USS AFDL-19

Name
USS AFDL-19
Hull designation
AFDL-19
Vessel class
AFDL
Evidence tier
Tier 2
Evidence entries
13
Record ID
uss-afdl-19-afdl19
Dataset version
2026.10.12-rc.1
Canonical URL
https://asbestosatlas.org/ships/uss-afdl-19-afdl19

Evidence

13 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-13).

  1. [1]CourtListener opinion search: 'USS AFDL-19' [court_record]
    Finding type
    litigation_documented
    Finding
    CourtListener opinion search 'USS AFDL-19' returned 2 result(s) (2026-10-07); individual records not reviewed
    Verification
    unverified
    Role
    archival_lead
    Documentation level
    context_only
    Limitations
    hit count only — underlying dockets/opinions not individually reviewed; name query may match same-named vessels
    Evidence ID
    uss-afdl-19-afdl19-cl-name-opinion
  2. [2]CourtListener docket search: 'USS AFDL-19' [court_record]
    Finding type
    litigation_documented
    Finding
    CourtListener docket search 'USS AFDL-19' returned 4 result(s) (2026-10-07); individual records not reviewed
    Verification
    unverified
    Role
    archival_lead
    Documentation level
    context_only
    Limitations
    hit count only — underlying dockets/opinions not individually reviewed; name query may match same-named vessels
    Evidence ID
    uss-afdl-19-afdl19-cl-name-docket
  3. [3]CourtListener opinion search: 'AFDL-19' [court_record]
    Finding type
    litigation_documented
    Finding
    CourtListener opinion search 'AFDL-19' returned 9 result(s) (2026-10-07); individual records not reviewed
    Verification
    unverified
    Role
    archival_lead
    Documentation level
    ship_specific
    Limitations
    hit count only — underlying dockets/opinions not individually reviewed
    Evidence ID
    uss-afdl-19-afdl19-cl-hull-opinion
  4. [4]CourtListener docket search: 'AFDL-19' [court_record]
    Finding type
    litigation_documented
    Finding
    CourtListener docket search 'AFDL-19' returned 53 result(s) (2026-10-07); individual records not reviewed
    Verification
    unverified
    Role
    archival_lead
    Documentation level
    ship_specific
    Limitations
    hit count only — underlying dockets/opinions not individually reviewed
    Evidence ID
    uss-afdl-19-afdl19-cl-hull-docket
  5. [5]Bureau of Ships, Navy Department, Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels, Vol. III: Auxiliary, District Craft and Unclassified Vessels, NAVSHIPS 250-012 (15 Apr 1945), Floating Dry Dock Characteristics table, p. 608, row 7AFD19 (digitized scan mirrored at shipscribe.com) [other_primary]
    Locator
    p. 608, Floating Dry Dock Characteristics table, 7AFD19 row
    Finding type
    vessel_history
    Finding
    Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels, Vol. III (NAVSHIPS 250-012, Bureau of Ships, 15 April 1945) lists 7AFD19 in the Floating Dry Dock Characteristics table: a one-piece steel mobile floating dry dock (AFD) of 1,000-ton nominal lifted capacity, suitable for docking YN and AM types, length 200'0" overall, 185'0" over blocks, 64'0" molded width overall, 45'0" clear inside width, draft 14'6" over blocks / 27'0" maximum submerged / 3'5" light, construction started 1943 and finished 1944. The table's Location column assigns the dock to 'Navrepbase, San Diego, Calif.' - Naval Repair Base, San Diego.
    Verification
    verified
    Role
    supporting
    Documentation level
    ship_specific
    Accessed
    2026-09-20
    Study period
    1943-1945
    Population
    Navy repair-base dock detachment and ship-repair workforce, Naval Repair Base San Diego
    Limitations
    Official BuShips publication naming this hull by designation with characteristics and station; establishes the dock's type, dimensions, capacity, build dates, and April-1945 station at Naval Repair Base San Diego. Contains no asbestos information; does not establish builder, commissioning date, or complement.
    Atlas source
    true
    Evidence ID
    ev-uss-afdl-19-afdl19-01
  6. [6]United States Pacific Fleet Organization, 1 May 1945 (U.S. Navy document; NHHC Online Reading Room; HyperWar transcription mirror). Canonical NHHC URL https://www.history.navy.mil/research/library/online-reading-room/title-list-alphabetically/u/us-pacific-fleet-organization-1may1945.html returned 404 on 2026-09-20. [nhhc_danfs]
    Locator
    Service Force, Pacific Fleet - Service Squadron Two section, approx. p. 100 of the document
    Finding type
    vessel_history
    Finding
    The official 'United States Pacific Fleet Organization, 1 May 1945' (Pacific Fleet Confidential Notice) lists 'AFD 19' under Service Squadron Two, Service Force, Pacific Fleet, with commanding officer Lt.(jg) H. F. Heaton (service no. 13103). The listing places the dock administratively within the Pacific Fleet's rear-area service organization; a numeric prefix '10' printed beside the entry is unexplained in the document.
    Verification
    verified
    Role
    supporting
    Documentation level
    ship_specific
    Accessed
    2026-09-20
    Study period
    1945-05-01
    Population
    AFD-19 dock detachment under Lt.(jg) H. F. Heaton; Service Squadron Two, Service Force Pacific
    Limitations
    Official fleet-organization roster naming this hull by designation with its commanding officer; establishes Navy service under Service Squadron Two, Pacific Fleet, as of 1 May 1945. Does not state the dock's physical location, does not document asbestos, and does not by itself establish continuous Pacific service - administrative assignment only. Consistent with the independent April-1945 Ships' Data location entry (Naval Repair Base San Diego).
    Atlas source
    true
    Evidence ID
    ev-uss-afdl-19-afdl19-02
  7. [7]Bureau of Ships, 'Building the Navy's Bases in World War II' (official history), ch. 9, floating-drydock nomenclature and 1946 reclassification passage; NavSource Service Craft Photo Archive index entry 'AFD-19 / AFDL-19' [other_primary]
    Locator
    bases-9.html nomenclature paragraph block; NavSource archives/14/03idx.htm AFDL index
    Finding type
    vessel_history
    Finding
    The wartime standard-type AFDs were redesignated AFDL (Auxiliary Floating Drydock, Little - under 10,000 tons) in the Navy's 1946 reclassification of floating drydocks, effective 1 August 1946; the Bureau of Ships' official history of the dock program records 'the AFD's became AFDL's' under the new nomenclature. NavSource's service-craft index consequently lists this hull as 'AFD-19 / AFDL-19.' Wartime definitions per the same official history: AFD = mobile, military, steel trough-type unit dock, faired bow and stern, 1,000 tons lifting capacity; wartime AFDL = lengthened/enlarged variant to 1,900 tons.
    Verification
    verified
    Role
    supporting
    Documentation level
    ship_specific
    Accessed
    2026-09-20
    Study period
    1946
    Limitations
    The 1 August 1946 AFD-to-AFDL redesignation is a class-wide administrative rule documented by an official history; its application to this hull is corroborated by the NavSource index naming 'AFD-19 / AFDL-19' and by the federal court record referring to the commercial dock as 'AFDL 19.' Implies the hull remained on the Naval Register through the redesignation date; does not document the striking date.
    Atlas source
    true
    Evidence ID
    ev-uss-afdl-19-afdl19-03
  8. [8]Colton, T., 'U.S. Navy Dry Docks AFDB AFDM AFDL ARDM ARD YFD' table (shipbuildinghistory.com, updated 2019-06-11), AFDL-19 row; NavSource AFDL-21/AFDL-22/AFDL-23 pages (sister-hull builder records); Al Larson Boat Shop official site, facility description [other_primary]
    Locator
    AFDL-19 table row; navsource.net/archives/09/28/2821-2823.htm; larsonboat.com
    Finding type
    vessel_history
    Finding
    Specialized shipbuilding reference (Tim Colton, shipbuildinghistory.com) lists AFDL-19 as built by George D. Auchter Co., Jacksonville, FL, delivered 1943, displacement 800 t., length 200 ft., with disposition noted 'To UK 1943, returned to Jax, to Al Larson BS, active.' The builder attribution is corroborated by NavSource records for the sister Auchter-built docks of the same block (AFD-21, AFD-22, AFD-23 all credited to George D. Auchter Co., Jacksonville). The 'To UK 1943' element conflicts with official U.S. Navy records placing the dock at Naval Repair Base San Diego in 1945 and is assessed as a probable name collision with British Admiralty Floating Dock No. 19 (see correction row). The 'Al Larson BS, active' element is consistent with the yard's own published drydock description (200 ft long, 44 ft wide, 1,000-ton capacity) matching this hull's official dimensions and rating.
    Verification
    partial
    Role
    supporting
    Documentation level
    ship_specific
    Accessed
    2026-09-20
    Study period
    1943-2019
    Population
    George D. Auchter Co. construction workforce, Jacksonville FL, 1943-44
    Limitations
    Specialized secondary compilation, not an official record - builder and disposition accepted as corroborated (sister-hull NavSource records; yard's dimensional match), but the 'To UK 1943, returned to Jax' element is contradicted by official U.S. Navy records (Ships' Data Apr 1945 and Pacific Fleet Organization May 1945 both place the dock in the Pacific/U.S. system, at Naval Repair Base San Diego) and is assessed here as a probable conflation with the distinct British Admiralty Floating Dock No. 19. No official contract or transfer document located for any element.
    Atlas source
    true
    Evidence ID
    ev-uss-afdl-19-afdl19-04
  9. [9]Royal Museums Greenwich / National Maritime Museum, object NPD3475 - Admiralty plan 'as fitted for Admiralty Floating Dock (A.F.D.) No. 19 (1942)', dated 26 Aug 1942; Corpach/Dunstaffnage destroyer-repair-base research (mbriscoe.me.uk); List of Admiralty floating docks (secondary) [museum_official]
    Locator
    RMG collections object 1203510; mbriscoe.me.uk/page182.html; Wikipedia List of Admiralty floating docks (secondary, for the Gills Bay endpoint only)
    Finding type
    historical_record
    Finding
    Name-collision resolution: the 'AFD 19' documented at the Corpach and Dunstaffnage destroyer-repair sites in Scotland was a BRITISH Admiralty Floating Dock, not the U.S. Navy hull. Royal Museums Greenwich (National Maritime Museum) holds the Admiralty 'as fitted' technical drawing for 'Admiralty Floating Dock (A.F.D.) No. 19 (1942)' dated 26 August 1942 (NPD3475) - predating the U.S. hull's completion. Local-history research records the Admiralty AFD19 at Corpach from December 1942, moved to Dunstaffnage in early August 1943 (replaced at Corpach by AFD22). The Admiralty list traces No. 19 later to Vickers/VSEL and finally scrapped as the base of a pier at Gills Bay, Caithness. Secondary claims that 'USS AFD-19 served at Dunstaffnage' (Wikipedia citing a personal memory; shipbuildinghistory's 'To UK 1943') conflate the two docks' identical numbers.
    Verification
    verified
    Role
    correction
    Documentation level
    context_only
    Accessed
    2026-09-20
    Study period
    1942-1945
    Population
    Royal Navy dockyard workforce, Corpach and Dunstaffnage (different dock - collision context)
    Limitations
    Documents a DIFFERENT vessel (British Admiralty dock) solely to resolve the numbering collision; the RMG drawing is authoritative for the British dock's Admiralty provenance and 1942 date. Movement dates Corpach-to-Dunstaffnage rest on local-history research corroborated by a dated eyewitness account; Admiralty movement registers (UK National Archives) would be the confirming primary source. Makes no claim about the U.S. hull beyond excluding the Dunstaffnage attribution.
    Atlas source
    true
    Evidence ID
    ev-uss-afdl-19-afdl19-05
  10. [10]Pringle (Trustee for the Estate of San Pedro Boat Works, Inc.) v. Water Quality Insurance Syndicate et al., No. CV 04-08495 DDP (RCx) (C.D. Cal.), Order Granting Summary Judgment to WQIS and EPG, Dkt. No. 263, filed 6 Aug 2009 (Pregerson, J.) [court_record]
    Locator
    Dkt. 263, Statement of Undisputed Facts / Background section (pp. 2-4, 10-13)
    Finding type
    environmental_record
    Finding
    A federal district-court order on insurance coverage documents that drydocks designated 'AFDL 19 and AFDL 27' were owned and operated by San Pedro Boat Works (SPBW), 'permanently located and operated at SPBW's Berth 57 in the Port of Los Angeles' (insured January 1992; yard operations approximately 1984-2003). The order records undisputed facts: SPBW 'used hazardous heavy metal sandblast media aboard the drydocks'; 'the marine sediment in the immediate area of the Drydocks was known or alleged to be contaminated with' that material; Los Angeles County Department of Health 'issued several Notices of Violation relating to the drydocks' (e.g., 7 June 1990 NOV for 'waste paint/paint residue'); and the City of Los Angeles sued SPBW in October 2002 over environmental contamination at Berths 44 and 57. SPBW filed Chapter 7 bankruptcy December 2002; the drydocks were among assets abandoned by the trustee. The court granted rescission for WQIS and summary judgment for EPG and denied the trustee's duty-to-defend motion (6 August 2009).
    Verification
    verified
    Role
    supporting
    Documentation level
    ship_specific
    Accessed
    2026-09-20
    Study period
    ca. 1984-2003 (operations); 2009 (order)
    Population
    San Pedro Boat Works drydock and ship-repair workforce, Berth 57, Port of Los Angeles
    Limitations
    Merits-level federal court record naming 'AFDL 19' as an insured drydock - the retained Navy designation in commercial service; the order does not recite the dock's ex-Navy provenance but only one AFDL-19 hull existed. The documented contamination is heavy-metal sandblast slag and marine paint residue - NOT asbestos; no asbestos allegation appears anywhere in the record. Litigation posture is insurance coverage, not exposure findings; establishes the drydocks' presence and the yard's documented hazardous operations around them, not individual exposure.
    Atlas source
    true
    Evidence ID
    ev-uss-afdl-19-afdl19-06
  11. [11]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 World War II - the era and program under which this 1943-44 Navy floating dock was built - and that wartime demand drove unprecedented asbestos utilization in naval construction.
    Verification
    verified
    Role
    context
    Documentation level
    class_or_era
    Accessed
    2026-09-20
    Study period
    1940s era documented; article 1987
    Population
    WWII shipyard workers and vessel 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-uss-afdl-19-afdl19-07
  12. [12]Batch-578 search ledger (this record): NHHC/DANFS and NavSource index; NAVSHIPS 250-012 Vol. III; U.S. Pacific Fleet Organization 1 May 1945; Naval Vessel Register; CourtListener opinion/docket searches; shipbuildinghistory floating-dock table; commercial-yard disclosures [other_primary]
    Locator
    search_ledger rows sl-uss-afdl-19-afdl19-01 through sl-uss-afdl-19-afdl19-10
    Finding type
    historical_record
    Finding
    No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or docketed asbestos case naming AFD-19/AFDL-19 was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). The single docketed case naming the hull (Pringle v. WQIS, C.D. Cal.) concerns heavy-metal/marine-paint environmental contamination and insurance coverage, not asbestos.
    Verification
    verified
    Role
    negative_finding
    Documentation level
    ship_specific
    Accessed
    2026-09-20
    Study period
    2026-09-20
    Limitations
    Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1943-44 Navy-built steel dock is era-consistent with asbestos-containing gaskets, packing, and electrical insulation, none of which is documented for this hull. Does not establish presence or absence; does not establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility.
    Atlas source
    true
    Evidence ID
    ev-uss-afdl-19-afdl19-08
  13. [13]NARA Guide to Federal Records - RG 19 (Bureau of Ships), RG 38/313 (command/war-diary records); Fold3 WWII war-diaries digitization program [other_primary]
    Locator
    Record-group mapping only; no box-level retrieval performed
    Finding type
    historical_record
    Finding
    Archival leads (not retrieved - research-room or reproduction-order material): NARA RG 19 (Bureau of Ships) holds floating-dock design/contract records; the Auchter contract and hull-level outfitting specifications are the primary-source path for builder confirmation and materials. Service Squadron Two and Naval Repair Base San Diego war diaries (NARA RG 38/313; Fold3 digitizations) are the path for station/operational detail and complement. Navy vessel disposal/sale records would establish the stricken date and the commercial-sale chain leading to San Pedro Boat Works and (reported) Al Larson Boat Shop.
    Verification
    unverified
    Role
    archival_lead
    Documentation level
    context_only
    Accessed
    2026-09-20
    Study period
    1943-2003 records
    Limitations
    Record-group mapping only - no box-level retrieval performed; existence of asbestos-specific documents for this hull is unknown until surveyed. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.
    Atlas source
    true
    Evidence ID
    ev-uss-afdl-19-afdl19-09

Attribution

Compiled by
Paul Danziger; Rod de Llano
Publisher
Danziger & De Llano, LLP
License
CC-BY-4.0
Citation
Danziger, P., and De Llano, R. (2026). AsbestosAtlas Navy Vessel Asbestos Exposure Dataset. Danziger & De Llano, LLP. DOI: not yet assigned
Dataset version
asbestosatlas-ships-2026.10.12-rc.1
DOI
not yet assigned