The USS Paul G. Baker (DE-642) was a Buckley-class destroyer escort laid down on September 26, 1943, and launched on March 12, 1944. It was commissioned on May 25, 1944, under Lt. Comdr. W. Gordon Cornell’s command with the hull number DE-642 and served in the U.S. Navy for 3 years until it was decommissioned on February 3, 1947. During its activity, the ship carried a complement of 213 men on board and had its main missions in Manus, Guadalcanal, the Solomons, Saipan, Ulithi, Okinawa, and Ryukyus. After the decommissioning, the ship was struck from the Navy List on December 1, 1969. Several months later, the ship was sold for scrapping. Most veterans who served onboard Navy ships between World War II and the late 1970s are likely to have been exposed to asbestos at some stage during their service, either because they were working with asbestos themselves or were present when others - naval personnel or dockyard personnel - were working with it.
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