USS Monaghan (DD-32)
The USS Monaghan (DD-32) served in the US Navy during the second decade of the 20th century and was assigned to the reserve fleet and the United States Coast Guard until 1934. She was named for Ensign John R. Monaghan, who was killed in action at Samoa in April 1899. Monaghan was built as a Paulding-class ship, a class designed as a modification to the Smith-class of destroyers and able to burn oil as an alternative to heavier coal.
Construction
The 742-ton Monaghan was laid down by the Newport News Shipbuilding Company in Newport News, Virginia, and commissioned in June 1911, with Lieutenant Commander W.P. Cronan in command. Carrying a crew of 86, Monaghan was 293 feet, 10 inches long and was armed with five three-inch rapid-fire guns and three 18-inch torpedo tubes. She had a fuel capacity of 236 tons of oil and was powered by four boilers and three Parsons turbines with a total of 17,393 horsepower.
Naval History
Monaghan served with the Atlantic Fleet after being commissioned in 1911 and participated in fleet training with the US Navy in preparation for war. She was assigned to patrol and escort duties in April 1917, when the United States entered World War I. During this deployment, Monaghan served off the east coast of the United States and in the European war zone, and escorted troop convoys during transoceanic voyages. Monaghan conducted anti-submarine patrols from November 1917 to the Armistice.
Post-war, Monaghan operated with the Atlantic Fleet and was decommissioned in November 1919 at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Monaghan was commissioned by the United States Coast Guard in June 1925 and stationed at New London, Connecticut and then Boston, Massachusetts. During her Coast Guard deployment, Monaghan retained her name and enforced Prohibition laws against rum-runners. Monaghan was returned to the Navy in May 1931, and renamed in July 1933. In 1934, she was sold and broken up for scrap.
Asbestos Risk on the USS Monaghan (DD-32)
The Monaghan made frequent use of asbestos insulation in ship's boilers and engineering compartments, and in fireproofing throughout the vessel. Pumps, ropes, gaskets all potentially contained this dangerous mineral. The damage brought about by asbestos fibers happens when microscopic fibers are inhaled; they infiltrate the respiratory system and occasionally the stomach, causing scarring in the case of asbestosis and damage at the DNA level in the case of malignant mesothelioma.
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Sources
NavSource Naval History, USS Monaghan (DD-32).
http://www.navsource.org/archives/05/032.htm Retrieved 18 December 2010
Department of the Navy – Naval Historical Center.
http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-usn/usnsh-m/dd32.htm Retrieved 18 December 2010
Tin Can Sailors, USS Monaghan (DD-32), Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.
http://www.destroyers.org/DANFS/h-DD-32.htm Updated 1981. Retrieved 18 December 2010
