Evidence
9 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-9).
-
[1]Naval History and Heritage Command, Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, "Sgt. Archer T. Gammon" [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- Full DANFS entry text; live URL returned HTTP 404 on 2026-09-24 (confirmed via direct curl and WebFetch - link rot, not a wrong URL). No HyperWar/ibiblio/hazegray mirror of this specific AK entry was located. Content reconstructed from Wikipedia's DANFS-attributed summary and search-engine cached indexing of the same NHHC page, cross-checked across two independent search passes for internal consistency.
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS narrative (as reproduced via Wikipedia's DANFS-sourced summary and search-engine index caching of the NHHC page; live NHHC page returned HTTP 404 at time of research): Yale Victory (MCV hull 725) laid down 1944-12-13 by Permanente Metals Corp., Richmond, CA; launched 1945-01-31, sponsored by Mrs. Richard W. Owens; delivered to the War Shipping Administration 1945-02-24 for operation by Olympic Steamship Co. Transferred to the Army and renamed Sgt. Archer T. Gammon (dates disputed - see ev-03). As USNS Sgt. Archer T. Gammon (T-AK-243) from 1 March 1950: operated out of Seattle to Japan, Korea, and Alaska in the early 1950s; out of San Francisco to central/western Pacific ports in the mid-late 1950s, extending to Caribbean and Atlantic areas during Middle East conflict periods; administrative control transferred to MSTS Atlantic, New York, in 1961; continued carrying Navy cargo until transferred to the Maritime Administration for disposal in spring 1973.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- 1944-1973
- Limitations
- Establishes identity, construction, and MSTS service-route history; not independently read from the primary page in full due to persistent link rot. No asbestos, insulation, or materials content in any reproduction of this source; supports no asbestos claim. Canonical NHHC URL should be re-verified before production use, per the standing link-rot issue also logged in BATCH-01-REPORT.md.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-usns-sgt-archer-t-gammon-01
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[2]U.S. Maritime Administration, ShipHistory database - SGT. ARCHER T. GAMMON (T-AK-243), Ship History Detail 6292 (see also linked prior-name record YALE VICTORY, Detail 11768) [marad_nrc]
- Locator
- ShipHistory Detail 6292, full milestone table (fetched directly, two independent passes)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- MARAD ShipHistory database record for SGT. ARCHER T. GAMMON (T-AK-243): Official No. 247353; MARAD type VC2-S-AP2; built 1945 by Permanente Metals Corp.; length 455.25 ft, beam 62.00 ft, summer draft 28.60 ft, gross tons 7,607.00, net tons 4,563.00. Milestone table (verbatim, in order): 1946-08-30 "Vessel name changed from YALE VICTORY to SGT. ARCHER T. GAMMON"; 1946-08-30 "Vessel transferred from the War Shipping Administration to the War Department"; 1973-11-09 "Vessel transferred from U.S. Navy to the Maritime Administration"; 1973-11-09 "Vessel sold for scrap to Chi Shun Hua Steel Co. of Taiwan." Final disposition: Sold - Scrap.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- 1945-1973
- Limitations
- Authoritative for government custody milestones, dimensions, and final disposition. Contains no asbestos, materials, or condition-survey information; supports no asbestos claim. The 1946-08-30 single-date milestone for name-change-plus-transfer conflicts with the DANFS/secondary narrative's two-stage dating (Army transfer 18 June 1946, renamed 31 October 1947) - see ev-03 correction row.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-usns-sgt-archer-t-gammon-02
-
[3]MARAD ShipHistory Detail 6292 (milestone table) vs. NHHC DANFS "Sgt. Archer T. Gammon" (as reproduced by Wikipedia/search-index caching) [marad_nrc]
- Locator
- MARAD milestone table entries 1-2; DANFS narrative transfer/rename sentences (see ev-01 locator note on access method)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Unresolved date conflict between two authoritative government sources: MARAD ShipHistory records a single 1946-08-30 milestone for both the YALE VICTORY-to-GAMMON name change and the War Shipping Administration-to-War Department transfer. DANFS-derived secondary reproductions (Wikipedia, search-index caching of the NHHC page) instead state the Army transfer occurred 1946-06-18 and the renaming occurred 1947-10-31 - roughly sixteen months apart and on different dates than MARAD's single entry. Neither source was reconcilable from the material accessed this session; both dates are logged rather than one being silently preferred.
- Verification
- disputed
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- 1946-1947
- Limitations
- Identity/custody-timeline discrepancy only; does not affect hull identity (both sources agree Yale Victory = Sgt. Archer T. Gammon = T-AK-243, Official No. 247353). No asbestos content in either source.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-usns-sgt-archer-t-gammon-03
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[4]Congressional Medal of Honor Society, official recipient page for Archer T. Gammon [other_primary]
- Locator
- CMOHS recipient page, biography and citation text
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Namesake: Staff Sergeant Archer T. Gammon (b. 1918-09-11, Chatham, Virginia; d. 1945-01-11), Company A, 9th Armored Infantry Battalion, 6th Armored Division, U.S. Army. Killed in action near Bastogne, Belgium, during a one-man assault that destroyed an enemy machine-gun position and a German tank crew, allowing his platoon to advance. Awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously. The ship was renamed in his honor (see ev-03 for the disputed renaming date).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- 1945
- Limitations
- Biographical/namesake context only, not asbestos-relevant; establishes why the ship carries this name. No materials or exposure content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-usns-sgt-archer-t-gammon-04
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[5]Corn, Jacqueline Karnell, and Jennifer Starr, "Historical perspective on asbestos: Policies and protective measures in World War II shipbuilding," American Journal of Industrial Medicine 11(3):359-373 (1987) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Abstract and article, AJIM 11(3):359-373
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Peer-reviewed historical study documents that asbestos was used extensively as a fireproofing and insulating material in U.S. shipbuilding during WWII, the era and Maritime Commission emergency-shipbuilding program under which this VC2-S-AP2 hull was built at a Kaiser-managed Richmond yard, and that wartime demand drove unprecedented asbestos utilization aboard merchant-type hulls including Victory ships.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- 1940s era documented; article 1987
- Population
- WWII shipyard workers and ship crews (class context)
- Limitations
- Program/era-level scholarly documentation of asbestos use in WWII shipbuilding generally; does not name this vessel and does not establish that asbestos was or remains aboard this hull, nor quantity, location, condition, exposure, or causation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-usns-sgt-archer-t-gammon-05
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[6]National Park Service, National Historic Landmark nomination, SS Lane Victory (NRHP 90002222) [nps]
- Locator
- NHL nomination, machinery/technical description section
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- NPS National Historic Landmark nomination for sister hull SS Lane Victory (a VC2-S-AP2 Victory ship of the same type and building era) documents the class propulsion plant: 2 Babcock & Wilcox sectional-header boilers (525 psi rated / 465 psi operating; 27,500 lb steam/hr at 750°F) driving a single 6,000-shp geared turbine. Steam plants of this design and era conventionally used asbestos-containing lagging, gaskets, and packing, but the nomination itself makes no asbestos statement and does not describe this hull.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- 1944-1945 construction era
- Limitations
- Describes a sister hull's machinery, not this ship's; does not itself use the word asbestos. Class/type inference only - not ship-specific to T-AK-243. Does not establish quantity, present-day presence, individual exposure, or causation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-usns-sgt-archer-t-gammon-06
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[7]In re American President Lines, Ltd., and 102 Other Shipowner-Defendants in the Ohio Asbestos Litigation (MARDOC), 929 F.2d 226 (6th Cir. 1991); Erdman v. Hudson Waterways Corp., 713 F. Supp. 706 (S.D.N.Y. 1989) [court_record]
- Locator
- MARDOC 929 F.2d 226 (6th Cir. 1991); Erdman 713 F. Supp. 706 (S.D.N.Y. 1989)
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Operator-level asbestos litigation context applicable to this hull's WSA/Army/MSTS operating lineage: MARDOC consolidated federal-court maritime asbestos claims against 103 shipowner/operators of government-associated merchant tonnage; Erdman documents a seaman's asbestos claim aboard a government-owned, charter-operated vessel. Merchant- and MSTS-type government cargo ships were litigated under operator/agency names, not individual hull names, which structurally limits what a hull-name search can find for a ship like this one that passed through WSA, Army Transport Service, and MSTS custody.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- 1946-1991 (litigation dates); ship operated 1945-1973
- Population
- Merchant/government-fleet mariners under WSA, Army Transport Service, and MSTS operator custody (class context)
- Limitations
- Procedural/operator-level rulings; no opinion in either case names this hull or makes an asbestos finding aboard it. Does not establish or defeat any exposure claim specific to this vessel or its crew.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-usns-sgt-archer-t-gammon-07
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[8]National Archives, Guide to Federal Records: RG 313 (Naval Operating Forces) and MSTS/MSC deck-log finding aid; RG 178 (U.S. Maritime Commission); RG 248 (War Shipping Administration) [other_primary]
- Locator
- https://www.archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records/groups/313.html ; https://www.archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records/groups/178.html ; https://www.archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records/groups/248.html
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival lead (not retrieved - requires in-person research room access or reproduction order; no spend authorized): NARA Record Group 313 (Records of Naval Operating Forces) holds Military Sea Transportation Service subject files and MSTS/MSC deck logs (1946-1981), which would include voyage-level records for USNS Sgt. Archer T. Gammon during her 1950-1973 MSTS service. RG 178 (U.S. Maritime Commission) and RG 248 (War Shipping Administration) may hold hull-level construction/operating records for the 1945-1946 Yale Victory/WSA period. No box-level search was performed.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- 1945-1973 records
- Limitations
- Record-group mapping only - no box-level retrieval performed; existence of asbestos-specific documents for this hull is unknown until surveyed in person. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-usns-sgt-archer-t-gammon-08
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[9]Batch-9583 search ledger (this record): DANFS, MARAD ShipHistory 6292/11768, NARA RG 313/178/248 finding aids, CourtListener helper script (throttled, incomplete) [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-usns-sgt-archer-t-gammon-01 through sl-usns-sgt-archer-t-gammon-10
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located in the public sources searched this session: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or docketed case naming the hull, its hull number, or either of its prior names (Yale Victory, USAT Sgt. Archer T. Gammon) was found in DANFS, MARAD ShipHistory, or NARA finding-aid text. CourtListener name/hull-number searches specifically required by this batch's instructions could NOT be completed this session: the fleet-wide CourtListener request budget was exhausted for the shared quota window at every attempt (see search_ledger sl-08 through sl-10); this is a coverage gap, not a negative litigation finding.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- 2026-09-24
- Limitations
- Absence of a located record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1945 Victory-type hull is era-consistent with asbestos-containing materials during its 1945-1973 service life. The CourtListener leg of this search was NOT completed (fleet quota throttle) and must be re-run before this negative finding can be treated as complete; see gaps.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-usns-sgt-archer-t-gammon-09