USS Peto (SS-265)
History of the USS Peto Submarine
The USS Peto (SS-265) was ordered for the U.S. Navy before the United States entered World War II. Her keel was laid down by the Manitowoc Shipbuilding Company of Wisconsin on June 15, 1941. She was launched on April 30, 1942 and commissioned on November 21, 1942 under the command of Lieutenant Commander William T. Nelson.
Before she saw any service, the USS Peto was decommissioned from December 25, 1942 until January 1, 1943 while she was transported to New Orleans, Louisiana in a floating dry dock. She arrived at Brisbane on March 14 and began her first war patrol on April 2 in the shipping lanes between Rabaul and Truk. She returned to Brisbane on May 20 without making any enemy contacts.
On June 10, the USS Peto sailed for her second war patrol of the waters between Truk and Rabaul. She sank the Japanese research ship Tenkai Maru on June 28. Her torpedoes damaged the oiler Shinkoku Maru on July 7. She ended this patrol at Brisbane on August 4.
The USS Peto departed on September 1 for her third war patrol in the Caroline Islands. One month later, she sank the Japanese troop transport Tonei Maru and the army cargo ship Kinkasan Maru. She put in at Brisbane on October 21.
Her fourth war patrol began on November 14, and the USS Peto was ordered to the area between the Caroline Islands and New Guinea. On December 1, her torpedoes sank the Japanese troop transport Konei Maru. This patrol ended on January 7, 1944 at Brisbane.
The USS Peto headed out for her fifth war patrol on February 2 in the waters north of New Guinea. She made a brief stop at Langemak Bay, New Guinea from February 27 until March 1 to refuel and get spare parts for repairs. On March 4, she sank the Japanese army cargo ship Kayo Maru. Her patrol ended on March 29 at Pearl Harbor.
After refitting, the USS Peto sailed for her sixth patrol on April 28 in the waters south of Formosa. She returned to Pearl Harbor on June 19 without making any enemy contacts. Two days later, she steamed to San Francisco for an overhaul that lasted until the end of September.
Once her work was completed, the USS Peto returned to the combat zone for her seventh patrol on October 27 in the Yellow Sea. She sank the Japanese army cargo ship Tatsuraku Maru on November 12. Six days later, she sank two more army cargo ships, the Aisakasan Maru and the Chinkai Maru. She ended her patrol at Guam on December 6 and proceeded to Pearl Harbor in the New Year.
The USS Peto departed for her eighth war patrol in the Japanese home waters on January 31, 1945 in the company of a wolf pack. This uneventful patrol ended on April 9 at Midway. She conducted her ninth war patrol off Marcus Island from May 4 until June 19, putting in at Guam without making any enemy contacts.
Her tenth and final war patrol began on July 14, and the USS Peto sailed the waters south of Honshu. Ten days later, she rescued two downed aviators from the USS Lexington. The next day, she sank a Japanese sampan with her gunfire and rescued nine more aviators. On August 10, she saved a downed aviator from the British Royal Navy. The submarine was set to provide lifeguarding services for air strikes on August 15, but the Japanese capitulated that day, and she headed home the next day for New Orleans via the Panama Canal.
The USS Peto was decommissioned on June 25, 1946. She was taken out of reserve in November 1956 to serve the Eighth Naval District as a Naval Reserve Training submarine. The submarine was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on August 1, 1960 and sold for scrap on November 10 the same year. The USS Peto earned eight battle stars for her service in World War II.
The use of asbestos was common in shipbuilding components for much of the 20th Century because of its resistance to heat, fire, water and corrosion. Because of their asbestos exposure onboard ship and in the shipyards, seaman, shipyard workers and longshoreman are at risk for developing asbestos-related diseases like mesothelioma
Sources include:
Asbestos and Ship-Building: Fatal Consequences, by John Hedley-Whyte and Debra R Milamed
