USS Auk (AM-38)

Evidence

11 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-11).

1. [1]DANFS, 'Auk' I (Minesweeper No. 38 / AM-38 / Discoverer ARS-3) entry - verbatim transcription via the Haze Gray DANFS mirror at losthistory.net; no live NHHC-hosted page located (404 at /danfs/a/auk-i.html) [nhhc_danfs]

   Locator

   DANFS 'Auk' I entry, spec block + full narrative (minesweeper, C&GS Discoverer, ARS-3, disposal paragraphs)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   DANFS record for this hull (spec block: dp. 950; l. 187'10"; b. 35'6"; dr. 9'9" mean; s. 14 k.; cpl. 82; a. 2 .30-cal. Lewis mg.; cl. Lapwing): laid down 20 Jun 1918 at New York City by Todd Shipyard Corp.; launched 28 Sep 1918, sponsored by Miss Nan McArthur Beattie; commissioned New York Navy Yard 31 Jan 1919, Lt. Gregory Cullen. North Sea Mine Barrage clearance from Kirkwall Apr-Oct 1919 (95+ days on the minefields): BM1 William McHaskell killed by the anchor engine 3 May; served as flagship for detachment commander Capt. Roscoe C. Bulmer Jul-Aug; led the 9-10 Jul all-night salvage that saved mined sister Pelican (Minesweeper No. 27) at Tresness Bay; BM1 Lee A. Singleton lost overboard 31 Aug; drydocked Invergordon 2-3 Sep for mine-damage repairs; reviewed by SecNav Daniels 24 Nov in the North River. Inactive at Portsmouth, N.H. from 28 Nov 1919; designated AM-38 17 Jul 1920; 'in ordinary,' no crew, 28 Dec 1920. EO of 12 Oct 1921 authorized transfer; taken to Boston Navy Yard and transferred to the Coast and Geodetic Survey 7 Apr 1922, renamed USC&GS Discoverer; LCDR H. A. Seran, USCGS, took charge 8 Apr; major overhaul/conversion at William Cramp and Sons, Philadelphia, Apr-Aug 1922; San Diego/San Francisco/Oakland survey work late 1922; rescued the stranded crew of sister minesweeper Cardinal (AM-6) off Chirikof Island, June 1923; Alaskan survey seasons 1923-1941 (one Hawaiian tour 1925-27); commemorated by Discoverer Bay and Discoverer Island, Kodiak Island, Alaska. EO of 19 Jun 1941 authorized Navy takeover for salvage service; last C&GS ops summer 1941 out of Dutch Harbor, Cold Bay, Women's Bay, Kodiak; Navy custody accepted at Pier 41, Seattle, 26 Aug 1941 by Lt. Comdr. E. Froberg (name retention approved 5 Aug); conversion at the Lake Union plant, Seattle, from Oct 1941; delivered 16 Feb 1942 to Merritt, Chapman and Scott, Inc., operating under a Bureau of Ships contract; salvage duty in Alaskan waters (Kodiak, Dutch Harbor, Cold Bay, Nome, Women's Bay) through hostilities, incl. assistance to Coast Guard-manned transport Arthur Middleton (AP-55), aground while rescuing survivors of Worden (DD-352) at Amchitka, Jan 1943; grounded off Prince Rupert Island 20 Nov 1943, assisted by tug Tatnuck (ATO-27). Remained with M-C&S into 1946; strike recommended 18 Nov 1946 for Maritime Commission 'disposal as a usable vessel'; withdrawn from service 26 Dec 1946; struck from the Navy list 28 Jan 1947 (mirror text mistypes '1937').

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1918-1947

   Population

   Todd Shipyard construction workforce (1918-19); wartime minesweeping crew (design complement 82); Boston Navy Yard and Portsmouth NY personnel (1919-22); C&GS Discoverer officers/crew (1922-41); Cramp & Sons conversion workers (1922); Lake Union Dry Dock conversion workers (1941-42); M-C&S civilian salvage crew (1942-46)

   Limitations

   Primary Navy historical entry - authoritative for identity, build dates, service narrative, and administrative fate. Contains no asbestos or materials information; supports no asbestos claim. No live NHHC-hosted page located (404); text retrieved via the hazegray transcription mirror (losthistory.net) that NavSource links as the DANFS entry. The mirror's strike line reads '28 January 1937' - a transcription typo; NavSource, shipscribe, and the NVR-derived record all read 28 Jan 1947 (flagged in gaps). DANFS itself records the disposal ambiguity: one source has the Maritime Commission accepting the ship at Port Nordland, Wash., and delivering her to purchaser J. W. Rumsey on 9 Jun 1947; another lists her sold to the government of Venezuela on the same date - shipscribe reconciles both as an MC sale to Rumsey who passed her to Venezuela.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-auk-am38-01

2. [2]shipscribe.com (Stephen S. Roberts), 'US Navy Rescue and Salvage Ships - VIKING (ARS-1) class' page: class construction/disposition tables, class notes, and ship notes compiled from official Navy records (CNO/BuShips correspondence, Navy List, Executive Orders); ARS-3 = DISCOVERER row [other_primary]

   Locator

   usnaux.shipscribe.com/ARS/ARS01.html - construction table (ARS-3 row), disposition table (ARS-3 row), class notes (Navy Salvage Service paragraphs), ship notes (ARS-3 DISCOVERER row)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Shipscribe's compiled official-record detail for this hull: ordered 28 Mar 1918 (authorized as a minesweeper under the additional Naval Emergency Fund act of 6 Oct 1917); EO of 12 Oct 1921 directed transfer of ownership to the Coast and Geodetic Survey; decommissioned 13 Dec 1921 (ship notes - conflicts with DANFS 'in ordinary' 28 Dec 1920 framing, flagged in gaps); to C&GS 7 Apr 1922 as survey ship DISCOVERER. Transferred back to the Navy under EO of 19 Jun 1941 in exchange for USS YP-96; converted to a salvage ship by the Lake Union Dry Dock Co. of Seattle between 12 Sep 1941 and 16 Feb 1942, when delivered to Merritt-Chapman & Scott; assigned to the 13th Naval District in January 1942 (shipscribe notes she 'may have served in the Canal Zone' - DANFS documents Alaskan operations throughout); carried on the Navy List as 'Not in Commission'; withdrawn from service 26 Dec 1946; struck 28 Jan 1947; disposal 9 Jun 1947 - Maritime Commission sale (MA sale 9 Jun 47) to J. W. Rumsey, Seattle, Wash.; to Venezuelan Navy as FELIPE LARRAZABEL, stricken 1962. Class notes establish the contract framework: 21 Mar 41 CNO approved the contract method for salvage services; BuShips negotiated with M-C&S; the firm's salvage division operated as the 'Navy Salvage Service' (formally created 11 Dec 1941) responsible for all salvage in U.S., Gulf, and Caribbean areas; ARS 1-3 and 11-12 were M-C&S-operated while ARS-4 got a Navy crew; the 'Birds' were 'satisfactory for civilian operation in coastal waters' but 'not especially suitable for towing' and lacked accommodations for Navy manning.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1917-1962; compiled 2002-2011

   Population

   Lake Union Dry Dock conversion workers (1941-42); M-C&S civilian salvage crews (1942-46); Navy Salvage Service contract personnel

   Limitations

   Specialist secondary compilation of official records (Stephen S. Roberts) - detailed and consistent with DANFS on overlapping points, but a transcription layer, not the primary document; contains no asbestos information; supports no asbestos claim. The 'may have served in the Canal Zone' note conflicts with DANFS's documented Alaska-port narrative - flagged, not resolved (the sister Osprey/Crusader ARS-2 was the Bird Boat reassigned to the Canal Zone in Mar 1942).

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-auk-am38-02

3. [3]NavSource Online: Mine Warfare Vessel Photo Archive - 'USS Discoverer (ARS 3), ex-USC&GS Discoverer, ex-USS Auk (AM 38), ex-USS Auk (Minesweeper No. 38),' file 11/02038 [other_primary]

   Locator

   NavSource 02038: chronology block, specifications block, call signs, photo captions (NH 45252, NH 99789, NOAA Photo Library)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   NavSource chronology corroborates DANFS and adds the specification block: laid down 20 Jun 1918 by Todd Shipyard Corp., New York City; launched 28 Sep 1918; commissioned USS Auk, Minesweeper No. 38, 31 Jan 1919 at New York Navy Yard; designated AM-38 17 Jul 1920; transferred to the Coast and Geodetic Survey 7 Apr 1922 and renamed USC&GS Discoverer; returned to U.S. Navy custody 26 Aug 1941; reclassified Rescue and Salvage Ship ARS-3 and placed in service with a civilian crew; struck from the Naval Register 28 Jan 1947 and transferred to the Maritime Commission for disposal (annotated: 'Naval Vessel Register of 1 January 1949 lists plan for transfer to the War Shipping Administration as June 1947'); transferred to Venezuela 9 Jun 1947, renamed Felipe Larrazabal (R-11); decommissioned 1962 and abandoned. Spec block: displacement 840 t. (1,180 t. in 1933); length 187'10" (180' in 1933); beam 35'5"; draft 8'10" (12.6' in 1933); speed 14 kts; complement 85 (69 in 1933 - conflicts with DANFS cpl. 82, flagged in gaps); armament two 3"/50 dual-purpose mounts (1941: one 20mm mount or smaller - vs DANFS 2 .30-cal Lewis mg as-built, flagged in gaps); propulsion two Babcock & Wilcox 200 psi boilers, one 1,200 shp Harlan and Hollingsworth Corp. triple-expansion engine, one shaft (1,400 hp listed for 1933). Call signs George-Boy-Cast-Fox (1919), Nan-Item-Jig-Tare (1924), William-Tare-Easy-Baker (1933), Nan-Queen-Mike-Nan (ARS-3). Photo record includes NH 45252 (fueling from Black Hawk en route Bermuda, 10 Nov 1919) and NH 99789 (sweepers at Stavanger) plus NOAA Photo Library images of Discoverer in Alaskan waters.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1918-1962

   Population

   C&GS Discoverer crew photographed in Alaskan service; Venezuelan Navy crew of Felipe Larrazabal (1947-62)

   Limitations

   Specialist secondary compilation - detailed but non-official; consistent with DANFS on all overlapping points. Contains no asbestos information; supports no asbestos claim. Complement and armament figures conflict with DANFS spec block (85 vs 82; 3"/50 DP vs .30-cal Lewis mg) - different fits at different periods; both logged in gaps.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-auk-am38-03

4. [4]NOAA Central Library, 'Tools of the Trade: Ships - Coast & Geodetic Survey Ships - DISCOVERER' ship page (live history.noaa.gov unreachable; Wayback capture 2018-10-09); plus NOAA C&GS wartime history, 'History of U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey During World War II' (1946, library.oarcloud.noaa.gov scan) [other_primary]

   Locator

   Wayback 20181009052654 of history.noaa.gov/ships/discoverer1.html; C&GS WWII history 1946 PDF, Bering Sea/Aleutians operations sections (library.oarcloud.noaa.gov/.../CGS_WWII_history_1946.pdf)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   NOAA documents this hull's C&GS identity and operations: the official ship page reads 'Steam, length 180 feet, beam 35.6 feet, draft 12.6 feet. Built at Todd Shipyards, New York, for $500,000 in 1918. Former WWI minesweeper, the USS AUK AM-38 in 1922. Returned to Navy in 1941 as ARS-3. Known as one of the "bird boats"' - commemorated by Discoverer Bay and Discoverer Island, Kodiak Island, Alaska. The C&GS WWII history names DISCOVERER's survey areas in the lead-up to war: Shumagin Islands (SW Alaska) with HELIANTHUS in fall 1939; Grays Harbor, Washington, Oct 1939-Apr 1940; Shumagin Islands with WILDCAT in 1940; Grays Harbor again from Oct 1940; resumed Alaska surveys May 1941 - movements that 'were a definite indication that the United States would soon be involved in World War II.'

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1922-1941

   Population

   C&GS Discoverer officers and crew (1922-1941); survey parties embarked (hydrographic/topographic)

   Limitations

   Federal-agency historical record - authoritative for the C&GS period and identity; does not address asbestos, materials, or crew conditions. Live history.noaa.gov page is dead; cited via Wayback capture of the official NOAA page. NOAA's $500,000 build-cost figure is round-numbered; Wikipedia's $594,332 (hull and machinery) is the precise figure likely from the builder's record - minor discrepancy logged, not resolved.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-auk-am38-04

5. [5]Bureau of Ships, Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels, Vol. II (NAVSHIPS 250-011, 1945), alphabetical and hull-number indexes - entries 'Discoverer (ex-USC & GS Discoverer) ... ARS3' and 'AM38 ... Now ARS3' (shipscribe.com scan of the official BuShips publication) [other_primary]

   Locator

   SDB1945v2 alphabetical index ('Discoverer (ex-USC & GS Discoverer) ARS3') and hull-number index ('AM38 Now ARS3') - PDF text-verified

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   The Navy's own official wartime Ships' Data volume indexes this hull twice - 'Discoverer (ex-USC & GS Discoverer)' pointing to ARS3 in the alphabetical index, and 'AM38 ... Now ARS3' in the Lapwing-class hull-number list - confirming the hull's official wartime administrative identity as ARS-3 and its dual-name indexing across the Navy and C&GS identities. (The volume's 'Auk' index entries point to AM-57, the other hull - confirming the two Auks are distinct.)

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1945

   Limitations

   Index-level official record only - no ARS-3 characteristics/machinery table row was located in the extractable OCR text (the volume's ARS section may exist only as scanned table images). Contains no materials, insulation, or asbestos information; supports no asbestos claim.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-auk-am38-05

6. [6]Consolidated era/design inference - NavSource spec block and shipscribe class table for this hull's documented steam plant (2 Babcock & Wilcox 200 psi boilers; Harlan & Hollingsworth vertical triple-expansion engine, 1,200 shp; single shaft), with era literature (Fleischer et al. 1946; Corn & Starr 1987) for the WWII-period conversion [other_primary]

   Locator

   NavSource 02038 spec block (propulsion line); shipscribe ARS-1 class table ('1 screw, vert. triple expansion, 1,200 HP'); disturbance events per DANFS chronology and shipscribe notes; PMID 21016030; DOI 10.1002/ajim.4700110311

   Finding type

   asbestos_application

   Finding

   Era/design inference: this hull is steam-powered - two Babcock & Wilcox 200 psi boilers feeding a vertical triple-expansion engine - built 1918-19, so the boiler/fireroom and steam-line lagging pathway documented for steam vessels applies in principle. Period-typical asbestos applications for a steam minesweeper of this era concentrate in boiler and steam-drum insulation, steam-line lagging, valve and flange gaskets, machinery packing, electrical cable insulation, bulkhead fireproofing, deck coverings, winch/windlass brake linings, and paints/cements. Documented disturbance-phase events for this hull: 1918-19 construction at Todd Shipyard Corp., New York (Tebo Yacht Basin); Mar-Apr 1919 repairs at Boston Navy Yard (flooding damage, paravane installation); Sep 1919 drydock repairs at Invergordon (mine-damage); 1919-22 inactive/overhaul period at Portsmouth; Apr-Aug 1922 survey-ship conversion at William Cramp & Sons, Philadelphia; Sep 1941-Feb 1942 salvage-ship conversion at Lake Union Dry Dock Co., Seattle; repairs after the 20 Nov 1943 grounding off Prince Rupert Island; and post-1947 Venezuelan Navy service and abandonment - breaking/disposal undocumented.

   Verification

   inferred

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1918-1962

   Population

   Todd construction trades (1918-19); Boston NY and Invergordon repair workers (1919); Portsmouth NY personnel (1919-22); Cramp & Sons conversion workers (1922); Lake Union Dry Dock conversion workers (1941-42); M-C&S civilian salvage crew (1942-46); Venezuelan Navy crew and any breaking/abandonment workers (1947 onward)

   Limitations

   Inference from the documented machinery plant and construction/conversion eras - NOT a hull record. No survey, specification, material schedule, or work package naming this hull was located; establishes no asbestos content, quantity, location, individual exposure, or causation. WWI-era (1918-19) insulation practice for this class is asserted at inference level only - no era-specific or class-level materials document for the Lapwing class was located. Whether the 1922 C&GS conversion or the 1941-42 ARS conversion replaced or added insulation is undocumented.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-auk-am38-06

7. [7]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 naval-vessel construction and conversion work of exactly the era in which this hull was converted to a salvage ship (Sep 1941-Feb 1942) at a civilian yard under Bureau of Ships contract.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   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 wartime naval construction and conversion generally; does not name this vessel, the conversion yard (whether Lake Union Dry Dock work involved pipe-covering operations is unverified), or this contract; establishes nothing about this hull's materials, condition, or any individual exposure. The study's exculpatory 'not a dangerous occupation' conclusion has since been heavily criticized.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-auk-am38-07

8. [8]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 program under which this hull underwent its 1941-42 salvage-ship conversion - and that wartime demand drove unprecedented asbestos utilization in shipbuilding.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   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, class, or conversion yard and does not establish that asbestos was or remains aboard this hull (abandoned in Venezuela ca. 1962), nor quantity, location, condition, exposure, or causation. Addresses the 1941-42 conversion era; the 1918-19 original construction predates the study's WWII focus.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-auk-am38-08

9. [9]Sabol v. Merritt Chapman & Scott Corp., 241 F.2d 765 (2d Cir. 1957) (LHWCA assignment defense to a harbor-worker's admiralty injury libel on an M-C&S vessel); with Merritt-Chapman & Scott Corp. v. Willard, 188 F.2d 957 (2d Cir. 1951) (crew-member vs. harbor-worker classification of an M-C&S derrick-barge employee litigated under the LHWCA) [court_record]

   Locator

   241 F.2d 765 (2d Cir. 1957), Justia F2/241/765; Willard, 188 F.2d 957 (2d Cir. 1951)

   Finding type

   litigation_documented

   Finding

   Published appellate litigation establishes the compensation framework under which Merritt-Chapman & Scott marine employees' injury claims ran: Sabol (241 F.2d 765) shows M-C&S defending a vessel-injury libel via the LHWCA section 933 assignment doctrine, and Willard (188 F.2d 957) litigates whether an M-C&S barge worker was vessel 'crew' or a covered harbor worker under LHWCA section 903. Because Discoverer's 1942-1946 complement was a civilian M-C&S contract crew (Navy List 'Not in Commission'), any injury or occupational-disease claim from service aboard this hull would have run through these maritime employer channels - not the Navy-veteran VA channel. The same analysis applies to the hull's sister Bird Boats (see uss-flamingo-am32 / Viking ARS-1).

   Verification

   partial

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   context_only

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1951, 1957 opinions; underlying incidents 1946, 1954

   Population

   M-C&S marine employees (era context for Discoverer's civilian crew)

   Limitations

   Context only - neither case names this hull (Discoverer/Auk/ARS-3), neither involves asbestos, and both concern traumatic injury, not occupational disease; they establish only the legal posture of M-C&S marine employment. Reporter citation for Sabol verified via Justia opinion text (241 F.2d 765); Willard cited as 188 F.2d 957 per secondary reference - CourtListener verification could not be completed this session (API rate-limited); reporter cites should be re-verified before production use.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-auk-am38-09

10. [10]Batch-1320 search ledger (this record): DANFS via losthistory.net/hazegray mirror + NHHC/Wayback; NavSource 02038; shipscribe ARS-1 class page; BuShips SDB 1945 v2 index; NOAA ship page (Wayback) + C&GS WWII history; CourtListener (blocked); indexed-web litigation checks; VA BVA index; NVR; MARAD ShipHistory; NARA/NOAA record-group guides [other_primary]

    Locator

    search_ledger rows sl-uss-auk-am38-01 through sl-uss-auk-am38-14

    Finding type

    historical_record

    Finding

    No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, court finding, or docketed asbestos case naming USS Auk / AM-38 / Minesweeper No. 38 / USC&GS Discoverer / USS Discoverer / ARS-3 / Felipe Larrazabal was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). Indexed litigation hits were all non-qualifying name collisions (other 'Discoverer' vessels; the later USS Auk AM-57 is a different hull listed separately on mesothelioma marketing tables, which carry no exposure evidence and are excluded per source policy). No law-firm page asserts exposure evidence aboard this hull - marketing-table name listings only.

    Verification

    partial

    Role

    negative_finding

    Documentation level

    ship_specific

    Accessed

    2026-09-22

    Study period

    2026-09-22

    Limitations

    Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1918-19 steam vessel converted twice (1922, 1941-42) and serving through 1962 is era-consistent with asbestos-containing materials, and her construction, two conversions, repair periods, and undocumented Venezuelan-era breaking/abandonment are all uncharacterized disturbance phases. Does not establish presence or absence; does not establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility. Litigation coverage is incomplete this session: the CourtListener API returned HTTP 429 (2,800/day shared quota exhausted by prior batch work; retry-after ~30,237 s) and the courtlistener.com web UI returned 403 - the negative litigation finding rests on indexed-web checking only, and the mandated exact-name + hull-number CourtListener sweep is logged as blocked, not as a completed negative.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-auk-am38-10

11. [11]NARA Guide to Federal Records: RG 24 (Bureau of Naval Personnel - Navy deck logs), RG 19 (Bureau of Ships - ship plans, Booklets of General Plans, General Information Books, conversion records); RG 23 / NOAA Archives (Coast and Geodetic Survey records, incl. Discoverer logbooks indexed by the Old Weather project); Maritime Commission disposal file for the 9 Jun 1947 sale [other_primary]

    Locator

    https://www.archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records/groups/024.html ; /groups/019.html ; /groups/023.html ; http://www.naval-history.net/OW-US/Discoverer/USCGSS_Discoverer.htm (Old Weather logbook index)

    Finding type

    historical_record

    Finding

    Archival leads (not retrieved - requires research-room or reproduction order; no spend authorized): Navy deck logs for USS Auk 1919-1922 (RG 24, NARA); BuShips records for the Lapwing/AM-1 design incl. Booklet of General Plans and General Information Books (RG 19) - the GIB material-specification entries are the most promising hull-level insulation/materials lead for the 1918-19 build; the 1941-42 Lake Union Dry Dock conversion contract and work packages and the Bureau of Ships-Merritt-Chapman & Scott 'Navy Salvage Service' contract file (RG 19 / successor records) - the operative documents for conversion material scope and civilian-crew maintenance responsibility; RG 23 / NOAA Archives C&GS records for Discoverer's 1922 Cramp & Sons conversion and refit history (Discoverer's C&GS logbooks are indexed in the Old Weather transcription project's naval-history.net index, 'USC&GSS Discoverer' page); and the Maritime Commission disposal file for the 9 Jun 1947 sale to J. W. Rumsey - the most promising post-Navy materials/disposition lead.

    Verification

    unverified

    Role

    archival_lead

    Documentation level

    context_only

    Accessed

    2026-09-22

    Study period

    1918-1962 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-auk-am38-11