DD vs. DE

The most notable thing about DE's is that most of them were manned by Coast Guard crews, not the USN. This is because the USN saw commerce protection, like convoy escort, as a function of the Coast Guard, not them. US DE's, and Patrol Frigates (PF) like the Tacoma class, were intended primarily for convoy escort duty. The River and Tacoma classes were designed to allow civilian merchant ship yards to build them.

The USN really didn't want these ships, other than as substitutes for DD's like the Rudderow class that had 5"/38 guns and were either turbine or turbo-electric powered.

 

Only 30 DEs, of the Edsall class, were manned by the Coast Guard. They included four of the ships which participated in the capture of U-505.

The USCG did man all of the Tacoma class PFs in US service, 75 of them; the other 21 went to the Royal Navy. This was a version of the British/Canadian River class, two of which were given to the USN. They were built to commercial rather than naval standards, and the US Maritime Commission proposed to build 100 of them, 96 of which were completed.

 

Opana,
Not sure if you're directing the question at me, but if NHHC thinks they're useful, go right ahead and offer them up. Can't get enough primary documents describing how the sausage was made out there, in my opinion. Tamps down on a lot of blanket statements, half-truths and fabrications.
Chris