USS AMc-178 (AMC-178)

Evidence

10 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-10).

1. [1]NavSource Online, Service Ship Photo Archive - USS APc-43 page (volunteer archival compilation, not an official record) [other_primary]

   Locator

   Chronology block, awards ribbon display, specification block, commanding-officer list, and photo credits, USS APc-43 page (navsource.net/archives/09/23/23043.htm)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   NavSource chronology: originally planned as Coastal Minesweeper AMc-178; laid down 1942-07-20; launched 1943-01-18; commissioned USS APc-43 on 1943-04-20 with Lt. Harry R. Swanson Jr., USNR, in command. Asiatic-Pacific Theater assignment: APc Flotilla Five (LT G. D. Winsor, USNR), APc Group Fifteen, APc Division Twenty-Nine. Decommissioned 1946-03-11 at San Francisco; struck from the Naval Register 1946-03-28; sold 1947-01-06 to 'Empacadora Pacifico Del Ensenada,' Mexico, by MARCOMM and removed same day; final disposition fate unknown. Ribbon display: American Campaign Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, World War II Victory Medal - no battle stars. Spec block: 100 t light / 258 t full; 103'3" x 21'3" x 9'3"; 10 kts; 3 officers + 22 enlisted; troop capacity 66; largest boom 2 t; fuel 145 bbls diesel; four single 20mm AA mounts; one 400-shp Atlas 6HM2124 diesel with Snow & Knobstedt single reduction gear, two diesel-driven 30 kW 120V DC ship's-service generators, single propeller. Call sign NCYJ. CO list: Swanson 29 Apr 1943-28 Jul 1944; LT Cecil O. Williamson to 18 Dec 1944; ENS Reid W. Nielson to 23 Jul 1945; ENS Robert J. Sheridan to 19 Nov 1945; ENS John H. Nunnally Jr. to 23 Jan 1946; ENS Edward L. Forness to 11 Mar 1946. Contributed photos (Ed Loosli for Raymond Loosli, MoMM1/c) show the ship pierside, at anchor, in dry dock, and crew R&R in the Marianas. Page states: 'There is no history available for APc-43 at NavSource.'

   Verification

   partial

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1942-1947

   Population

   Crew (3 officers + 22 enlisted per spec block) plus embarked troops (capacity 66); construction trades at the builder's yard (1942-43)

   Limitations

   Volunteer archival compilation, not an official record - establishes identity, service milestones, and specification as compiled from contributor material. Its 'Lynch Ship Building Co., San Diego' builder attribution is contradicted by shipscribe and both shipbuildinghistory tables (see correction row ev-06). Internal inconsistency: commissioning stated as 20 Apr 1943 with Swanson in command, but his listed command start is 29 Apr 1943. 'MARCOMM' is the Maritime Commission. No itinerary beyond theater assignment; no asbestos or materials information.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-amc-178-amc178-01

2. [2]National Archives and Records Administration, Special List 44 - 'List of Logbooks of U.S. Navy Ships, Stations, and Miscellaneous Units' (ship-number index of deck-log holdings) [other_primary]

   Locator

   SL-44 ship-number index, 'APC-43 4/20/1943 6/30/1945' (pdftotext -layout verified)

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   The NARA finding aid indexes a deck-log series for APC-43 spanning 4/20/1943 to 6/30/1945. The start date matches the documented commissioning date exactly (20 April 1943), corroborating it against NavSource's internal 20-vs-29 April discrepancy. The indexed run ends 30 June 1945 - the final ~8.5 months of commissioned service (through decommissioning 11 March 1946) are NOT covered by this index entry, whether because those logs are held in a different series, were not transferred, or are indexed elsewhere is undetermined.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1943-04-20 to 1945-06-30 (indexed log coverage)

   Limitations

   Finding aid documents the existence and date span of the log series, not log contents - the logs were not retrieved (no reproduction authorized) and their digitization status was not verified. The index supports 20 April 1943 as the log-series start (consistent with commissioning) but does not by itself prove the ceremony date. Contains no asbestos or materials information.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-amc-178-amc178-02

3. [3]NavSource Coastal Minesweeper (AMc) index - 'AMc-178 Reclassified APc-43'; shipscribe.com USS APc-1 class ship-notes 'APc-43: Ex AMc-178'; NavSource APc-43 page 'Originally planned as Coastal Minesweeper AMc-178'; Wikipedia APc-1-class roster (corroboration only) [other_primary]

   Locator

   NavSource Coastal Minesweeper index, 'AMc-178 ... Reclassified APc-43' row; shipscribe APC01 ship-notes row 43; NavSource APc-43 chronology header

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Designation correction: AMc-178 was a planned coastal-minesweeper designation only and no minesweeper ever served under it. The 50 hulls ordered as AMc-150-199 under the CNO directive of 1942-01-19 were redirected after the CNO's 1942-04-13 request for 'raider transports, AP'; the 'Coastal transport (small), APc' category was created 1942-04-22 and AMc 150-199 became APc 1-50 (not respectively). This hull commissioned as USS APc-43; the canonical record is APc-43 with AMc-178 carried as a consolidation alias.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   correction

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1942

   Limitations

   Redesignation documented by secondary compilations (NavSource AMc index and APc-43 page; shipscribe notes 'Ex AMc-178'; Wikipedia roster) - the underlying CNO directive and BuShips correspondence were not directly retrieved. The AMc-150-199 -> APc-1-50 mapping is non-sequential: neighbors AMc-176/177/179 became APc-41/42/44. Nothing in this row bears on materials aboard the hull.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-amc-178-amc178-03

4. [4]shipscribe.com, 'USS APc-1 Class' - NVR-derived class specification, construction table row 43, ship-notes row 43, and class procurement notes (compiler: Robert Hurst) [other_primary]

   Locator

   Class characteristics block; Construction table row 43; Disposal table row 43; Ship Notes row 43; class notes paragraphs on AMc-to-APc procurement

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Class configuration: APc-1-class small coastal transports were wooden-hulled craft of 161 tons light / 258 tons limited, 103.25 ft overall x 21.25 ft x 9.25 ft, 10 knots, single-screw diesel of 400 hp (some units 500 hp), original armament four single 20mm, complement 21 (1944 figure). Construction-table row for APc-43: ordered 1942-04-29, builder Cryer & Sons, keel 1942-07-20, launched 1943-01-18, commissioned 1943-04-20. Ship-notes row 43: 'Ex AMc-178. Earlier order: Snow SY (19 Feb 42). Sold (delivered) by MC to Empacadora del Pacifico, Ensenada, Mexico.' Disposal table: decomm. 11 Mar 46, strike 28 Mar 46, disposal 6 Jan 47 (MC/D), MA sale 6 Jan 47. Procurement history: AMc 150-199 ordered per CNO directive 1942-01-19; BuShips issued modified-design specifications February 1942; CNO requested completion as raider transports 1942-04-13; District Craft Development Board recommended the change 1942-04-20; the APc category was created 1942-04-22.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1942-1947

   Population

   Shipyard workers and class crews (class context)

   Limitations

   Class-level specification and NVR-derived compilation; documents the type's plant, the class procurement history, and this hull's order/keel/launch/commissioning milestones, not materials aboard. The 'Earlier order: Snow SY (19 Feb 42)' note indicates AMc-178 was first contracted to Snow Shipyards (Rockland, ME) before reassignment to Cryer & Sons - the reason for reassignment is not given. Absence of a steam plant removes the most commonly documented WWII asbestos pathway but does not establish that no asbestos-containing material was aboard. Complement figure conflicts with NavSource's 25. No asbestos or materials information.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-amc-178-amc178-04

5. [5]shipbuildinghistory.com, 'Cryer & Sons - Oakland CA' yard table and 'US Navy Coastal Transports APc' program table (Tim Colton compilations) [other_primary]

   Locator

   cryer.htm yard table row 'AMc 178/APc 43' and yard-history header; auxapc.htm program table row 'APc 43'

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Builder and delivery record: the Cryer & Sons yard table lists 'AMc 178/APc 43 - US Navy - Coastal Transport - 100 tons - 147 ft - delivered 20-Apr-43 - To MARAD 1947'; the APc program table lists 'APc 43 - Cryer & Sons, Oakland CA - 100 LDT - 103 LOA - 1942 - To MARAD 1947.' Sister rows in the same Cryer block: AMc 176/APc 41 (ON 255456, delivered 10-Feb-43), AMc 177/APc 42 (ON 255445, delivered 10-Mar-43), AMc 179/APc 44 (delivered 18-May-43). APc-43's Official-Number cell is blank - consistent with a hull never U.S.-documented as a merchant vessel (sold directly to a Mexican buyer). Yard history: founded by William Cryer in San Francisco in the 1890s, moved to 11th Avenue Oakland 1907, then Dennison Street (below the Coast Guard Island Bridge) 1912; built and repaired power boats; closed 1989; site remains contaminated per the compiler.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1942-1947

   Population

   Construction trades at the Cryer yard, Oakland (1942-43)

   Limitations

   Secondary compilation (Colton), corroborating shipscribe on builder and dates independently of NavSource. 'To MARAD 1947' is anachronistic shorthand - the Maritime Commission administered the January 1947 sale (MARAD created 1950). The 147-ft figure is the register length vs the 103-ft LOA; tonnage 100 is LDT/GT register tonnage vs the 161/258-t displacement figures. No asbestos or materials information; the yard's contemporary site contamination is post-industrial context, not a vessel finding.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-amc-178-amc178-05

6. [6]shipbuildinghistory.com, 'Lynch Shipbuilding - San Diego CA' yard table (Tim Colton compilation) - APc-43 absent; NavSource APc-43 page 'Lynch Ship Building Co.' attribution [other_primary]

   Locator

   lynch.htm yard table (APc rows 45-50 only; no APc-43); shipscribe APC01 construction row 43; cryer.htm row 'AMc 178/APc 43'; navsource.net/archives/09/23/23043.htm builder line and spec block

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Builder-attribution correction: NavSource's APc-43 page records the builder as 'Lynch Ship Building Co., San Diego, CA,' but the Lynch yard delivery table lists only six APc hulls - AMc 187/APc 45, AMc 188/APc 46, AMc 189/APc 47, AMc 190/APc 48, AMc 191/APc 49, AMc 192/APc 50 - and does not include APc-43. Shipscribe's construction table and shipbuildinghistory's Cryer yard table and APc program table all assign APc-43 to Cryer & Sons, Oakland (delivered 20-Apr-43). The Lynch attribution is likely a confusion with the adjacent Lynch-built APc-45~50 group delivered in the same Apr-Jun 1943 window. Corroborating detail: NavSource's own spec block gives APc-43 an Atlas 6HM2124 diesel - Atlas was the engine make historically used by Cryer boats - while East Coast-built sisters such as APc-13 carried General Motors diesels.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   correction

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1942-1943

   Limitations

   The correction rests on three secondary-compilation table rows (shipscribe; Colton yard table; Colton program table) plus the Lynch table's silence - all consistent, but none is a primary contract document; the underlying BuShips contract records were not retrieved. NavSource is otherwise concordant on dates. No asbestos or materials information in any source.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-amc-178-amc178-06

7. [7]Design-bounded assessment compiled from NavSource and shipscribe/shipbuildinghistory specifications for this hull (ev-01, ev-04, ev-05) and the documented APc-1-class configuration [other_primary]

   Locator

   navsource.net/archives/09/23/23043.htm specifications block; shipscribe APC01 class characteristics block; cryer.htm yard table

   Finding type

   asbestos_application

   Finding

   Design-level assessment of the asbestos-relevant profile: this craft carried a single 400-shp Atlas 6HM2124 diesel on one screw in a ~100-ton wooden hull - no boilers, no steam distribution system, no turbines. The principal asbestos vectors documented aboard steam-era naval vessels - boiler and steam-drum lagging, steam-line insulation, turbine and condenser insulation - are absent by design in this type. Residual era-typical applications remain plausible but are undocumented for this hull: diesel exhaust and muffler insulation, engine gaskets and packing, electrical insulation, joiner/fireproofing materials, and brake linings on winch/windlass gear.

   Verification

   inferred

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1942-1946

   Population

   Ship's company (unverified, 21-25 by source); construction trades at Cryer, Oakland (1942-43)

   Limitations

   Class/design inference, not a ship-specific finding: the absence of a steam plant removes the dominant asbestos vectors but does not prove the absence of asbestos aboard - WWII-era gaskets, packing, electrical components, and interior materials could still contain asbestos, and the Navy's outfitting specifications for this contract are unretrieved. Nothing in the cited sources names an asbestos product installed on this hull. Does not establish presence, absence, exposure, or causation for any individual.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-amc-178-amc178-07

8. [8]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 program context in which this wooden-hulled transport was built (1942-43) - and that wartime demand drove unprecedented asbestos utilization across naval construction.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1940s era documented; article 1987

   Population

   WWII shipyard workers and ship crews (era context)

   Limitations

   Era-level scholarship on WWII shipbuilding generally; does not name this vessel, the APc-1 class, or the Cryer yard, and does not establish that asbestos was or remains aboard this hull, nor quantity, location, condition, individual exposure, or causation. Its ship-construction framing applies most strongly to the construction trades at the builder's yard rather than to the crew of a small diesel craft.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-amc-178-amc178-08

9. [9]Batch-1527 search ledger (this record): NavSource APc-43 page and AMc index; NARA Special List 44; shipscribe APC01 class page; shipbuildinghistory (auxapc, cryer, lynch, snow-mirror tables); NavalCoverMuseum (404); NVR (pre-1987 exclusion); MARAD ShipHistory (site error - blocked); CourtListener API (throttled - blocked); HyperWar ships-ap; web-level ship-name and asbestos-litigation searches [other_primary]

   Locator

   search_ledger rows sl-uss-amc-178-amc178-01 through sl-uss-amc-178-amc178-13

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or docketed asbestos case naming APc-43, APC-43, AMc-178, AMC-178, or USS APc-43 was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). No DANFS entry exists for this unnamed hull. Web-level litigation search returned only ship-list pages and unrelated material.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   negative_finding

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   2026-09-22

   Limitations

   Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - it reports that no qualifying record was found. The CourtListener opinion/RECAP name search was blocked by quota exhaustion at query time (authenticated 2,800/day already consumed; expected reset ~4,100 s), so the litigation sweep is incomplete and flagged rather than failed silently. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-amc-178-amc178-09

10. [10]NARA record-path mapping: RG 24 deck logs for APC-43 (1943-04-20 to 1945-06-30, per SL-44); BuShips contract file for the AMc-178/APc-43 order (Snow SY 19 Feb 42, superseded by Cryer & Sons 29 Apr 42); Maritime Commission disposal file for the 6 Jan 1947 Empacadora del Pacifico sale; Mexican vessel-registry records (post-1947 identity); NavSource contributed photo file (Loosli collection) [other_primary]

    Locator

    NARA SL-44 ship-number index; shipscribe ship-notes (Snow SY order); MC disposal-record series; NavSource APc-43 photo credit lines

    Finding type

    historical_record

    Finding

    Archival leads not retrieved: NARA RG 24 deck logs for APC-43 exist (SL-44 documents coverage 4/20/1943-6/30/1945) but were not pulled; they would document stations, availabilities, and drydock periods in the Marianas and elsewhere. The BuShips/BuC&R contract correspondence would resolve the Snow-to-Cryer reassignment and the Lynch-vs-Cryer builder attribution definitively. The Maritime Commission disposal file would document the January 1947 sale terms to Empacadora del Pacifico (a fish-canning concern at Ensenada, Baja California - likely conversion to a tuna seiner or cannery tender, unverified). Mexican registry/cannery-fleet records are the verification path for the post-1947 identity ('fate unknown' per NavSource). NavSource holds eight contributed photos from the Raymond Loosli MoMM1/c collection, including drydock and Marianas images.

    Verification

    unverified

    Role

    archival_lead

    Documentation level

    context_only

    Accessed

    2026-09-22

    Limitations

    Record-path mapping only - not evidence about this hull's materials or condition. No box-level retrieval performed and no reproduction ordered; digitization status unverified for each holding. The cannery-conversion speculation is flagged as such and asserted nowhere in the record proper.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-amc-178-amc178-10