asbestos. No area of the ship was completely free of asbestos contamination, and her entire crew was at risk for exposure.
Airborne asbestos posed the greatest health hazard. Sailors in Colhoun’s time had little or no protection against inhaling asbestos fibers in the air. Once in the lungs, asbestos fibers caused scarring and, sometimes, mesothelioma. Because asbestos diseases can take many years to develop, most veteran sailors didn’t realize the harm their exposure had done until long after retiring from the service. It is important to discuss your armed forces service with your mesothelioma lawyer in order to obtain the proper compensation.
Sources
Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships
http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/c11/colhoun-i.htm
