Evidence
14 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-14).
-
[1]research packet ah-packet.md (5 sources cited) [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED — real identity: USS APc-15 (NEVER named — APc craft were commissioned by number only)
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-apc-15-apc15-pkt-ah-packet-md
-
[2]Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels, 1945, Vol. III (NAVSHIPS 250 series), U.S. Navy Department / Bureau of Ships, 'Auxiliaries - Coastal Transports (Small), (APc)' tables, pp. 280-283 [other_primary]
- Locator
- SDB 1945 Vol. III, APc class characteristics pp. 280-281; individual vessel machinery table p. 282 row 15; construction table p. 283 (Camden S. B. & Marine Ry. Co. row)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The Navy's official 1945 data book names this hull: 'APc15 (ex-AMc155)', official number 15 in the class build table, built by Camden S. B. & Marine Ry. Co., Camden, Maine - keel laid 29 Apr 42, launched 18 Jul 42, first commissioned 27 Oct 42. Individual-vessel machinery entry lists National Supply MML-6 diesel, 400 shaft horsepower, no reduction gear (direct drive). Class table: 103'3" oa x 21'3" x 9'3" limiting draft, 258 t limiting displacement, designed 10 kts (no trials or model-basin tests), single screw, two diesel-drive 30 kW 120V D.C. ship's service generators, 145 bbls diesel oil, 3 officers + 22 enlisted ship's company, 66 enlisted troop capacity, 2-ton boom, 20 mm and smaller armament - and notes 'Wood hulls.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1945 (publication); 1942 (construction)
- Population
- Ship's company 3 officers + 22 enlisted; up to 66 embarked troops
- Limitations
- Establishes construction, identity, machinery, and complement only. Contains no asbestos or materials-content information. Resolves secondary-source conflicts: official keel 29 Apr 42 / launch 18 Jul 42 conflict with shipscribe's keel date (6 Apr 42) and NavSource's launch date (8 Jul 42) - official figures carried. NavSource's GM 8-268A engine spec and Wikipedia's Atlas 6HM2124 conflict with the official Nat. Sup. MML-6 entry (Atlas 6HM2124 is APc-19's official entry) - official carried.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-apc-15-apc15-01
-
[3]Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels, 1945, Vol. II (NAVSHIPS 250 series), U.S. Navy Department / Bureau of Ships, hull-number cross-reference index [other_primary]
- Locator
- SDB 1945 Vol. II, 'List of Naval Vessels' cross-reference index, AMc section
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The official index entry reads 'AMc155-158 Now APc15-18' - documenting in a Navy publication that the hull ordered as coastal minesweeper AMc-155 (CNO directive of 19 Jan 42 for AMc 150-199; this unit ordered 19 Feb 42) was completed and commissioned as the small coastal transport APc-15. One hull, two designations; never a second hull and never commissioned as AMc-155.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1945
- Limitations
- Confirms identity consolidation only; contains no service, materials, or asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-apc-15-apc15-02
-
[4]Robert J. Cressman, The Official Chronology of the U.S. Navy in World War II (Naval Historical Center / NHHC publication), December 1943 chapter - HyperWar/ibiblio mirror [other_primary]
- Locator
- Official Chronology, December 1943, 12/17 (APc-21 sunk), 12/21 (APc-2 lost), 12/27 (APc-15 damaged) entries
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Official Navy chronology entry, 27 December 1943: 'United States naval vessel damaged: Coastal transport APc-15, by dive bomber, off New Britain, 06 d. 12' S., 149 d. 03' E.' The same chronology records the actual class losses that a secondary compilation misattributes to this hull: 'Coastal transport APc-21' sunk by dive bomber off New Britain 17 Dec 43 (06 d. 15' S., 149 d. 01' E.) and Coast Guard-manned 'Coastal transport APc-2' lost to dive bomber off New Britain 21 Dec 43.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1943-12
- Population
- Ship's company (~25) and embarked troops
- Limitations
- Documents a battle-damage event and survival (listed as damaged, not sunk); contains no casualty figure, repair detail, materials, or asbestos information. Position given is off New Britain, not New Georgia as a secondary source claims.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-apc-15-apc15-03
-
[5]The Coast Guard at War, Vol. VI: The Pacific (U.S. Coast Guard official history), chapter 6 - HyperWar/ibiblio mirror [other_primary]
- Locator
- USCG at War VI: The Pacific, chapter 6 (Cape Gloucester landing narrative)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Official USCG history of the 26 December 1943 Cape Gloucester landing records that the afternoon Japanese air attack 'sank the destroyer BROWNSON and damaged the destroyers LAMSON, MUGFORD and SHAW, the Coast Guard manned LST-66, and the APC-15, by near misses.' Documents a second consecutive-day damage event for this hull during the Bismarck Archipelago operations.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1943-12-26
- Population
- Ship's company (~25) and embarked troops
- Limitations
- Establishes battle damage by near misses on 26 Dec 1943; does not quantify damage or casualties aboard this hull, and contains no materials or asbestos information. The official chronology records a separate dive-bomber damage event the following day (27 Dec).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-apc-15-apc15-04
-
[6]Navy Cross citation, LTjg. Kemper Goffigon III, USNR (Bureau of Naval Personnel Information Bulletin No. 337, April 1945), reproduced in David D. Bruhn, 'APc and FS Hall of Valor' compilation; corroborated by Home of Heroes recipient page [other_primary]
- Locator
- Bruhn 'APc and FS Hall of Valor' PDF, Goffigon entry (action date 26 Dec 1943); https://homeofheroes.com/recipient/kemper-goffigon-iii/ ; NavSource 09/23/23015 award block
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Official award citation text: LTjg. Goffigon, CO of USS APc-15 and task-unit commander of a resupply echelon, received the Navy Cross for actions 26 December 1943 during amphibious operations at New Britain Island - his embarked LCT(5) was 'attacked by Japanese dive bombers and riddled by shrapnel that killed two men and wounded 16'; wounded himself, he directed damage control for five hours in the combat zone until the craft returned under her own power. NavSource's APc-15 award block separately lists Purple Hearts for 2 KIA (MoMM2/c Siek, SK2/c Anderson) and 10 WIA, a Silver Star for SM2/c Borneman, and the Combat Action Ribbon retroactive to 27 December 1943.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1943-12-26/27; award published 1945-04
- Population
- APc-15 ship's company and embarked LCT(5) personnel
- Limitations
- Citation text is a reproduction of the official award record (Bulletin No. 337); the casualties described are aboard the LCT(5) of Goffigon's resupply echelon, while NavSource's award block attributes 2 KIA + 10 WIA to the APc-15 award list - whether the KIAs are the same two men is not reconciled by the located record. No materials or asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-apc-15-apc15-05
-
[7]NavSource Online Service Ship Photo Archive, USS APc-15 page (volunteer transcription of official Navy records, campaign lists, and The Nauticapedia commercial-register data) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource page 09/23/23015 (chronology, award block, campaign table, CO roster, specifications, commercial service, photo captions)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Secondary compilation for this hull: originally planned as coastal minesweeper AMc-155; commissioned USS APc-15 27 Oct 1942, LTjg. Kemper Goffigon III USNR in command; Asiatic-Pacific campaign credit Bismarck Archipelago operation, Arawe, New Britain, 17-18 and 25-26 Dec 1943; one battle star; decommissioned 19 Mar 1946 at Seattle, WA; struck from the Naval Register 28 Mar 1946; sold 13 Jan 1947 to Harold A. Jones, principal of Vancouver Tug Boat Co., Vancouver, B.C., reflagged Canada as Gulf Trader (1947), La Belle II (1948), Black Trader (1961); liveaboard in the Fraser River delta into the mid-1990s; reported sank in a Fraser River slough in 1998 after capsizing. Commanding officers: Goffigon (Oct 42-Dec 44), LT Matthew Weiner (Dec 44-Mar 45), LTjg William Bruce Minteer (Mar 45-Dec 45), LTjg Charles M. Butler (Dec 45-19 Mar 46). Two NARA-credited photographs: 19-N-38017 (builder's trials off Camden, 6 Oct 1942, RG-19-LCM) and 80-G-52340 (underway, early camouflage, ca. mid-1943). Explicitly notes 'There is no DANFS history available for USS APc-15.'
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1942-1998; page accessed 2026-09-25
- Population
- Ship's company (~25); embarked troops
- Limitations
- Volunteer-maintained transcription, not an official publication. Its launch date (8 Jul 42) conflicts with the official Ships' Data figure (18 Jul 42) - official carried; its GM 8-268A engine spec conflicts with the official Nat. Sup. MML-6 entry - official carried; displacement figure '100 t.(lt) 258 t.(fl)' mixes the light and limiting columns of the official table. Campaign data mirrors official CNO participation lists but was not independently re-verified against the underlying list. 'No DANFS history' confirmed - no NHHC entry exists for this hull. Commercial-service block is credited to The Nauticapedia (nauticapedia.ca), which 403s automated fetch - content reviewed via NavSource transcription and search-index snippet.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-apc-15-apc15-06
-
[8]Shipscribe (S. Roberts), 'USS APc-1 Class' - construction and disposition tables compiled from official Navy/Maritime Commission records [other_primary]
- Locator
- shipscribe.com/usnaux/APC/APC01.html - construction table row 15, disposition table row 15, ship note 15
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Disposition table for APc-15: decommissioned 19 Mar 46, struck 28 Mar 46, Maritime Commission disposal 13 Jan 47, MA sale 13 Jan 47 (MC/D). Ship note: 'Ex AMc-155. Sold (delivered) by MC to Harold A. Jones, Vancouver, B.C., Canada.' Construction table: ordered 19 Feb 42, Camden SB, keel 6 Apr 42, launched 18 Jul 42, commissioned 27 Oct 42.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1942-1947
- Limitations
- Reputable secondary compilation, not the underlying MC sale document. Its keel date (6 Apr 42) conflicts with official Ships' Data (29 Apr 42) - official carried; its launch date (18 Jul 42) agrees with the official figure. No asbestos or materials content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-apc-15-apc15-07
-
[9]Shipbuildinghistory.com (Colton), 'Coastal Transports (APc)' table - APc-15 row [other_primary]
- Locator
- shipbuildinghistory.com/smallships/auxapc.htm - APc row 15 disposition cell; corroborating records: SDB 1945 Vol. III p. 283; official chronology Dec 1943; Nauticapedia registry 179077
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- CORRECTION - shipbuildinghistory.com's APc table lists APc-15 (Camden SB, Camden ME) disposition as 'Lost to air attack off New Georgia 1943.' This is contradicted by the documented record: the official Navy chronology lists APc-15 damaged (not sunk) off New Britain 27 Dec 1943; Ships' Data and the shipscribe disposition table document decommissioning 19 Mar 46, striking 28 Mar 46, and Maritime Commission sale/delivery 13 Jan 47 to Harold A. Jones of Vancouver; the Canadian registry trail (Official No. 179077: Gulf Trader 1947, La Belle 1948, Black Trader 1961-63) and photographs of the sunken hulk in Deas Slough, B.C. confirm survival into commercial service. The claim conflates this hull with class losses APc-21 (sunk by air attack off Arawe, New Britain, 17 Dec 43), APc-2 (lost to air attack off Cape Gloucester, New Britain, 21 Dec 43), and/or APc-35 (grounded and abandoned off New Georgia, 22 Sep 43).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1943-1998
- Limitations
- The shipbuildinghistory table is a secondary compilation; the 'lost' annotation for APc-15 is an error disproven by official records and the documented postwar registry. Correction establishes disposition accuracy only - no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-apc-15-apc15-08
-
[10]Shipscribe (S. Roberts), 'USS APc-1 Class' - class notes compiled from BuShips/CNO procurement records [other_primary]
- Locator
- shipscribe.com/usnaux/APC/APC01.html - 'Class Notes' narrative
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- APc-1 class procurement history: CNO directed construction of 50 coastal minesweepers AMc 150-199 on 19 Jan 42 to a modified 103-ft wooden-hull design (BuShips specs issued Feb 42); on 13 Apr 42 CNO requested the 50 vessels instead be built as 'raider transports, AP' and the 'Coastal transport (small), APc' category was created 22 Apr 42 on District Craft Development Board recommendation - design roles were 24-hour transport of 2 officers + 74 men (raiding party), or 2 officers + 50 men + 1,500 cu.ft. cargo, or 4,000 cu.ft. (17-ton) cargo only on a 2,500-mile voyage, with a 2-ton boom and increased fuel/water capacity; AMc 150-199 thus became APc 1-50 (not respectively). FY 1942 program; some units had a 500 HP diesel.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1942-1943
- Population
- Class-wide ship's companies and construction-yard workforces (context)
- Limitations
- Class-level design/procurement context only - documents the wooden-hulled, diesel-driven, unarmored character of the type; contains no insulation, materials, or asbestos specification for the class or this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-apc-15-apc15-09
-
[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
- Am. J. Ind. Med. 11(3):359-373 (1987), doi:10.1002/ajim.4700110311 - abstract and article
- 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 emergency-construction program under which this 1942 wooden-hulled diesel transport was built at a small Maine boatyard.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1940s era documented; article 1987
- Population
- WWII shipyard workers and ship crews (class context)
- Limitations
- Program/era-level scholarship only; the article documents asbestos use in WWII shipbuilding generally (predominantly steel steam-plant construction at major yards). It does not name this vessel, builder, or class; it does not establish that asbestos was or remains aboard this hull, nor quantity, location, condition, exposure, or causation. A 103-ft wooden diesel craft carried a materially smaller ACM footprint than the steam vessels the scholarship centers on.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-apc-15-apc15-10
-
[12]CourtListener API v4 opinion and RECAP docket searches via authenticated fleet helper [court_record]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-apc-15-apc15-12 through sl-uss-apc-15-apc15-14
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- CourtListener opinion search '"APc-15" OR "APC-15"' returned 3 hits, all name collisions: Public Service Co. of Indiana v. EPA, 682 F.2d 626 (7th Cir. 1982) - EPA air-pollution ('APC') terminology; In re Koi Design LLC v. Marron Lawyers, APC (9th Cir. 2026) - 'APC' professional-corporation suffix; Millard v. United States (M.D. Pa. 1992) - 'APC' postal all-purpose container in an FTCA mail-truck case. Opinion search '"AMc-155" OR "AMC-155"' returned 1 hit, a reporter-citation collision: Sea Quest Marine, Inc. v. Cove Shipping, Inc., 504 F. Supp. 701 (W.D. Wash. 1980), cited as '1982 A.M.C. 607' (American Maritime Cases reporter). RECAP docket search returned 891 generic hits - reviewed top results are unrelated civil dockets ('APC' party-name fragments); no qualifying asbestos litigation or vessel-naming case was identified in any index.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 2026-09-25
- Limitations
- Search-stage negative: a name-match search cannot prove no filing exists - pleadings that omit the hull designation or index only a party name would not surface, and the RECAP sweep was reviewed at summary depth (891 result headers, not full text). No opinion or docket naming APc-15 or AMc-155 was located.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-apc-15-apc15-11
-
[13]Batch-2412 search ledger (this record): official Ships' Data 1945 Vols. II-III; official Navy WWII chronology; USCG official history; NavSource/shipscribe compilations; MARAD ShipHistory; Naval Vessel Register; NARA catalog; CourtListener authenticated API [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-apc-15-apc15-01 through sl-uss-apc-15-apc15-16
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying asbestos record located for this hull or class: no DANFS entry exists (NavSource annotation; NHHC check), no asbestos survey, abatement record, hazmat disclosure, shipyard work package, or docketed case naming APc-15 or AMc-155 was found in the sources searched (see search_ledger). No class-level asbestos itemization exists for the APc-1 wooden-hulled diesel transport type in the inspected record.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 2026-09-25
- Limitations
- Absence of a located record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - era-typical components on a 1942 diesel craft (gaskets, exhaust lagging, packing, brake/clutch linings, electrical insulation) cannot be ruled out, and the documented 26-27 Dec 1943 battle damage plus subsequent repair availability are unexamined maintenance events for materials. The 1998 sinking in the Fraser River left no museum or survey custodian to publish condition documentation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-apc-15-apc15-12
-
[14]NARA Guide to Federal Records: RG 24 (deck logs, Bureau of Naval Personnel), RG 38 (CNO records incl. war diaries), RG 19 (Bureau of Ships records; photo series RG-19-LCM) [other_primary]
- Locator
- RG guides: archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records/groups/024.html (RG 24), /groups/038.html (RG 38), /groups/019.html (RG 19), /groups/178.html (RG 178)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads (not retrieved - no research-room access or reproduction spend authorized): two NARA-held Navy photographs are already identified by number - 19-N-38017 (builder's trials off Camden, 6 Oct 1942, BuShips RG-19-LCM series) and 80-G-52340 (underway, ca. mid-1943, 80-G series). The hull's WWII war diaries (RG 38) and deck logs (RG 24, moved to NARA custody), the AMc 150-199 -> APc 1-50 conversion correspondence and BuShips modified-design specification files (RG 19), and the Maritime Commission sale file for the 13 Jan 1947 disposal to Harold A. Jones (RG 178) are the open primary leads. No digitized APc-15 war diary or deck log was located online.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1942-1947 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-apc-15-apc15-13