The USS England (DE-635) was a Buckley-class destroyer escort laid down on April 4, 1943, and launched on September 26, the same year. It was commissioned on December 10, 1943, under Comdr. W. B. Pendleton’s command with the hull number DE-635 and served in the U.S. Navy for 2 years until it was decommissioned on October 15, 1945. During its activity, the ship carried a complement of 213 men on board and had its main missions in the Admiralty Islands, Manus, the Solomons, Sidney, Hollandia, Ulithi, Hollandia, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa. After the decommissioning, the ship was struck from the Navy List on November 1, 1945. One year later, in 1946 the ship was sold for scrapping. Prior to 1980, asbestos was commonly used in manufacturing, and shipbuilding was no exception. For instance, asbestos was routinely used to insulate ship boilers, turbines, piping, pumps, and wiring, meaning Navy personnel serving in World War II, Korea, and Vietnam all risked daily exposure to asbestos. This is probably one reason that reportedly 30 percent of all mesothelioma victims are veterans of the military, with Navy veterans making up a significant portion of these.
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