Evidence
8 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-8).
-
[1]DANFS, Anacapa (AG-49) - verbatim transcription via HyperWar/ibiblio (live NHHC page returned HTTP 404 on 2026-09-20) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry: specifications block (dp. 7,420; l. 335'3"; b. 49'10"; dr. 20'5"; s. 8 k.; cpl. 155; a. 4 3", 5 20mm.) + full service narrative
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS entry documents: hull built 1919 by Pusey & Jones Corp. ('Wilmington, Del.' - see builder-location discrepancy); operated as lumber ship by Coos Bay Lumber Co., San Francisco; acquired by the Navy 20 June 1942; converted at Naval Repair Base, San Diego, as a 'Q-ship' under secret Project 'Love William' (concealed 4-inch and 3-inch guns, Y-gun depth-charge projectors, crews in merchant dress); commissioned as Anacapa (AG-49) 31 Aug 1942; decoy patrols off the west coast and to the Aleutians; rescued 38 survivors of torpedoed tanker Larry Doheny off Cape Mendocino 5 Oct 1943; reassigned late Oct 1943 to weather-ship duty (San Diego-Pearl Harbor, then Ellice Islands); interisland cargo transport among Tarawa, Saipan, Guam, Kwajalein, Eniwetok, Majuro, Peleliu, Ulithi through early May 1945; Aleutian operations out of Dutch Harbor to Aug 1945; decommissioned Mare Island 21 Mar 1946; stricken 12 Apr 1946; transferred to the Maritime Commission 12 Aug 1946; refitted and returned to merchant service.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1919-1946
- Population
- Ship's complement and embarked gun crews, 1942-46
- Limitations
- Establishes identity, conversion, and service history only - the entry contains no asbestos, insulation-material, or hazardous-material statement and supports no asbestos claim. Spec block reflects a point-in-time fit (4x3"/5x20mm, cpl. 155) that differs in detail from conversion-period armament records (see ev-02); figures kept separate. Builder location given as Wilmington, Del. conflicts with Gloucester, NJ build records.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-anacapa-ag49-01
-
[2]Stephen S. Roberts, 'Anacapa (AG-49)' - U.S. Navy auxiliary data sheet, shipscribe.com (researcher compilation of official Ships' Data/NARA records and NHHC captions) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Construction and Disposition tables; Class Notes; Ship Notes; companion photo page AG49-p.html (NHHC photo captions)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- ShipScribe data sheet (compiled from Ships' Data U.S. Naval Vessels, BuShips/NARA records, and NHHC photo captions) documents: keel laid 3 Jul 1918 at New Jersey Shipbuilding, Gloucester, NJ (yard absorbed into the Pusey & Jones Gloucester yard; design numbered USSB 1153 post-WWI); launched 15 Feb 1919; completed 9 Jun 1919 as Castle Town (Id. No. 3997); requisitioned by USSB while under construction in WWI; modified between the wars as a lumber carrier with four tall masts; acquired from Coos Bay Lumber Co. by WSA 14 Apr 1942; purchased by the Navy 20 Jun 1942; Q-ship conversion at the Destroyer Base, San Diego; Q-ship service off the west coast Aug 1942-Oct 1943; CominCh reassignment to Service Forces Pacific 1 Oct 1943 (2x3"/50DP replacing the two 4"/50); Mar-Aug 1945 correspondence on removing the concealed 3"/50SP bow guns (obsolete; flaps 17x3 ft) - authorized 7 Aug 45 then disapproved 14 Sep 45 at war's end; decomm 21 Mar 46, strike 12 Apr 46, MC disposal 12 Aug 46, MA sale 30 Jan 47; merchant Coos Bay 1946, renamed George Olson 14 Apr 47, converted to barge 22 May 63, total loss Feb 64. Companion photo page AG49-p.html carries NHHC-captioned photos incl. 80-G-355446 showing the ship entering a floating drydock at Apra Harbor, Guam, circa early 1945. Program context: WWII Q-ship idea traced to a 19 Jan 42 meeting with President Roosevelt; Atlantic Q-ships were Atik (AK-101), Asterion (AK-63), Eagle (AM-132), Irene Forsyte (IX-93), Big Horn (AO-45); Anacapa was the Pacific Q-ship.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1918-1964
- Population
- Q-ship crew (merchant-dress complement), 1942-43; cargo/weather-ship crew, 1943-46
- Limitations
- Secondary compilation of official records rather than itself an official publication; its complement figure (75, 1944) and armament fit differ from the DANFS spec block - kept separate, not merged. 'Total loss Feb 64' carries no day/position detail; grounding-location detail circulating in secondary sources (Jetty A, Cape Disappointment, late Jan 1964) is not in this source. No asbestos or materials content - supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-anacapa-ag49-02
-
[3]U.S. Maritime Administration, ShipHistory database - ANACAPA (AG-49) Detail 239 and COOS BAY Detail 7477, incl. digitized status card and NARA-declassified USCG boarding documents [marad_nrc]
- Locator
- Detail 239 (milestones, fate, name history); Detail 7477 (status card 1K0_01.png; CoosBay_7477_001/002/003 PDFs; custody card)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- MARAD ShipHistory records for the hull: Detail 239 (ANACAPA AG-49) - year built 1919, U.S. Official No. 217860, shipyard Pusey and Jones Corporation, type Naval Auxiliary AG(1) Miscellaneous, light displacement 7,420 tons, milestones Disposition/Withdrawal 30 Dec 1946, fate 'Sunk - No Further Info'; Detail 7477 (COOS BAY) - same official number, 3,321 gross tons, fate 'CTL - No Further Info'. Digitized status card reads 'COOS BAY - American - SS - 3,321 (Ex-LUMBERTOWN)' and a custody card shows the chain Coos Bay Lumber Co. -> War Shipping Administration -> Pope & Talbot, Inc. -> AG-49. NARA-declassified documents hosted on the record (NARA Project NW 63684) include June 1942 U.S. Coast Guard merchant-vessel boarding/radio-sealing sheets documenting Coos Bay in lumber trade out of Marshfield/Coos Bay, Ore., under McCormick S.S. Co. agency with complement 32 - weeks before Navy purchase.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1919-1964
- Population
- Merchant crew (complement 32, June 1942)
- Limitations
- Status-card and boarding-sheet scans are partially legible (OCR-aided); 'Sunk' vs 'CTL' fate wording unreconciled; post-Navy milestones carry minimal date detail and the Pope & Talbot position in the custody chain is not fully resolved. No asbestos, materials, or condition-survey content - supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-anacapa-ag49-03
-
[4]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 [other_primary]
- Locator
- Journal article (as carried in batch-05 records); applied to documented propulsion plant and conversion event (ev-01, ev-02)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Peer-reviewed scholarship documents that asbestos was used extensively as fireproofing and insulating material in U.S. shipbuilding of the WWII era, the period of this hull's 1942 Navy-yard conversion at San Diego; her 1919 vertical triple-expansion steam plant belongs to the machinery generation in which marine boiler, steam-line, and machinery insulation, gaskets, and packing were commonly asbestos-containing. Typical applications for the type: boiler and steam-drum insulation; steam-line lagging; valve and flange gaskets; machinery packing; accommodation-space insulation.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1918-1946
- Population
- Construction trades (1918-19, Gloucester NJ); conversion yard workers (San Diego, 1942); engine-room crew
- Limitations
- Era/program-level documentation - the source does not name this hull and no hull-specific materials record exists. Asbestos presence aboard is era inference, not ship-proven; establishes no quantity, location, individual exposure, or causation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-anacapa-ag49-04
-
[5]Foss v. Oliver J. Olson & Co., 250 Cal. App. 2d 44, 58 Cal. Rptr. 511 (Cal. Ct. App. 2d Dist., filed Apr 12, 1967) [court_record]
- Locator
- Opinion opening (vessel identified as 'the lumber schooner George Olson,' defendant owner Oliver J. Olson & Co.); indexed in CourtListener Cal. Rptr. vol. 58 listing
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Published California Court of Appeal opinion names 'the lumber schooner George Olson' - this hull under her post-war merchant name - in a Jones Act/unseaworthiness action by the third mate for injuries from a crew assault at the port of Coos Bay, Oregon; judgment for plaintiff ($2,500) affirmed on appeal. Classified: OTHER LITIGATION - a docketed case naming this hull, non-asbestos.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1967 (opinion); incident circa mid-1960s
- Population
- Merchant officers/crew, George Olson era
- Limitations
- Vessel named only under her merchant name; the claim is crew-assault unseaworthiness with no asbestos allegation - establishes nothing about materials aboard. Included to record that docketed litigation naming this hull exists but is non-qualifying. CourtListener API was rate-limited (HTTP 429) during the session; existence and citation verified via the CourtListener reporter-volume listing and multiple legal indexes - full opinion text not re-fetched.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-anacapa-ag49-05
-
[6]Batch-674 search ledger (this record): DANFS/HyperWar transcription, HyperWar ship-data page, ShipScribe AG-49, MARAD ShipHistory 239/7477 + status card + NARA-declassified documents, NavSource (indexed snippet; direct fetch refused), general-web litigation substitute, USCG DCMS asbestos page [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-anacapa-ag49-01 through sl-uss-anacapa-ag49-12
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, shipyard work-order material record, or docketed asbestos case naming Anacapa/AG-49 or her merchant identities (Castle Town, Lumbertown, Coos Bay, George Olson, Official No. 217860) was found in the public sources searched - see search_ledger. The only located vessel-name litigation is the non-asbestos Foss case (ev-05); law-firm 'auxiliary ships' list entries naming AG-49 are non-authoritative and excluded per sourcing rules.
- 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 1919 steam hull Navy-converted in 1942 is era-consistent with asbestos-containing materials. The litigation sweep is PARTIAL: CourtListener API v4 returned HTTP 429 (125/day exhausted, ~12h backoff) and the web UI 403 during the session; name/hull docket coverage is via general-web substitute only. Does not establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-anacapa-ag49-06
-
[7]U.S. Coast Guard CG-112, 'Information for Coast Guard Veterans and Retirees Filing for VA Disability Compensation Due to Asbestos- and Lead-Related Health Effects' + ALCOAST 364/17 (Medical Documentation of Asbestos and Lead Exposures on Coast Guard Cutters) [other_primary]
- Locator
- DCMS CG-112 asbestos/lead page; ALCOAST 364/17 text (govdelivery mirror); attached cutter list
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- Official U.S. Coast Guard documentation acknowledges asbestos-containing materials (thermal insulation, floor tiles) aboard cutters constructed before 1991, and the Coast Guard's published list 'Coast Guard Cutters Constructed Prior to 1991 and In Service from 1990 to 2017' includes the entry ANACAPA. That entry is USCGC Anacapa (WPB-1335), an Island-class patrol cutter commissioned 13 Jan 1990 - a different vessel. The list entry does not attach to USS Anacapa (AG-49).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 2017-2018 (documentation); cutter service 1990+
- Limitations
- Disambiguation only - prevents a same-name collision (USCGC Anacapa WPB-1335) from being misread as asbestos evidence for this hull. Establishes nothing about AG-49.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-anacapa-ag49-07
-
[8]NARA Guide to Federal Records: RG 24 (Bureau of Naval Personnel - deck logs), RG 19 (Bureau of Ships), RG 248 (War Shipping Administration), RG 178 (U.S. Maritime Commission) [other_primary]
- Locator
- https://www.archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records/groups/178.html ; https://www.archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records/groups/248.html ; NARA Catalog deck-log series (WWII digitization in progress)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads (not retrieved - requires research-room or reproduction order; no spend authorized): (a) USS Anacapa (AG-49) deck logs, 1942-46 - RG 24 (Records of the Bureau of Naval Personnel), NARA College Park, WWII logs partially digitized on the NARA Catalog; (b) Project 'Love William' conversion correspondence and work orders - Destroyer Base/Naval Repair Base San Diego and Bureau of Ships files, RG 19; (c) WSA acquisition/operation file for Coos Bay (Official No. 217860), RG 248; (d) Maritime Commission disposition file, RG 178.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1918-1964 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-uss-anacapa-ag49-08