Situated along the west bank of the Cooper River in North Charleston, South Carolina, the shipyard was built in 1909 and was operational until 1996. Today, the site is known as Detyens Shipyards. It was part of the Naval Base Charleston during the last century. Charleston Naval Shipyard became active as a drydock and subsequently continued as a U.S. Navy facility. Everyone who worked at this shipyard was heavily exposed to asbestos, which could lead to harrowing diseases several decades later. Undoubtedly, insulators had the highest risk of asbestos exposure, as they were responsible for installing various types of insulation, such as on boilers, pipes, ducts, gaskets, and valves. The members of the military who spent time aboard the vessels were also exposed to asbestos.