Evidence
12 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-12).
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[1]Pacific Marine Review 36(5), May 1939, 'Three New Passenger Liners for the Panama Railroad Steamship Co.' / 'S.S. Panama and Sisters,' pp. 32-38, 54B-54F (archive.org scan, OCR-assisted) [other_primary]
- Locator
- PMR May 1939 design article, 'Deck Coverings and Insulation' and 'Refrigeration' sections
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- The May 1939 Pacific Marine Review design article for the three-ship Panama Railroad class (Panama delivered; Ancon and Cristobal then under construction to the same design) records: insulation installed 'in all locations where there would be an appreciable transfer of heat from one compartment to another and on the fire screen bulkheads,' with that insulation and 'the Flex-o-board insulation covering in way of accommodations' supplied by the Johns-Manville Corporation; accommodation and public-room deck spaces covered by Selby-Battersby magnesite; refrigerated spaces insulated with spun glass.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1937-1939
- Population
- Fore River construction trades (1937-39); merchant crew; later Navy complement
- Limitations
- The article describes the class design via lead ship Panama and does not state 'asbestos' for any product; asbestos content of J-M Flex-o-board/Marinite-type marine boards and of Selby-Battersby magnesite is established by era product literature, not by this source. Ship-by-ship installation on hull 1468 is not separately certified. Does not establish quantity, location aboard Ancon, or individual exposure.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ancon-agc4-01
-
[2]Johns-Manville, 'Marinite Asbestos Joiner Panels' product brochure (ToxicDocs archive scan) [other_primary]
- Locator
- ToxicDocs kmXDy3YmM529OnryQNRr2rdRE, product description and 'Developed to help prevent fires at sea' section
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Johns-Manville product literature describes Marinite as 'an insulating sheet material composed of asbestos fiber, diatomaceous silica and an inorganic binder,' developed specifically for the post-Morro Castle (1934) U.S. fireproofing laws requiring firescreen bulkheads and incombustible enclosures on American-flag passenger vessels, and states it 'has been installed on every American flag passenger vessel built since the early 1940s' as well as the majority of American cargo ships of the period.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1934-1940s
- Population
- U.S.-flag passenger-ship construction trades (class context)
- Limitations
- Manufacturer literature establishes the asbestos composition of J-M's marine insulation product family and the regulatory driver (post-1934 firescreen rules) applicable to this 1939 passenger-ship design; it does not name this hull and does not prove which specific J-M products were installed aboard Ancon.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ancon-agc4-02
-
[3]Johns-Manville, 'Asbestos Flexboard Insulating Board Products' catalog (1949), archive.org Building Technology Heritage Library, identifier johnsmanville134 [other_primary]
- Locator
- archive.org item johnsmanville134 (1949 catalog)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A Johns-Manville catalog (1949, Building Technology Heritage Library) titled 'Johns-Manville Asbestos Flexboard Insulating Board Products' confirms that J-M's Flexboard/Flex-o-board product line was marketed as asbestos insulating board in the period bracketing this ship's construction and Navy service.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1949 (catalog); product line era
- Population
- shipyard joiners/insulators (era context)
- Limitations
- Catalog postdates construction by a decade; it corroborates the asbestos character of the product family named in the 1939 design article but does not itself place the product aboard this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ancon-agc4-03
-
[4]DANFS, Ancon II (AGC-4), from Vol. 1-Part A pp. 281-283 (1991 ed.) - verbatim transcription via hazegray mirror (live NHHC page returned 404 on 2026-09-20) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS Ancon II entry, full text; NHHC canonical https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/a/ancon-ii.html (404)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS records: Panama Railroad Co. liner placed in service 22 Jun 1939 NY-Cristobal; Army Transport Service 11 Jan 1942, two Australia trooping voyages; Navy acquisition 7 Aug 1942, commissioned AP-66 at Boston Navy Yard 12 Aug 1942; Fedhala assault (Torch) Nov 1942; Norfolk Navy Yard conversion to combined headquarters/communications command ship 16 Feb-21 Apr 1943, redesignated AGC-4 on 26 Feb; Sicily flagship (Kirk, TF 85, with Lt. Gen. Bradley) Jul 1943; Salerno flagship (carrying Lt. Gen. Clark) Sep 1943; flagship 11th Amphibious Force UK Nov 1943; flagship for the Omaha Beach assault forces, Normandy, Jun 1944; Charleston Navy Yard repairs to 21 Dec 1944; Okinawa Apr-Jun 1945; 7th Amphibious Force flagship at Manila; Tokyo Bay press-release ship anchored between Missouri and South Dakota for the 2 Sep 1945 surrender; Strategic Bombing Survey headquarters Oct-Nov 1945; decommissioned New York Naval Shipyard 25 Feb 1946, returned to owner, stricken 17 Apr 1946; five battle stars.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1939-1946
- Population
- Ship's company 707 (Aug 1945 fit) plus embarked flag staffs (Kirk/Bradley Sicily; Hall's Force O staff Normandy; 7th PhibFor Manila)
- Limitations
- Authoritative for identity and service narrative; contains no asbestos or materials information. DANFS's stated launch date (24 Sep 1938) is sister Panama's date - see correction row ev-uss-ancon-agc4-05.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ancon-agc4-04
-
[5]Pacific Marine Review: Jan 1939 'Fore River Launches Ancon' (p. 54); recurring Bethlehem Steel Shipbuilding Division Fore River Yard construction listings (1939 issues); June 1939 issue p. 68 [other_primary]
- Locator
- PMR Jan 1939 p. 54 launch notice; PMR 1939 Bethlehem Fore River 'New Construction' listings (keels laid 25 Oct 1937 hulls 1467/1468; launches 24 Sep 38 / 10 Dec 38 / 4 Mar 39; hull 1468 delivered 16 Jun 39)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Construction record corrected against builder-published data: Bethlehem Steel's own PMR 'new construction' listings give Fore River hull 1468 keel laid 25 Oct 1937, launched 10 Dec 1938, delivered 16 Jun 1939; the January 1939 PMR launch announcement ('Fore River Launches Ancon') confirms the 10 Dec 1938 launch with sponsor Mrs. Harry H. Woodring. DANFS's 'launched 24 September 1938' is lead-ship Panama's date (hull 1467, launched 24 Sep 1938, delivered 21 Apr 1939); NavSource repeats the DANFS error.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1937-1939
- Limitations
- Builder-published dates control over DANFS/NavSource transcription error. No asbestos content in source.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ancon-agc4-05
-
[6]U.S. Maritime Administration, ShipHistory database - ANCON, Ship History Detail 6710 (milestones table; status-card scans) [marad_nrc]
- Locator
- ShipHistory Detail 6710 milestone table; status card scans (image-only PDF, Ancon_6710_002.pdf)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- MARAD ShipHistory record for ANCON (Detail 6710): U.S. Official No. 238556, built 1939 by Bethlehem Steel Shipbuilding Division, type 'Combination Cargo' passenger vessel, 9,978 gross tons; milestones - MARAD acquisition 29 Jun 1962, renamed State of Maine 14 Jul 1962, sold for scrap to North American Smelting Co. under PD-X-615 9 May 1973, completely scrapped 22 Aug 1975. Digitized status cards exist but are image-only scans.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1962-1975
- Limitations
- Authoritative for government custody milestones and disposal. Status-card handwriting not fully extracted (image-only scan); Wikipedia's footnote claim that the card shows a 1951 return date is unverified. No asbestos, materials, or condition-survey information in the record.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ancon-agc4-06
-
[7]Shipscribe (Stephen S. Roberts) AGC-4 class compilation from BuShips/NARA records, corroborated by DANFS service narrative [other_primary]
- Locator
- Shipscribe USS Ancon (AGC-4) class notes and ship notes; DANFS narrative for yard dates
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented yard periods on this hull: San Francisco troopship conversion (Army, Jan-Jun 1942, yard not identified in sources); accelerated AP conversion at Boston Navy Yard Aug-Sep 1942 (BuShips estimated ~60% of normal combat-loaded-transport conversion work was done on the Casablanca ships); full AGC conversion at Norfolk Navy Yard 16 Feb-21 Apr 1943 making her the first fully configured amphibious flagship; Charleston Navy Yard repairs Oct-21 Dec 1944; deactivation at New York Naval Shipyard Jan-Feb 1946. As a merchant hull taken into naval service, all naval conversions involved reworking existing accommodation, machinery, and joiner systems.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1942-1946
- Population
- Boston NY, Norfolk NY, Charleston NY, NY Naval Shipyard yard workers; ship's force during conversions
- Limitations
- The yard events are ship-specific and documented; any asbestos disturbance/installation scope within them is era inference, not documented. Conversion specifications (BuShips work packages) not retrieved - archival lead.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ancon-agc4-07
-
[8]Rushworth, Denis H., 'The Navy and Asbestos Thermal Insulation,' Naval Engineers Journal 117(2):35-48 (2005) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NEJ 117(2), abstract and article
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Peer-reviewed engineering history documents that WWII-era U.S. Navy shipboard practice used asbestos in pipe and machinery thermal insulation and in many other shipboard products, with dry friable thermal insulation identified as the most likely exposure source aboard WWII-built ships - the era covering both this hull's 1939 construction and her 1942-43 naval conversions.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- WWII era; article 2005
- Population
- WWII-era Navy crews and shipyard workers (class context)
- Limitations
- Era/program-level scholarship; does not name this vessel and does not establish that asbestos was or remains aboard this hull, nor quantity, location, exposure, or causation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ancon-agc4-08
-
[9]Pacific Marine Review, June 1939, 'Fiberglas Insulation on New Liner Panama' (p. ~43); May 1939 design article 'Refrigeration' section [other_primary]
- Locator
- PMR Jun 1939 Fiberglas notice (names Ancon); PMR May 1939 refrigeration section (spun glass 12 lb/cu ft, Stonewall plastic finish on galvanized expanded metal)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Ship-specific documentation of a NON-asbestos insulation material: PMR (June 1939) records that the class's 90,460 cu ft of refrigerated cargo space was insulated with Owens-Corning Fiberglas spun glass packed to 12 lb/cu ft (the largest marine use of the new non-organic material to that date, ~960,000 board feet across the three ships) and states 'similar installations are being made on the Ancon and Cristobal, sister ships now under construction.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1939
- Limitations
- Documents a non-asbestos material in refrigerated spaces aboard this hull - a partial substitution only; it does not address machinery-space, bulkhead, or joiner materials, and does not establish the presence or absence of asbestos elsewhere aboard.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ancon-agc4-09
-
[10]Fuentes v. Panama Canal Co., 146 F. Supp. 303 (S.D.N.Y. 1956); Cordero v. Panama Canal Co., 170 F. Supp. 234 (S.D.N.Y. 1959); Mills v. Panama Canal Co., 272 F.2d 37 (2d Cir. 1959) [court_record]
- Locator
- CourtListener F.Supp. vol. 170 index (Cordero); Justia F.Supp. 146 index (Fuentes, 20 Nov 1956); vLex/Justia (Mills)
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Two docketed federal opinions name the S.S. Ancon of this hull - Fuentes v. Panama Canal Co., 146 F. Supp. 303 (S.D.N.Y. 1956) (wiper's maintenance-and-cure claim, Oct 1955 voyage) and Cordero v. Panama Canal Co., 170 F. Supp. 234 (S.D.N.Y. 1959) (FECA held to be a crew member's potential exclusive remedy against the federal-instrumentality operator). Neither is an asbestos case. The same FECA/Jones Act exclusivity channel governed crew claims against the operator's sister ship (Mills v. Panama Canal Co., 272 F.2d 37 (2d Cir. 1959), SS Cristobal; Johnson v. United States, 402 F.2d 778 (5th Cir. 1968), SS Cristobal).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1955-1959 (litigated)
- Population
- Panama Canal Co. merchant crew (post-war period)
- Limitations
- Classified OTHER LITIGATION, not qualifying asbestos litigation - neither case involves asbestos or disease from shipboard materials. Value is channel context: injury claims by this operator's crews were litigated inside federal-employer (FECA) and Jones Act frameworks that do not generate product-identification dockets. Does not bear on whether asbestos was aboard.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ancon-agc4-10
-
[11]The Ancon, 263 F. 886 (2d Cir. 1920); The Ancon v. Thompson, 17 F. 742 [court_record]
- Locator
- Opinion texts (vessel dimensions in 263 F. 886 identify the 1902 hull; 17 F. 742 identifies the 1867 side-wheeler)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Name-collision documentation for the litigation sweep: 'The Ancon,' 263 F. 886 (2d Cir. 1920) (tug/collision case) involves the EARLIER SS Ancon - the 9,332-gross-ton, 489-ft twin-screw steamer built 1902 as Shawmut (later USS Ancon ID-1467, first official Panama Canal transit 1914, later Permanente/Tidewater/Continental). 'The Ancon v. Thompson,' 17 F. 742, involves a still earlier 1867 side-wheel steamer. Neither is this hull.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1878-1920
- Limitations
- Disambiguation row only - these opinions concern different vessels and are excluded from this hull's litigation set. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ancon-agc4-11
-
[12]Batch-712 search ledger (this record): DANFS transcription; MARAD ShipHistory 6710 + status-card scans; NavSource 10/01/0104; Shipscribe AGC-4; Pacific Marine Review 1938-39 (full-text search); CourtListener name searches; Maine Maritime Academy official page [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-ancon-agc4-01 through sl-uss-ancon-agc4-13
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or docketed asbestos case naming this hull (SS Ancon/USAT Ancon/AP-66/AGC-4/State of Maine) was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). MARAD record, DANFS entry, NavSource archive, Maine Maritime Academy materials, and the digitized trade-press construction record contain no asbestos statement.
- 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 - the 1939 fireproof-design liner with a WWII naval conversion is era-consistent with asbestos-containing materials, and design-documented J-M products support that inference at class level. CourtListener API hit its 125/day throttle mid-sweep; residual docket coverage gap is possible (HTML search used instead, then also blocked). Does not establish presence or absence; does not establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ancon-agc4-12