The USS Acree (DE-167) was a Cannon-class destroyer escort laid down on November 30, 1942, and launched on May 9, the following year. It was commissioned on July 19, 1943, under Lt. Comdr. William H. Siegmund’s command with the hull number DE-167 and served in the U.S. Navy for 3 years until it was decommissioned on April 1, 1946. During its activity, the ship carried a complement of 216 men on board and had its main missions in Bermuda, Norfolk, Galapagos, Bora Bora, Society Islands, New Caledonia, Espiritu Santo, New Hebrides, Fiji Islands, Russell Islands, Saipan, Eniwetok, and Kwajalein. After the decommissioning, the ship was struck from the Navy Register on July 1, 1972, and sold for scrapping to Boston Metals Co. in Baltimore the following year. Although all branches of the U.S. military have used asbestos in the past, the Navy has the highest incidences of asbestos-related diseases among its veterans and this is mainly due to the prevalence of the "miraculous" mineral used in shipbuilding. Among those who were highly exposed to the mineral were boiler technicians, electricians, insulators, plumbers, pipefitters, welders, enginemen, and damage controlmen.
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