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Navsource Online: Destroyer Escort Photo Archive

Ship's Tab Courtesy of Mike Smolinski

USS Blair (DE 147)

Flag Hoist / Radio Call Sign:
N - Z - A - D

Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons

Precedence of awards is from top to bottom, left to right
Top Row: American Campaign Medal
Second Row: European-Africa-Middle East Campaign Medal - WWII Victory Medal - National Defense Service Medal

Specifications:
Class: Edsall
Type: FMR (geared diesel, Fairbanks-Morse reverse gear drive, 3" guns)
Displacement: 1200 tons (light), 1590 tons (full)
Length: 300' (wl), 306' (oa)
Beam: 36' 10" (extreme)
Draft: 20' 6" (draft limit)
Propulsion: 4 Fairbanks-Morse Mod. 38d81/8 geared diesel engines, 4 diesel-generators, 6000 shp, 2 screws
Speed: 21 kts
Range: 9,100 nm @ 12 knots
Armament: 3 x 3"/50 Mk22 (1x3), 1 twin 40mm Mk1 AA, 8 x 20mm Mk 4 AA, 3 x 21" Mk15 TT (3x1), 1 Hedgehog Projector Mk10 (144 rounds), 8 Mk6 depth charge projectors, 2 Mk9 depth charge tracks
Complement: 8 / 201

Blair (DE 147) Building and Operational Data:

19 January 1943: Keel laid by the Consolidated Steel Corp., Orange, Tex.

06 April 1943: Launched and christened, sponsored by Mrs. Vestie Foster, the mother of three sons in the United States Navy

13 September 1943: Commissioned, Lt. Alden J. Laborde, USNR, in command

28 June 1946: Decommissioned at Green Cove Springs, Fla. after 2 years and 8½ months of service

05 October 1951: Recommissioned at Mayport, Fla., Lcdr John L. Holmes in command, assigned to CortRon 10 at Newport, R.I.

01 November 1956: Reclassified DER 147

13 November 1956: Decommissioned at Boston Naval Shipyard for conversion to DER after 5 years and 1 month of service

02 December 1957: Recommissioned at Boston, Lcdr Richard L. Warren in command, assigned to CortRon 7 at Pearl Harbor, Hi.

15 June 1960: Decommissioned at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton, Wash. after 2 years and 6½ month of service; custody to CO, Bremerton Group, U.S. Pacific Reserve Fleet

01 December 1972: Struck from the NVR with a total of 10 years and 4 month of service

13 August 1974: Sold for scrapping to the West Waterway Lumber Co., Seattle, Wash. (Bid $232,896.00 for DER 147, DER 333, and LFR 1)

10 October 1974: Removed from U.S. Navy custody

Click On Image For Full Size Image	Size	Image Description	Contributed By And/Or Copyright
0614702	58k	June 1944: Bayonne, N.J. - USS *Blair* (DE 147) in dry dock.	Fay L. Eaton
0614703	68k	circa 1944: *Blair* underway at speed	Fay L. Eaton
0614704	69k	14 February 1944: This photo was taken from the stern of USS *Brough* (DE 148) turning to port, with *Blair* in the background somewhere in the Atlantic. (Photo from the Harry Bissell Collection)	John N. Adriani, Sr. Shelton, Conn.
0614705	346k	25 March 1944: *Blair* underway with her crew at dress inspection. (Photo courtesy of Chris Wright)	Ed Zajkowski Narvon, Pa.
0614706	83k	1945: Cardiff, Wales - Photo was taken from the signal bridge of *Brough* looking aft into the harbor. *Blair* (DE 147) is approaching the pier on the left and what looks like a Liberty ship off on the left. Notice that both DEs are painted in a wartime measure 32-camouflage scheme. This complex was known as the Queen Alexandria Docks. (Photo from the Harry Bissell Collection)	John N. Adriani, Sr. Shelton, Conn.
0614708	563k	April 1955: Lcdr. Harvey O. Webster, Jr. (right) relieves Lcdr. Charles L. Nagle (left) as CO of USS *Blair* as the crew looks on. (from USS Blair Cruise Book 1956)	Navsource
0614707	505k	09 May 1955: Philadelphia, Pa. - *Blair* underway off the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard. A year later she would be decommissioned and converted to a DER at Boston.	Ed Zajkowski Narvon, Pa.

Blair Memorabilia
Ship's Lighter Courtesy of Nick Tiberio

Blair History
View the USS Blair (DE 147) DANFS history entry located on the Naval History and Heritage Command web site.
View the official War History of USS Blair as submitted by the ship at war's end.

Blair's Commanding Officers
Thanks to Wolfgang Hechler & Ron Reeves

Dates of Command	Commanding Officers
1.) 13 Sep. 1943 - 21 Jan. 1945	Lcdr. Alden James Laborde, USNR (Comm. CO) (St. Martinville, La.)
2.) 21 Jan. 1945 - 02 Oct. 1945	Lcdr. Walter Gadsby, Jr., USNR (Portland, Ore.)
3.) 02 Oct. 1945 - 01 Jan. 1946	Lt. Robert L. Carnright, USNR
4.) 02 Apr. 1946 - 28 Jun. 1946	Lt.(jg) Frank C. Hart, USNR (Decomm. CO) (Orange, N.J.)
5.) 05 Oct. 1951 - .. Feb. 1953	Lcdr. John London Holmes Jr. (Recomm. CO)
6.) .. Feb. 1953 - .. Apr. 1955	Lcdr. Charles Leo Nagle (El Dorado, Ark.)
7.) .. Apr. 1955 - 13 Nov. 1956	Lcdr. Harvey O’Neill Webster, Jr. (Decomm. CO)
8.) 02 Dec.1957 - .. Dec. 1958	Lcdr. Richard Lee Warren (Recomm. CO) (USNA '44) (Olustee, Okla.)
9.) .. Dec. 1958 - .. Mar. 1960	Lcdr. George Pullen Peed (Decomm. CO) (USNA '44) (Ft. Pierce, Fla.)

Crew Contact And Reunion Information

Contact Name: Fay Eaton
Address: 38 Diamond St. PO Box 6
City/State: Electric City WA 99126-0006
Phone: (509) 633-1392
E-mail: Fay Eaton

Note About Contacts

Contact information is compiled from various sources over a period of time and may, or may not, be correct. Every effort has been
made to list the newest contact. However, our entry is only as good as the latest information that's been sent to us. We list only
a contact for the ship if one has been sent to us. We do NOT have crew lists or rosters available. Please see the Frequently Asked
Questions section on NavSource's Main Page for that information.

Additional Resources

Tin Can Sailors
The U.S. Navy Memorial
Destroyer Escort Sailors Association
The Destroyer Escort Historical Museum
The Destroyer History Foundation
Tin Can Sailors Shipmate Registry - USS Blair

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