USS CHARRETTE (DD-581)

Evidence

10 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-10).

1. [1]DANFS, Charrette (DD-581) (namesake biography, specifications block, service narrative, reserve and transfer; verbatim HyperWar/ibiblio transcription - live NHHC page serves 404) [nhhc_danfs]

   Locator

   DANFS entry, specifications block + service narrative (DD-581 page)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   DANFS record for this hull: named for George Charrette (born Lowell, Mass., 6 June 1867; gunner's mate third class who volunteered to sink Merrimac at Santiago, Cuba, 2 June 1898; Medal of Honor; died 7 February 1938). Spec block: dp. 2,050; l. 376'5"; b. 39'7"; dr. 17'9"; s. 35 k.; cpl. 329; a. 5 5", 10 21" tt., 6 dcp., 2 dct.; cl. Fletcher. Launched 3 June 1942 by Boston Navy Yard, sponsored by Mrs. G. Charrette; commissioned 18 May 1943, Commander E.S. Karpe in command. Cleared New York 20 September 1943 escorting Monterey (CVL-26) to the Pacific; TF 50 Marshalls raids; Makin/Tarawa cover; Nauru bombardment; Kavieng strikes; Kwajalein/Eniwetok; night of 4-5 February 1944 depth-charge attack on a radar contact, then coached Fair (DE-35) in for the sinking of I-21; Truk raids and the 17 February 1944 TG 50.9 sweep that sank cruiser Katori and destroyer Maikaze; brief Pearl Harbor overhaul to 15 March 1944; Palau/New Guinea/Hollandia; Marianas and the Battle of the Philippine Sea 19-20 June 1944 (sank a 1,900-ton freighter with Boyd (DD-544) 15 June, 112 survivors recovered); Chichi Jima bombardment 5 August; Palaus/Philippines strikes; Formosa strikes 12 October during which Canberra (CA-70) and Houston (CL-81) were hit; Battle off Cape Engano 25 October; Lingayen Gulf 4-18 January 1945; arrived Puget Sound Navy Yard 25 February 1945 for overhaul; Borneo operations June-July 1945; with Conner (DD-582) tracked and boarded hospital ship Tachibana Maru 2 August 1945, finding ordnance and able-bodied troops (prize brought into Morotai 6 August); occupation escort duty to Chinese ports; reached San Francisco 30 December 1945 after 203,713 nautical miles since commissioning. In commission in reserve at San Diego 4 March 1946; out of commission in reserve 15 January 1947, attached to the U.S. Pacific Reserve Fleet. On 16 June 1959 transferred to Greece, in whose Navy she serves as HHMS Velos. Thirteen battle stars for World War II service plus Navy Occupation Service Medal (Pacific) and China Service Medal.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-27

   Study period

   1942-1959

   Population

   Boston Navy Yard construction trades 1942-43; wartime crew (design complement 329); reserve-fleet caretakers 1947-59

   Limitations

   DANFS documents namesake, construction milestones, service history, and specifications, not materials or asbestos content. The transcription omits a laid-down date; the 20 February 1942 figure carried in this record comes from secondary compilations (see gaps). Transcription contains uncorrected typographical errors ('0 October' for the Pearl Harbor arrival; 'Vellegjo' for Vallejo; 'Feburary', 'Deigo'). Mirror transcription cited because the live NHHC page returns 404 on both URL forms tried.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-charrette-dd581-01

2. [2]NavSource Naval History destroyer photo index, USS Charrette (DD-581) - operational/building data, machinery, decommissioning/stricken dates, fate (live navsource.org fetch failed; Wayback capture 2025-01-21 used) [other_primary]

   Locator

   NavSource DD-581 page, class/data block, 'Operational and Building Data', 'Fate' line, photo captions (Wayback capture 20250121151335)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   NavSource data block for this hull: class Fletcher as built; displacement 2,924 tons full; 376'5" oa x 39'7" x 13'9" max; machinery '60,000 SHP; Allis Chalmers Turbines, 2 screws' - hull-level confirmation that this Boston Navy Yard-built Fletcher carried Allis-Chalmers (not class-typical General Electric) geared turbines; speed 38 knots; crew 273; call sign NECL. Operational data: laid down by Boston Navy Yard 20 February 1942; launched 3 June 1942; commissioned 18 May 1943; decommissioned 15 January 1947; stricken 1 September 1975; 'To Greece June 16 1959, renamed Velos. Stricken in 1991.' Fate: 'Preserved as a museum at Faliron near Athens' (capture predates the September 2019 move to Thessaloniki). Photo captions document NARA still-photo holdings 80-G-74843 through 80-G-74848 taken at Boston, MA on 4 August 1943.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-27

   Study period

   1942-1991

   Population

   Crew 1943-47; reserve-fleet maintenance staff 1947-59; Hellenic Navy crew 1959-91

   Limitations

   Secondary photographic-history compilation, not an official record - carried for the hull-level turbine maker (Allis-Chalmers), the laid-down date DANFS omits, the 1 September 1975 U.S. stricken date, and the call sign. Its complement (273 vs DANFS 329) and speed (38 vs 35 kt) diverge from DANFS - conflicts documented in gaps. The 'museum at Faliron' fate line is outdated by the 2019 Thessaloniki move; contains no asbestos information.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-charrette-dd581-02

3. [3]Tin Can Sailors (The National Association of Destroyer Veterans), USS Charrette DD-581 ship page - data block, disposition line, embedded DANFS March 2016 transcription [other_primary]

   Locator

   destroyers.org DD-581 page - data block ('Decommissioned Date', 'Disposition') and ship history section

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Tin Can Sailors ship page for this hull: launch 06/03/1942; commissioned 05/18/1943; decommissioned 01/15/1947; call sign NECL; class Fletcher. Disposition line: 'Transferred to Greece, as loan, on 06/16/1959 as VELOS (D-16). Decommissioned in 1991. Now museum ship at Navy base on Poros Island' (the museum-location detail is outdated - the ship left Poros for Salamis restoration in December 2000 and has been at Thessaloniki since September 2019). Page embeds the March 2016 DANFS transcription.

   Verification

   partial

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-27

   Study period

   1942-1991

   Population

   Crew 1943-47; Hellenic Navy crew 1959-91

   Limitations

   Veterans-association secondary source, not an official record; confirms the transfer-as-loan characterization (vs. outright sale) and the D-16 pennant number. The 'museum at Poros' line is stale by two relocations. Contains no asbestos information.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-charrette-dd581-03

4. [4]Floating Naval Museum A/T Velos (Πλωτό Ναυτικό Μουσείο Α/Τ ΒΕΛΟΣ) official site, operated by the Hellenic Navy (ΓΕΝ/ΔΕΔΗΣ web directorate) - 'Ship History' and 'Location' pages [museum_official]

   Locator

   velos.hellenicnavy.gr/i-istoria-tou-pliou/ (ship history); /topothesia/ (berth); /kanonismi-asfalias/ (visitor safety rules)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Official Hellenic Navy museum record for this hull: 'A/T ΒΕΛΟΣ D-16 (former USS CHARRETTE DD 581)' was built in Boston, launched 3 June 1942, and awarded thirteen battle stars in WWII; in 1958 'after being modernized at the LONG BEACH shipyards in California' she was ceded to the Royal Hellenic Navy together with three same-type destroyers (ASPIS, SFENDONI, LONGHI) under U.S.-Greece mutual aid; the Greek flag was raised on Velos 16 June 1959 with Lt. Cdr. G. Moralis as first CO. Served in the 1964, 1967, 1974, and 1987 Greco-Turkish crises; on 23 May 1973, under Cdr. N. Pappas, she withdrew from a NATO exercise and reached Fiumicino, Italy, where the CO, six officers, and twenty-five petty officers requested political asylum in the failed Navy Movement against the junta. Decommissioned 26 February 1991 after 362,662 total nautical miles; declared 'Museum of the Anti-dictatorial Struggle' in 1994 by Ministry of National Defence/General Staff decision and moored at Poros; from June 2002 at the Naval Tradition Park, Palaio Faliro, as a visitable museum. Location page: the ship is inside the Port of Thessaloniki at Pier One (Π-1), Quay Two (Κ-2), by the old Port Authority building; the site lists her as open to the public with a serving crew.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-27

   Study period

   1942-present

   Population

   Hellenic Navy crew 1959-91; museum staff and visitors 2002-present

   Limitations

   Official operator source for post-USN custody and museum status; the visitor-safety regulations page discloses no materials or hazmat content, and the site publishes no ACM survey or abatement disclosure - its 'ship history' is commemorative, not a technical record. The 1958 Long Beach modernization is stated without a named facility or scope (Long Beach Naval Shipyard inferred - the only naval shipyard at Long Beach). Museum-location text ('from June 2002 ... Palaio Faliro') predates the 2019 Thessaloniki move on the same page set.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-charrette-dd581-04

5. [5]Athens News Agency (ΑΠΕ-ΜΠΕ) reporting via The National Herald, 19 Nov 2023 (stern breach and emergency tow) and via cnn.gr/athina984.gr/slpress.gr, Mar-Jul 2024 (planned Salamis Naval Base maintenance); Hellenic Navy official site updates 2026 [reputable_press]

   Locator

   thenationalherald.com 2023-11-19 (APE-MPE dispatch); cnn.gr, slpress.gr, voria.gr, tanea.gr 2024 reports citing Ministry of National Defence sources; velos.hellenicnavy.gr news posts 2026

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Museum-stewardship events documented in Greek national press sourcing the Ministry of National Defence: on 19 November 2023 strong winds and waves opened a breach in Velos' stern at her Nea Paralia (Thessaloniki) moorings; she was towed to a pier inside the commercial port the same day. In March-July 2024 the Ministry announced the ship would be transferred to the Salamis Naval Base for months-long periodic maintenance and drydocking (Thessaloniki lacks a suitable drydock), with the stated intent of return to Thessaloniki as the Hellenic Navy's floating museum. As of mid-2026 official-site posts she remains at the Port of Thessaloniki, open to visitors. These are the hull's only recent documented maintenance events; none carries a public hazmat or abatement disclosure.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-27

   Study period

   2023-2026 (stewardship events)

   Population

   Museum crew and shipyard workers (maintenance events); museum visitors

   Limitations

   News reports describe hull damage, towage, and planned maintenance - none mentions asbestos, insulation, or hazardous materials. Confirms the hull still exists under active stewardship, which keeps a present-day ACM question theoretically open but undocumented. A September 2017 drydocking at Salamis (maintenance and painting, funded by Danaos Shipping Ltd per museumships.us/community reporting) is likewise documented without materials disclosure.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-charrette-dd581-05

6. [6]DANFS specifications block (Fletcher class; 35 kt; cpl. 329) + Fletcher class profile (class-c/fletcher-class.class.json): 4 Babcock & Wilcox boilers, 2-shaft geared steam turbines, 60,000 shp + Atlas shipyard dataset, Boston Naval Shipyard record (tier 3; John Crane gasket/sealing product-identification, Tex. App. 2003) [other_primary]

   Locator

   DANFS spec block; shipyards.json record 'boston-naval-shipyard'; class-c/fletcher-class.class.json propulsion data and class_notes

   Finding type

   asbestos_application

   Finding

   Era/yard inference: a Fletcher-class destroyer built 1942-43 with a four-boiler steam plant (NavSource records Allis-Chalmers geared turbines for this hull; boiler maker unverified at hull level - see gaps) would have carried period-standard asbestos insulation, lagging, gaskets, packing, fireproofing, and deck coverings; builder Boston Naval Shipyard (Charlestown) is documented at yard level in the Atlas dataset - including a litigation product-identification record for John Crane gaskets and sealing materials at the yard (In re John Crane, Inc., Tex. App. 1st Dist. 2003). The identical machinery plant across the 175-ship class makes the insulation regime strongly class-determined, but no hull-specific material schedule was located.

   Verification

   inferred

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-27

   Study period

   1942-1991

   Population

   Boston Navy Yard construction trades 1942-43; crew 1943-47; reserve-fleet caretakers 1947-59; Hellenic Navy 1959-91

   Limitations

   Class/era and builder-yard inference only - NOT a hull-specific finding. The Boston yard record is an allegation-level appellate product identification, weaker than a survey, and is not dated to this hull's construction window. No class-level insulation specification or BuShips material schedule was located for the Fletcher class (class profile negative finding). Does not quantify material or establish any individual's exposure.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-charrette-dd581-06

7. [7]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (Oct 18, 1979) [gao]

   Locator

   GAO product page HRD-80-2

   Finding type

   gov_survey

   Finding

   GAO documented that the Navy used asbestos insulation extensively aboard ships and did not begin substituting alternative insulation materials until the early 1970s - placing this hull's construction (1942-43), entire U.S. commissioned service (1943-47), and reserve-fleet custody (1947-59) entirely inside the documented asbestos-use era. Hellenic Navy service (1959-91) and museum custody (1994-present) are outside the U.S. program's coverage; material state under Greek custody is undocumented.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-27

   Study period

   1979 (report); applies to this hull's 1942-1959 U.S. life cycle

   Population

   Navy shipyard workers; Navy asbestos program review

   Limitations

   Program-level U.S. Navy documentation; supports era context only, not any fact specific to this hull, and says nothing about Greek-service or museum-era material handling. Full report text not retrieved (gao.gov blocks automated fetch, HTTP 403) - content via product-page description, consistent with batch-01 and class-c handling.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-charrette-dd581-07

8. [8]CourtListener API v4 litigation sweep (authenticated via cl-auth-search.py): exact-name and hull-number queries across opinion and RECAP docket indexes [court_record]

   Locator

   search_ledger rows sl-uss-charrette-dd581-03, -04, -05

   Finding type

   litigation_documented

   Finding

   CourtListener sweep for this hull returned zero qualifying results on completed queries: "USS Charrette" returned 0 opinions (type=o) and 0 RECAP dockets / 0 documents (type=r). The hull-number sweeps "DD-581" (type=o and type=r) were attempted on multiple spaced occasions and blocked by the fleet-wide pacing budget each time - logged as blocked in the search_ledger, not counted as a negative result. 'Charrette' is a surname and a drafting-charrette term of art; bare-name hits would be name collisions, not vessel references, and were not pursued without a vessel qualifier.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   negative_finding

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-27

   Study period

   2026-09-27

   Limitations

   CourtListener indexes federal and many state opinions and RECAP dockets but is not exhaustive - state trial-court filings, MDL-875 complaint vessel lists not indexed in searchable text, and pre-digital-era dockets may be missed. The exact-name zero results are clean (only one USS Charrette has existed), but the unrun hull-number sweeps leave residual docket-text risk - carried in gaps. Greek-language litigation naming Velos (e.g., Hellenic Navy veteran asbestos claims advertised by Greek law firms) is outside CourtListener's corpus entirely. A zero result means no indexed litigation naming the hull was located, not that none exists.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-charrette-dd581-08

9. [9]Batch-3553 search ledger (this record): NHHC DANFS (live 404; ibiblio transcription used); NavSource via Wayback (live fetch failed); Tin Can Sailors ship page; Hellenic Navy official museum site (velos.hellenicnavy.gr); Ministry-of-Defence-sourced Greek press; archived Hellenic Navy Velos history page; NVR; GAO HRD-80-2; Atlas shipyard dataset; Fletcher class profile; CourtListener authenticated API; general web sweep (English and Greek) [other_primary]

   Locator

   search_ledger rows sl-uss-charrette-dd581-01 through -13

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located for DD-581: no hull ACM survey, no abatement or removal record for the 1942-43 build, the 1944 Pearl Harbor or 1945 Puget Sound overhauls, the 1946-47 inactivation, the 1958 Long Beach modernization preceding transfer, or the Greek-service and museum phases (2000-02 Salamis restoration, 2017 drydock, 2024-announced drydock); and no asbestos case naming this hull in the completed CourtListener corpus queries. Independent web searches (English and Greek) returned only marketing/class-pattern pages (asbestos-ships.com and shepardlawfirm.com dedicated DD-581 pages; simmonsfirm.com and mesotheliomahelp.org destroyer lists; pavlakis-moschos.gr - a Greek firm asserting transferred destroyers incl. ΒΕΛΟΣ D-16 'provably carried large quantities of asbestos') - all excluded per sourcing rules.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   negative_finding

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-27

   Study period

   2026-09-27

   Limitations

   Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - era-standard applications are documented at class/era level (ev-06, ev-07), and because the hull survives as an operating museum the present-day ACM question is real but publicly undocumented. The Greek law-firm assertion is advocacy material, not evidence; Greek-court asbestos claims may exist but are not indexed in U.S. repositories and none naming this hull was located. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-charrette-dd581-09

10. [10]NARA holdings visible through NavSource captions (RG 80-G still photographs 80-G-74843 through 80-G-74848, Boston, MA, 4 August 1943; NHHC photo NH 79954, namesake); NARA per-hull deck-log series for DD-581; NARA RG 19 'General Information Books' per-vessel material specifications [other_primary]

    Locator

    NavSource DD-581 photo captions (NARA 80-G-74843..48; NH 79954); archives.gov deck-log guidance (NAC series 594258); RG 19 GIB lead per class profile

    Finding type

    historical_record

    Finding

    NARA holds ship-specific records for this hull: wartime still photographs in the RG 80-G series (80-G-74843 to -74848 taken at Boston 4 August 1943, per NavSource captions crediting NARA photo numbers; namesake portrait NH 79954 in NHHC collections) and the standard per-hull deck-log series in the Bureau of Naval Personnel logbooks collection (series National Archives Identifier 594258, 'Logbooks of the U.S. Navy Ships and Stations, 1941-1978' - partially digitized). RG 19 'General Information Books' per-vessel material specifications are a further unretrieved lead and the likeliest surviving source for a hull-level material schedule. None was retrieved; catalog.archives.gov returns a JS SPA shell to automated fetch.

    Verification

    unverified

    Role

    archival_lead

    Documentation level

    ship_specific

    Accessed

    2026-09-27

    Study period

    1942-1947 (U.S. record coverage)

    Population

    Crew recorded in deck logs; ship as photographed 1943

    Limitations

    Archival lead only - the photo numbers confirm records exist and are attributed to DD-581, but contents were not reviewed; deck logs document operations and personnel, not materials content. The GIB lead is class-consistent but unverified for this specific hull.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-charrette-dd581-10