Evidence
15 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-15).
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[1]CourtListener opinion search: 'USS Argonaut' [court_record]
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- CourtListener opinion search 'USS Argonaut' returned 2 result(s) (2026-10-07); individual records not reviewed
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Limitations
- hit count only — underlying dockets/opinions not individually reviewed; name query may match same-named vessels
- Evidence ID
- uss-argonaut-ss166-cl-name-opinion
-
[2]CourtListener docket search: 'USS Argonaut' [court_record]
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- CourtListener docket search 'USS Argonaut' returned 89 result(s) (2026-10-07); individual records not reviewed
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Limitations
- hit count only — underlying dockets/opinions not individually reviewed; name query may match same-named vessels
- Evidence ID
- uss-argonaut-ss166-cl-name-docket
-
[3]CourtListener opinion search: 'SS-166' [court_record]
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- CourtListener opinion search 'SS-166' returned 2943 result(s) (2026-10-07); individual records not reviewed
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Limitations
- hit count only — underlying dockets/opinions not individually reviewed
- Evidence ID
- uss-argonaut-ss166-cl-hull-opinion
-
[4]CourtListener docket search: 'SS-166' [court_record]
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- CourtListener docket search 'SS-166' returned 38749 result(s) (2026-10-07); individual records not reviewed
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Limitations
- hit count only — underlying dockets/opinions not individually reviewed
- Evidence ID
- uss-argonaut-ss166-cl-hull-docket
-
[5]DANFS, Argonaut I (SF-7/SM-1/APS-1), Vol. IA pp. 362-64 - construction, design, service, and loss narrative (verbatim transcription; live NHHC page returned 404; canonical URL history.navy.mil/content/history/nhhc/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/a/argonaut-sf-7-i.html also 404 on 2026-09-19) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS Argonaut I entry, Vol. IA pp. 362-64, full narrative and spec block
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull: laid down as V-4 on 1 May 1925 by the Portsmouth (N.H.) Navy Yard; launched 10 November 1927, sponsored by Mrs. Philip Mason Sears, daughter of Rear Admiral William D. MacDougall; commissioned 2 April 1928, Lt. Comdr. W. M. Quigley in command. Spec block: SF-7; dp. 2,710 surf./4,080 subm.; 381' x 33'10" x 15'4"; 15 kts; cpl. 89; 2 x 6" guns, 4 x 21" tt.; cl. V-4. First and only experimental minelaying submarine built for the U.S. Navy - four torpedo tubes forward, two minelaying tubes aft; largest submarine built in the U.S. at construction. SubDiv 12 Newport; 318-ft trial dive off Provincetown Jan-Feb 1929 (then-record depth); SubDiv 20 San Diego from March 1929. Renamed Argonaut 19 February 1931; redesignated SM-1 1 July 1931; Pearl Harbor SubDiv 7 from 30 June 1932; SubRon 4 flagship mid-1939. On patrol near Midway 7 Dec 1941 - first wartime approach on enemy naval forces. Returned Pearl Harbor 22 Jan 1942, then Mare Island Navy Yard conversion to troop transport. Makin raid with Nautilus (SS-168), Aug 1942. Redesignated APS-1 22 September 1942; Brisbane base. Sunk 10 January 1943 attacking a five-freighter convoy between New Britain and Bougainville - witnessed by a U.S. Army aircraft; depth-charged and shelled by destroyers. Struck from the Navy list 26 February 1943. Two battle stars.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1925-1943
- Population
- PNSY construction trades (1925-28); crew (1928-1943); Mare Island conversion trades (1942); 2d Raider Bn passengers (Aug 1942)
- Limitations
- Ship-specific history only; no asbestos or material content. DANFS narrative says 105 officers and men lost - conflicts with the NAVPERS/NHHC roster count of 102 (see ev-04, gaps). Live NHHC DANFS page returned 404 on 2026-09-19; verbatim ibiblio HyperWar transcription used (identical text also at losthistory.net/hazegray mirror).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-argonaut-ss166-01
-
[6]NavSource Online: Submarine Photo Archive, 'V-4 (SF-7) / Argonaut (SM-1 / APS-1 / SS-166)', file 08/08166 - designation chronology, spec block, photo captions, propulsion detail [other_primary]
- Locator
- navsource.net/archives/08/08166.htm - header chronology, spec block, and captioned photo sets
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- CORRECTION/RECONCILIATION: SS-166 is an associated number, not an official designation. NavSource files this hull under archive number 08166 and titles the page 'Argonaut (SM-1 / APS-1 / SS-166)'; period photographs and postal covers in the archive show 'SS-166' displayed. Corroborated by Pacific Wrecks and Wikipedia: 'never officially designated SS-166, but that hull number was reserved for her' and never reallocated. Operational designations per DANFS/NavSource: V-4 (SF-7) -> renamed Argonaut 19 Feb 1931 -> SM-1 (1 Jul 1931) -> APS-1 (22 Sep 1942). NavSource header misprints the rename as '19 February 1932' - conflicts with its own SM-1 line (1 July 1931) and with DANFS (1931); DANFS controls. NavSource spec block adds machinery detail: diesel-electric - MAN (Maschinenfabrik Augsburg-Nurnberg)-design diesels built at the New York Navy Yard (3,175 hp), Ridgeway Dynamo & Electric motors (2,400 hp), 240 battery cells, twin screws; complement '8 officers 80 enlisted'; submerged 4,164 t; two 6"/53 deck guns, 16 torpedoes.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1925-1943
- Population
- N/A - documentation record
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer-maintained photo archive, not an official register; use it for the SS-166 association convention and detail corroboration, not as the designation authority - DANFS and NARA control designations. The 'displayed SS-166 on her conning tower' claim traces to period photographs; not independently verified in an official record. Spec-block variants (complement 88; 4,164 t submerged) conflict with DANFS (89; 4,080 t) - carried in gaps.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-argonaut-ss166-02
-
[7]U.S. Navy, U.S. Submarine Losses World War II (NAVPERS 15,784, 1949) - NHHC online edition, 'Argonaut (SS 166)' entry with full loss roster (live history.navy.mil URL 404 on 2026-09-19; Wayback capture 2024-02-27) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NHHC Online Reading Room > United States Submarine Losses > Argonaut (SS 166); page -31- narrative + roster table
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Official Navy loss entry, headed 'Argonaut (SS 166)' - the Navy's own use of the reserved SS-166 association. Narrative: on her third patrol SE of New Britain (05 deg 15'S-06 deg 00'S, west of 153 deg 50'E in the print edition), Lt. Comdr. J. R. Pierce's Argonaut intercepted a convoy returning to Rabaul from Lae on 10 Jan 1943; after a severe depth-charge attack she surfaced, was shelled by destroyers, and went down at 05 deg 40'S, 152 deg 02'E; Japanese postwar reports record 'destroyed top of the sub floated'. Second patrol described as 'a most successful one' following 'a complete modernization at Mare Island' - cooperation with Nautilus transporting 252 Marine officers and men to Makin Island, raiders debarked early 17 Aug 1942, return to Pearl Harbor 26 Aug. Credited with damaging one destroyer on her last patrol on the aircrew's report. Full name-and-rate roster of the lost follows the narrative.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1942-1943 (patrols); 1949 (NAVPERS compilation)
- Population
- Argonaut crew lost 1943-01-10 (roster; 102 names per NavSource PDF transcription title)
- Limitations
- Official record of the loss and roster only; no asbestos or material content. Roster and companion sources title the loss party 102 men - conflicts with DANFS narrative's 105 (carried in gaps). '252 Marine officers and men' for Makin conflicts with the Navy historical article's 211 (13 officers + 198 men; 121 aboard Argonaut) - carried in gaps. The NHHC web text reads 'west of 150 deg 50'E' where print transcriptions (On Eternal Patrol, submarinememorial.org) read 153 deg 50'E - minor transcription variant.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-argonaut-ss166-03
-
[8]DANFS, John R. Pierce (DD-753) - biographical entry for Lt. Comdr. John Reeves Pierce, USN (verbatim transcription via Wayback) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS John R. Pierce (DD-753) entry, namesake paragraph
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS biography of the hull's last commanding officer: John Reeves Pierce took command of Argonaut (SM-1), 'a transport submarine,' on 22 June 1942 and commanded her in the Makin Island Raid of 17-19 August 1942 with Nautilus; on her third war patrol Argonaut sighted a convoy protected by planes and destroyers; built as the Navy's first large minelaying submarine she 'lacked proper submerged maneuverability,' surfaced under attack, 'pressed home an aggressive counter attack, severely damaging a Japanese destroyer before succumbing to heavy enemy fire 10 January 1943.' Pierce was posthumously awarded the Navy Cross; DD-753 was named for him (sponsor: his widow, Mrs. Mary Taylor Pierce).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1942-1943; DD-753 named 1944
- Population
- Lt. Comdr. John R. Pierce (CO, Jun 1942 - Jan 1943)
- Limitations
- Biographical entry - ship names are contextual, not technical data. No asbestos or material content. The 'severely damaging a Japanese destroyer' credit derives from the wartime aircrew report; postwar Japanese records show no escort damaged (per Pacific Wrecks synthesis) - the credit is the official U.S. accounting, noted as such.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-argonaut-ss166-04
-
[9]USMC official history, 'From Makin to Bougainville: Marine Raiders in the Pacific War' (PCN-190-003130-00), sec. 4 (Makin) - hosted on npshistory.com [nps]
- Locator
- USMC monograph PCN-190-003130-00, section 4
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Official Marine Corps history corroborates the transport-submarine role: 'They made available two large mine-laying submarines, the Nautilus and the Argonaut. Each one could carry a company of raiders' - Companies A and B, 2nd Raider Battalion, boarded the submarines on 8 August 1942 for the predawn 17 August landing on Butaritari (Makin Atoll).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1942-08
- Population
- Companies A & B, 2nd Marine Raider Battalion (passengers)
- Limitations
- Operational history only; no asbestos or material content. Confirms the conversion-era use of the hull as a troop carrier, not any detail of the conversion work itself. Raider headcount differs between official accounts (see ev-03 limitations and gaps).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-argonaut-ss166-05
-
[10]NARA, Special List 44 - Named Vessels (deck logs): 'Argonaut (SM-1, APS-1, V4), 3/9/1931 - 11/29/1942'; plus NARA-held Argonaut compartment access plans (Identifier 70646224) per NavSource caption citing catalog.archives.gov [other_primary]
- Locator
- archives.gov Special List 44, 'Argonaut' row; catalog.archives.gov identifier 70646224
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA holds this hull's deck logs covering 9 March 1931 - 29 November 1942 under designations 'SM-1, APS-1, V4' - official confirmation of the operational designation set (note SS-166 is absent from the NARA designation string, consistent with its reserved-not-official status). NARA also holds compartment access plans for the hull (Identifier 70646224). Both are undigitized/unreviewed leads.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1931-1942 (log coverage)
- Limitations
- Archival lead only - the logs and plans were not reviewed in this research; they could document yard availabilities, conversion scope, and materials-era detail but have not been consulted. The 1942-11-29 log end-date precedes the final patrol (deck logs end when the ship is lost). Designation string excludes SF-7 (the 1931-42 window postdates the SF-7 era) and excludes SS-166.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-argonaut-ss166-06
-
[11]Era inference built on: DANFS spec block and NavSource machinery detail (diesel-electric drive, no boilers); shipyard-exposure-map documented asbestos product lists for Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, Mare Island Naval Shipyard, and New York Naval Shipyard (thermal insulation, pipe covering, millboard, gaskets, packing, block insulation, asbestos cloth) [other_primary]
- Locator
- DANFS spec block; NavSource spec block; shipyards.json product lists for portsmouth-naval-shipyard, mare-island-naval-shipyard, brooklyn-navy-yard
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A purpose-built submarine constructed 1925-28 at Portsmouth Navy Yard and converted at Mare Island Navy Yard in 1942 sits inside the Navy's documented asbestos era; era-standard applications on diesel-electric submarines (no boilers or steam plant) included diesel exhaust lagging, engine gaskets and packing, thermal/acoustic hull insulation, and galley/refrigeration equipment insulation. The 1942 conversion - a 'complete modernization at Mare Island' per NAVPERS - was an extensive interior rework of the kind that disturbed era insulation.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1925-1943
- Population
- PNSY construction trades (1925-28); Mare Island conversion trades (1942); crew (1928-1943)
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, or abatement record exists or can exist for this hull (unrecovered war grave since 1943). Names era-standard applications on diesel-electric submarine systems, not confirmed installed materials. The yard product lists span periods beyond this hull's 1925-28 and 1942 presence; Kaylo in particular postdates her. No quantity. Nothing here establishes exposure, causation, or eligibility for any individual.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-argonaut-ss166-07
-
[12]shipyard-exposure-map yard records: portsmouth-naval-shipyard (Kittery, ME) - documented products include thermal insulation, asbestos cement, pipe covering, millboard, gaskets, seals, packing, block insulation, asbestos cloth, friction materials, Kaylo; mare-island-naval-shipyard (Vallejo, CA) - Unibestos, Marinite boards, Transite pipes, Kaylo, Careytemp, Gold Bond, Super 66, pump/valve packing, gaskets, bonnet insulation, refractory materials; brooklyn-navy-yard (New York Naval Shipyard) - Kaylo (Owens-Illinois), consolidated-asbestos-litigation documentation [other_primary]
- Locator
- shipyard-exposure-map/client/src/data/shipyards.json - yard_id portsmouth-naval-shipyard, mare-island-naval-shipyard, brooklyn-navy-yard
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Yard-level documentation: the three Navy yards documented as touching this hull - Portsmouth (built her, 1925-28), Mare Island (1942 troop-transport conversion/'complete modernization'), and New York Navy Yard (built her MAN-design diesels) - all carry documented asbestos product use in the shipyard dataset, including WWII-era litigation and environmental records at Mare Island and Brooklyn.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1925-1943
- Population
- Yard trades at all three yards, 1925-1943 window
- Limitations
- Yard-level documentation only - establishes that these yards used asbestos products, not that any product was installed aboard this specific hull. Documented yard product lists largely reflect WWII-peak and later evidence; Portsmouth cohort literature centers on the 1952-77 nuclear era, after this hull's loss. Not a per-hull record.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-argonaut-ss166-08
-
[13]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (Oct 18, 1979) [gao]
- Locator
- GAO product page HRD-80-2 (full text blocked, HTTP 403)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- GAO documented that the Navy used asbestos insulation extensively aboard ships and did not begin substituting alternative insulation materials until the early 1970s - encompassing this hull's entire life (1925-28 construction; 1942 conversion; 1943 loss).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1979
- Population
- Navy shipyard workers; asbestos program review
- Limitations
- Program-level documentation; supports era context only, not any fact specific to this hull. Full text not retrieved (gao.gov returns HTTP 403 to automated fetch) - content via product-page description.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-argonaut-ss166-09
-
[14]Fleischer WE, Viles FJ Jr, Gade RL, Drinker P. 'A health survey of pipe covering operations in constructing naval vessels.' J Ind Hyg Toxicol. 1946;28(1):9-16 [other_primary]
- Locator
- J Ind Hyg Toxicol 1946;28(1):9-16 (survey received 1945)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- WWII-era industrial-hygiene survey of pipe-covering (asbestos insulation) operations in constructing naval vessels across four anonymized yards (two Navy, two contract): dust counts for dusty operations frequently high (band-saw cutting, cement mixing, shipboard installation up to tens to >100 mppcf total dust); 3 asbestosis cases among 1,074 pipe coverers x-rayed. Documents the asbestos insulation regime in naval-vessel construction during the period of this hull's 1942 Mare Island conversion.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1945-1946 (survey covering WWII practice)
- Population
- 1,074 pipe coverers across four anonymized U.S. naval/contract yards
- Limitations
- Era documentation only - yards anonymized (A/B Navy, C/D contract); does not name Mare Island or this hull. Documents the construction-era trade exposure regime, not per-hull materials. Survey published 1946 covering wartime practice; the hull's 1925-28 build predates the surveyed window.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-argonaut-ss166-10
-
[15]Batch-358 search ledger (this record): DANFS transcription (ibiblio/losthistory); NHHC U.S. Submarine Losses via Wayback; DANFS John R. Pierce; NavSource file 08/08166; NARA Special List 44; Pacific Wrecks; USMC official history; GAO product page; CourtListener API + UI (blocked); engine-indexed site:courtlistener.com fallback; web-indexed litigation sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-argonaut-ss166-01 through -11
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located - and none can exist in the usual sense: the hull sank with all hands in 1943 and is an unrecovered war grave, so no asbestos survey, abatement contract, or hazmat disclosure naming this hull exists. Litigation: CourtListener API returned HTTP 429 (daily quota) and the public UI HTTP 403; the engine-indexed site:courtlistener.com fallback surfaced only name collisions (Argonaut Insurance Co. coverage/comp matters; Argonaut Manufacturing Services v. U.S.; the Deepsea Challenger transport-damage case; an unrelated 'argonaut' screen-name criminal matter) - no qualifying asbestos case naming this hull. Law-firm vessel lists (mesotheliomasymptoms.com's dedicated SM-1/APS-1 page; mesothelioma.com's ship table listing 'USS Argonaut SM-1') name this hull in asbestos contexts but cite no case - a banned source class, consulted only to confirm no case citation stands behind them. The all-hands 1943 loss forecloses the veteran-claimant litigation channel that produces most vessel-naming asbestos cases.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 2026-09-19
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - era inference (ev-07) still stands on its own terms. Litigation coverage is partial: the CourtListener sweep was blocked at research time and the fallback covers only the engine-indexed opinion/docket surface, not unindexed dockets or filings; re-run when quota resets. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-argonaut-ss166-11