Evidence
13 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-13).
-
[1]Carter, Worrall Reed (RADM, USN ret.), 'Beans, Bullets and Black Oil: The Story of Fleet Logistics Afloat in the Pacific During World War II' (Dept. of the Navy, 1952) - chapters 15, 19, 26, 29, and Appendix (HyperWar verbatim transcription) [other_primary]
- Locator
- BBBO ch. 15 (Eniwetok roster, Jul 1944); ch. 19 (Ulithi convoy, arrival 21 Oct 1944); ch. 26 (destroyer-docking roster; Ringgold docked 27 Mar 1945); ch. 29 (mid-1945 dock inventory); Appendix (ServRon 10 craft/commander list). Chapter URLs: ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/BBBO/BBBO-15.html, -19.html, -26.html, -29.html, -A.html
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Official Navy underway-replenishment history (Carter, 'Beans, Bullets and Black Oil', GPO/Naval History Division) documents this hull by name at three points: (1) ch. 15 - at Eniwetok July 1944 among Service Squadron Ten's repair units ('floating drydocks ARD-13, ARD-15, mobile floating drydock AFD-15, and floating workshop YR-30'); (2) ch. 19 - the October 1944 forward move, 'The ARD-15, Lieutenant Commander W.E. Kellar [sic - Keller], towing the YF-786, was towed by the tug Arapaho, Lieutenant A.H. Gunn. The dock carried 1 seaplane wrecking derrick, 2 pontoon barges, 1 50-foot motor launch, and 6 LCM's. The convoy arrived without serious mishap at Ulithi 21 October'; (3) ch. 26 - at Ulithi March 1945, 'Docking facilities for destroyers were furnished by ARD-13, ARD-15, and ARD-23' and 'On 27 March Ringgold was docked in ARD-15 for completion of the work' (temporary-bow installation on the battle-damaged DD-500); ch. 29 mid-1945 inventory lists 'four 3,500-ton floating docks, ARDs-15-18-23 and 25'. Appendix lists ARD-15 under ServRon 10 with LtComdr W.E. Keller.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1944-1945
- Population
- ARD-15 crew (LtComdr Keller commanding); ships' companies of docked vessels (e.g., USS Ringgold DD-500)
- Limitations
- Official Navy history naming this hull - authoritative for wartime station and a specific documented docking (Ringgold, 27 Mar 1945). Contains no asbestos or materials information; the Ringgold docking is a repair event, not a materials record - it does not establish asbestos disturbance or exposure aboard either hull. 'Saipan' claimed by NavSource is not corroborated by this source.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ard-15-01
-
[2]DANFS, 'Arapaho II (AT-68)' entry, Naval History and Heritage Command (live NHHC URL 404 to automated fetch; verbatim text via Wayback capture 20241203045658) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS 'Arapaho II (AT-68)' entry, paragraph covering Oct 1944 (live NHHC URL 404 to automated fetch; verbatim text via Wayback capture 20241203045658)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS entry for USS Arapaho (AT-68) independently corroborates the Ulithi tow: 'At that time [second week of October 1944], she put to sea towing ARD-15 and YF-786 to Ulithi, Service Squadron (ServRon) 10's new advanced base.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1944
- Limitations
- Ship-specific DANFS mention of this hull (as tow, inside another vessel's entry - ARD-15 itself has no DANFS entry). Confirms Eniwetok-to-Ulithi transfer October 1944. Contains no asbestos or materials information; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ard-15-02
-
[3]NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive - USS ARD-15, file 09/67/6715 (compiled Navy register/ship-record data) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource file 09/67/6715 - chronology block, specifications, awards line, commanding-officer table
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource Service Ship Photo Archive chronology for USS ARD-15: ARD-12-class auxiliary repair dock; laid down circa 1943 at Pacific Bridge Co., Alameda, CA; commissioned 7 January 1944, LCDR Walter E. Keller in command; WWII Asiatic-Pacific Theater service including Saipan, Marianas Islands; decommissioned 1 July 1946; struck from the Naval Register 1 December 1977; sold 1 January 1981 through the Security Assistance Program, transferred to Mexico, redesignated AR-15; reported active in Mexican Navy service. Spec block: 5,200 t displacement, 492 ft length, 81 ft beam, 6 ft draft, no propulsion. Awards: American Campaign Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, World War II Victory Medal. CO table: LCDR Keller 7 Jan 1944-Jun 1945; LCDR Raymond Augustine Bertrand Jun 1945-1 Jul 1946.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1943-1981
- Population
- ARD-15 crew 1944-1946 (CO table documented)
- Limitations
- Specialist secondary compilation of official Navy register and ship records, not an official source; used for commissioning/decommissioning/strike/transfer dates and the CO table where consistent with the official sources. 'Saipan' service claim uncorroborated by BBBO (which documents Eniwetok and Ulithi) - flagged in gaps. NavSource itself notes no DANFS entry exists for this hull. Contains no asbestos information; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ard-15-03
-
[4]Naval Vessel Register (NAVSEA), 'US Navy Hulls in a Non-Active status' inactive-craft index - ARD 15 disposal row (Wayback capture 2016-09-27) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NVR 'US Navy Hulls in a Non-Active status' index, ARD-15 row (Wayback capture 2016-09-27; live NVR no longer exposes pre-1987 disposal detail pages)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Naval Vessel Register inactive service-craft listing: 'ARD 15 | 01/01/1981 | Disposed of through the Security Assistance Program (SAP), transferred, cash sale, ex-US fleet hull foreign military sale case number assigned' - the authoritative Navy register record of disposal date and mechanism, resolving the 1971-vs-1981 secondary-source conflict in favor of 1981 (a craft on the Naval Register until 1977-12-01 could not have been sold in 1971).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1981
- Limitations
- Official Navy register entry - authoritative for disposal date/method. Lists no name (unnamed service craft). Contains no materials or asbestos information. Consistent with NavSource's 1 Jan 1981 Mexico transfer; the competing '1971' date in shipbuildinghistory.com and Wikipedia's class list is a probable propagated typo (see gaps).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ard-15-04
-
[5]U.S. Navy photograph 'USS ARD 15' (Dec 1961), Charleston Naval Shipyard Photographs collection, Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum - via Lowcountry Digital Library (College of Charleston) record lcdl:889 [museum_official]
- Locator
- Lowcountry Digital Library (College of Charleston), catalog record lcdl:889, 'USS ARD 15', Date 1961-12; Charleston Naval Shipyard Photographs collection; contributing institution Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- U.S. Navy photograph (December 1961) in the Charleston Naval Shipyard Photographs collection, cataloged 'USS ARD 15' with the note: 'Floating Drydock - To augment Drydock No. 1 and Drydock No. 2 Charleston maintains ARD 15 shown here, and ARD 12. These ARDs provide additional capability for meeting heavy docking needs to Fleet in this area.' Documents this hull operating as a floating drydock at Charleston Naval Shipyard fifteen years after decommissioning - i.e., in service-craft status - and establishes a documented shipyard residency for the record.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1961-12
- Population
- ARD-15 caretaker/operating crew; Charleston NSY docking personnel working with the craft
- Limitations
- Official Navy photograph in a museum archive - authoritative for presence at Charleston NSY in December 1961; does not document when the dock entered Charleston service or the full 1946-1977 residency span (see gaps). Contains no asbestos or materials information; Charleston NSY is a documented asbestos yard (shipyards.json) but this row establishes only that the craft operated there, not any exposure aboard it.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ard-15-05
-
[6]Bureau of Ships, Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels, Vol. 3 (NAVSHIPS 250-012, 1945), Floating Dry Docks (ARD) table - per-hull row for ARD-15 (shipscribe.com scan of the official BuShips publication) [other_primary]
- Locator
- SDB1945v3 'FLOATING DRY DOCKS (ARD)' table (PDF p. ~316ff; shipscribe scan of the official BuShips publication). OCR of the scanned columnar table is severely degraded - values read at low confidence and cross-verified against NavSource and BBBO
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Bureau of Ships, Ships' Data U.S. Naval Vessels Vol. 3 (NAVSHIPS 250-012, 1945) carries a per-hull row for ARD-15 in the Floating Dry Docks (ARD) table: nominal lifting capacity approximately 3,500 tons; dockable vessel types including destroyers (DD) and landing ships (LST); principal dimensions approx. 491 ft 8 in length, 81 ft 0 in beam; delivery-year columns 1943/1944. Consistent with NavSource (492 ft, 81 ft) and BBBO ('3,500-ton floating docks').
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1945
- Limitations
- Official wartime BuShips data publication with a per-hull row naming ARD-15; the scan OCR is columnar-garbled so individual cell values are carried only where consistent across sources (3,500-t lift per BBBO ch. 29; 81-ft beam per NavSource). Contains no asbestos, materials, or insulation information; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ard-15-06
-
[7]Bureau of Yards and Docks, 'Building the Navy's Bases in World War II: History of the Bureau of Yards and Docks and the Civil Engineer Corps 1940-1946' (GPO 1947), ch. 9 'Floating Drydocks' (HyperWar verbatim transcription) [other_primary]
- Locator
- BuDocks history vol. 1, ch. 9 'Floating Drydocks' - ARD type design description (HyperWar verbatim transcription)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The Bureau of Yards and Docks official history documents the ARD type's design: 'a one-piece dock, ship-shaped in form, with a molded closed bow and a faired stern... The stern was closed by a bottom-hinged flap gate, operated by hydraulic rams... This dock was equipped with its own diesel-electric power plant, pumping plant, repair shops, and crew's accommodations. It was the first drydock in any navy which was sufficiently self-sustaining to accompany a fleet into remote waters.' Thirty docks of the improved type (the ARD-2/ARD-12 line including this hull) were built and deployed worldwide during the war.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1940-1946 (history published 1947)
- Population
- ARD-class crews and shipyard workforces (class context)
- Limitations
- Class/design documentation for the ARD type, not a hull record - establishes that docks of this design carried self-contained generating plant, pumping machinery, repair shops, and crew accommodations aboard; names no individual hull and contains no asbestos or materials information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ard-15-07
-
[8]Consolidated era/design inference - BuDocks ARD class-design description (Building the Navy's Bases, ch. 9) + SDB 1945 v3 per-hull row for this hull + documented activity record (BBBO; LCDL 1961 photo) [other_primary]
- Locator
- BuDocks ch. 9 (design); SDB1945v3 ARD table (this hull's row); BBBO ch. 26 (Ringgold docking); lcdl:889 (Charleston duty)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/design inference: this hull was a 1943-44 Pacific Bridge-built self-contained floating workshop - crew accommodations, galley, machine and repair shops, diesel-electric power plant, and pumping machinery - of exactly the configuration for which accommodation and joiner insulation, generator and piping insulation, valve and flange gaskets, machinery packing, brake linings on winches and cranes, and repair-shop consumables were commonly asbestos-containing in WWII construction. The documented activity profile (in-basin ship repair including battle-damage work, e.g., USS Ringgold 27 Mar 1945; decades of shipyard drydock duty at Charleston NSY) defines the disturbance pathways; asbestos scope of those events is inference, not record.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1943-1977
- Population
- Pacific Bridge construction workforce (Alameda, 1943-44); commissioned-era crew 1944-1946; Charleston NSY-era dock operating crews and yard personnel
- Limitations
- Inference from the documented design and construction era - NOT a hull record. No survey, specification, or material schedule naming ARD-15 was located; establishes no asbestos content, quantity, location, individual exposure, or causation aboard this hull. Docked-ship repair work aboard this craft is documented (Ringgold) but no record ties that work to asbestos disturbance.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ard-15-08
-
[9]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 emergency construction program under which this ARD-12-class dock was mass-produced at a private California yard - and that wartime demand drove unprecedented asbestos utilization in shipbuilding.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1940s era documented; article 1987
- Population
- WWII shipyard workers and ship crews (class context)
- Limitations
- Program/era-level scholarly documentation of asbestos use in WWII shipbuilding generally; does not name this vessel or class 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-ard-15-09
-
[10]Fleischer, W.E., Viles, F.J. Jr., Gade, R.L., and Drinker, P., 'A health survey of pipe covering operations in constructing naval vessels,' J Ind Hyg Toxicol 28(1):9-16 (Jan 1946), PMID 21016030 [other_primary]
- Locator
- PubMed record PMID 21016030; article pp. 9-16 (pipe covering material section)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- The U.S. Maritime Commission-commissioned industrial-hygiene survey of WWII pipe-covering operations at two Navy yards and two Navy contract yards documented that 'an important ingredient of pipe covering material used on U.S. Navy vessels is amosite' - i.e., asbestos insulation was standard material in wartime naval-vessel construction of this hull's era.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- survey ~1944-45; published 1946
- Population
- WWII pipe coverers and insulators at Navy and contract yards (era context)
- Limitations
- Era-level documentation of asbestos use in naval construction generally; does not name this vessel, class, or builder yard (whether Pacific Bridge Alameda was among the surveyed contract yards is unverified) and establishes nothing about this hull's materials, condition, or any individual exposure. (The study's exculpatory conclusion has since been heavily criticized - see DOI 10.1177/10482911261446696.)
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ard-15-10
-
[11]CourtListener API v4 searches: "ARD-15" type=o (count 2, collisions); "ARD-15" type=r (count 63, all collisions); "ARD 15" asbestos type=o (count 0); "auxiliary repair dock" asbestos type=o (count 0) [court_record]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-ard-15-06 through sl-uss-ard-15-09
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- CourtListener API v4 sweep (authenticated, fleet-paced helper, 2026-09-26): "ARD-15" opinions = 2 hits, both name collisions - Witt v. Nelson (Tex. App. 1914; a partner named R.G. Ard) and Amerace Esna Corp. v. United States (Ct. Cl. 1972; document-fragment hit, patent case). "ARD-15" dockets = 63 hits, all collisions ('Ard' surnames, securities-form field strings, OCR fragments; no ship, drydock, or asbestos relevance). "ARD 15" asbestos = 0 opinions. "auxiliary repair dock" asbestos = 0 opinions. Indexed-web check surfaced no docketed case naming the hull and one law-firm marketing list (freeasbestostesting.com auxiliary-ships page) asserting era-typical content without primary support - excluded source class. VA BVA index check: no decision naming the hull.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 2026-09-26
- Limitations
- Negative litigation result: no qualifying asbestos or other litigation naming this hull was located. Absence of located dockets does not prove no claim was ever filed (state-court coverage is incomplete), and says nothing about whether asbestos was aboard. Collision hits were reviewed by case name/court/snippet - none involved the vessel.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ard-15-11
-
[12]Batch-2555 search ledger (this record): NHHC/DANFS; official Navy histories (BBBO, BuDocks); NVR inactive listing; LCDL/Patriots Point archive; BuShips SDB 1945 v3; NavSource; NARA Special List 44; CourtListener API v4; VA BVA; indexed-web litigation checks [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-ard-15-01 through sl-uss-ard-15-12
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, government inspection finding, or docketed case naming USS ARD-15 / ARD-15 was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). The hull has no DANFS entry (NavSource confirms none exists), no NPS/NRHP record, and no museum-hazmat file in located sources.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 2026-09-26
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1943-44 self-contained repair dock is era-consistent with asbestos-containing materials, and her Charleston service-craft period, the 1981 foreign transfer, and decades of undocumented Mexican Navy service are unsurveyed phases. Does not establish presence or absence; does not establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-ard-15-12
-
[13]NARA, Special List No. 44: List of Logbooks of U.S. Navy Ships, Stations, and Miscellaneous Units (by ship number) + NARA Guide to Federal Records RG 24/RG 19/RG 181 [other_primary]
- Locator
- SL-44 PDF, ARD block (ARD-15 row listed; begin date c. 1944-01-07 consistent with commissioning; end date column garbled in OCR); RG guides at archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads (not retrieved - requires research-room or reproduction order; no spend authorized): Navy deck logs for USS ARD-15 are indexed in NARA Special List 44 (logbooks by ship number; the ARD-15 row's end date was not cleanly extractable from the columnar PDF - neighbor ARD hulls run from commissioning to mid/late 1945); RG 19 BuShips ARD-12-class design records and dock specification; RG 181 / Charleston Naval Shipyard command records covering the service-craft period; Navy Security Assistance Program case file for the 1981 Mexico transfer.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1944-1981 records
- Limitations
- Record-group/index-level mapping only - SL44 indexes logbook existence and coverage spans but the ARD-15 end date was not legibly extracted; 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-ard-15-13