Evidence
8 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-8).
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[1]Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, 'Auriga (AK-98)', Naval History and Heritage Command - live history.navy.mil page returned 404 on 2026-09-21; text verified via the HistoryCentral DANFS transcription (historycentral.com/navy/Transport/Auriga.html) and the identical Wikipedia transcription of the same DANFS text [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- HistoryCentral Auriga AK-98 page, full DANFS narrative; identical text in Wikipedia 'USS Auriga' article body
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS entry for Auriga (AK-98): laid down under Maritime Commission contract (MC hull 493) 9 June 1942 at Wilmington, Calif., by Consolidated Steel Corp. as Alcoa Partner; launched 7 September 1942, sponsored by Dorothea Rasmussen Kunkel; acquired by the Navy 16 March 1943; converted for naval service as a cargo ship by the Matson Navigation Co.; renamed Auriga 29 March 1943 and designated AK-98; commissioned at San Francisco 1 April 1943, Lt. Comdr. John G. Hart in command; assigned to the Naval Transportation Service. Service: Port Hueneme cargo, then Fiji (Viti Levu 3-28 May 1943); San Francisco yard repairs into early July; Noumea (7-21 August) and Suva; San Francisco 13 September; departed San Diego 1 October for the Ellice Islands - Funafuti 16 October, Wallis Island 17 October-12 November, Funafuti cargo ops into January 1944; Tarawa 17-24 January 1944 unloading under frequent enemy bombing attacks; Pearl Harbor 1 February (navy yard repairs/alterations), Honolulu loading, Eniwetok 11 March, Kwajalein 8-12 April; Saipan assault - sortied with TG 51.18 on 1 June, arrived off Saipan 16 June, retired and steamed with task groups, returned to unload 25-28 June under enemy air harassment; Eniwetok through 27 July, Pearl Harbor navy yard from 3 August; Hilo embarkation, then Eniwetok and Manus staging; anchored in Leyte Gulf 20 October 1944 discharging cargo; still off the beachhead 25 October when a Japanese air attack wounded her commanding officer and four crew; Peleliu and Hollandia, then Biak reinforcement; returned to Leyte Gulf 18-19 November; Aitape loading; Lingayen Gulf 9 January 1945 with TG 78.5, holds empty by 12 January; unopposed San Felipe-San Narciso landing 29-31 January; Leyte upkeep into March; Ulithi; anchored off Hagushi beach, Okinawa, 11 April and discharged all passengers and cargo by 17 April under stiff enemy air opposition; departed Okinawa 19 April; San Francisco 12 May 1945, shipyard repairs/shakedown to 26 June; Marshalls cargo runs; Espiritu Santo 15 August (Japanese capitulation received there); Guam 1 September; Iwo Jima; Yokosuka 12 October for occupation support; departed Japan 27 November; Panama Canal transit 27 December; New York City 3 January 1946; decommissioned at the New York Naval Shipyard 22 January 1946 and returned to the Maritime Commission for disposal; name struck from the Navy list 7 February 1946; sold later that year and refitted for merchant service. Five battle stars for WWII service.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- Study period
- 1942-1946
- Population
- Navy crew (NavSource spec block: 26 officers + 232 enlisted)
- Limitations
- Official Navy history but a compressed secondary narrative with an internal inconsistency carried as written: it reads 'got underway on 6 June for Port Hueneme' immediately before 'departed the west coast on 14 April' bound for Fiji (reached 3 May) - '6 June' is internally impossible and likely a source/transcription error for 6 April; logged in gaps, not corrected. Gives 'acquired 16 March 1943' where the MARAD status card documents Navy bareboat delivery 18 March at San Francisco, and 'renamed 29 March' where the MARAD milestone reads 3/18/43 - both variants carried openly. Contains no asbestos or materials information - supports identity and history only.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-auriga-ak98-01
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[2]U.S. Maritime Administration, ShipHistory database - ALCOA PARTNER, ShipHistory Detail 113 (data block, milestone table, six status-card scans: 8Y_01/8Y_02 vessel status card, 113_210AF/113_210BF reserve-fleet particulars, 113_AF/113_AB MA-20 Record of Ship Sales) + name-history stub Detail 12544 'AURIGA (AK-98)' [marad_nrc]
- Locator
- ShipHistory Detail 113 milestones + status cards /cards/8Y_01.png, 8Y_02.png, 113_210AF.jpg, 113_210BF.jpg, 113_AF.jpg, 113_AB.jpg (cards read at 200-300 dpi); Detail 12544 stub; document ALCOA PARTNER.pdf
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- MARAD ShipHistory record for ALCOA PARTNER (ex Auriga AK-98): U.S. Official No. 242914; type C1-B (fleet cards: 'C1-B Turbine'); MC hull 493, builder's hull 233; completed 3-13-43. Status-card custody chain (read from scans): 'Sold to Alcoa SS Co Act 1936' (built with construction-differential subsidy, card footnote 'Sect. 502-504 - Alcoa S.S. Co.'); basis to WSA 3-13-43 3:15PM PWT at Los Angeles from Alcoa SS Co.; Alcoa SS Co. as WSA general agent (GAA) Los Angeles 3-13-43; Navy Department on bareboat (BB) at San Francisco 3-18-43 noon PWT; 'RENAMED AURIGA'; Alcoa SS Co. (GAA) Weehawken, N.J. 1-22-46 2:00PM EST; redelivery from Navy BB at New York 4-18-46 12 noon EDT; Maritime Administration (exchange) - title passed 10-21-63 noon EST, entered James River fleet 11-1-63 2:00PM EST; Dept. of Army ('permanent transfer' on the status card, 'LOAN' on the particulars card) for stevedore training, James River 6-17-66 11:05AM EDST; Reserve Fleet (returned) 10-2-68 12:25PM EDST; Aguilar Y Peris, S.L., Valencia, Spain (Scrap) - purchase 4-17-70, physical delivery James River 5-27-70 9:15AM EDT. Reserve-fleet particulars cards add: fleet entry 11-1-63 under the PL-86-575 Exchange Program - 'American Archer & American Guide - C2-S-AJ1 - James R. exchanged for Alcoa Partner, Alcoa Patriot & Alcoa Puritan - Contract No. 3469 executed 1200 hrs EST Oct. 21, 1963 at Washington, D.C.'; damages note 'No basic preservation - See Champagne memo Aug. 15, 1963'; withdrawal 'SOLD SCRAP on PD-X-863 dated 4-17-70 to Boston Metals (Aguiler Y Peris, S.L.) for $143,500.' MA-20 Record of Ship Sales: awarded to Aguilar Y Peris, S.L., 4-17-70, $143,500, contract MA-5030; remarks 'Delivered to Army on 6-17-66... for use in stevedore training per Wentz memo'; 'Returned by Army to James River Fleet, per Armbrust memo 9-24-68'; '10-9-68 Advertised under PD-X-813, Bids rejected'; verso 'Advertised 2-17-70 under PD-X-861, no bids received; 3-18-70 under PD-X-863, opened 4-15-70, dismantle hull foreign.' Milestone table: renamed 3/18/1943 to Auriga; exchanged 11/1/1963 MARAD; entered reserve fleet 10/2/1968; sold 5/27/1970 'as scrap to Boston Metals under PD-X-863 contract for $143,500.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- Study period
- 1941-1970
- Population
- WSA/merchant crews (1943, 1946-63); Navy crew (1943-46); NDRF layup and Army stevedore-training personnel (1963-70); Spanish breaking-yard workers (1970)
- Limitations
- Primary custody record - the strongest documentation of the acquisition, exchange, Army loan, layup, and disposal chain. Internal inconsistencies carried openly: (a) the MA-20 sales card's acquisition line reads 'Built by Bethlehem Steel Co. in San Francisco,' contradicting MARAD's own detail page, DANFS, NavSource, and the particulars card's 'Cons.' builder entry - the Consolidated Steel, Wilmington/Los Angeles attribution controls; (b) buyer wording differs - milestone and particulars card 'Boston Metals (Aguiler Y Peris, S.L.)' vs MA-20 card and status card 'Aguilar Y Peris, S.L.' - consistent with Boston Metals as contracting broker for the Spanish scrapper, carried as written; (c) 'permanent transfer' (status card) vs 'LOAN' (particulars card) for the 1966 Army transfer; (d) 'renamed 3/18/43' milestone vs DANFS 'renamed 29 March.' Tonnage figures vary between cards (status card gross 6711/net 3931/DWT 9075; MA-20 gross 6759/net 4015/DWT 9780) - different measurement eras, not resolved. No asbestos or materials information; the 'no basic preservation' note documents layup condition only, not hazmat content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-auriga-ak98-02
-
[3]NavSource Naval History photo archive, USS Auriga (AK-98) page (navsource.org/archives/09/13/130098.htm) - build/commission table, spec block, commanding-officer table, campaign/awards list, merchant-service timeline [other_primary]
- Locator
- navsource.org/archives/09/13/130098.htm - full page incl. spec block, CO table, awards block, and 1947 Paramaribo photo credit
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource AK-98 page corroborates the build/commission chain and adds: 'Completed and delivered to the War Shipping Administration, 13 March 1943'; Navy acquisition 16 March 1943; Matson Navigation Co. conversion; commissioned 1 April 1943, LCDR John G. Hart, USNR, in command; struck from the Naval Register 7 February 1946; merchant timeline - delivered to Alcoa S.S. Co. 22 January 1946 at Weehawken, N.J., name reverted to SS Alcoa Partner; returned to the Maritime Commission 1 November 1963 for NDRF James River (Lee Hall) layup; transferred to the U.S. Army 17 June 1966 'for stevedore training at Fort Eustis, VA'; returned to NDRF James River 2 October 1968; 'Final Disposition, sold for scrapping, 27 May 1970, to Aguilar Y Peris, S.L. Valencia, Spain.' Spec block: displacement 12,975 t (fl); length 416'; beam 60'; draft 27'6"; speed 14.7 kts; complement 26 officers + 232 enlisted; one Westinghouse steam turbine, two Babcock and Wilcox header-type boilers 450psi 750 deg, double Westinghouse main reduction gears, single propeller 4,000 shp; armament one 5"/51, one 3"/50, two 40mm, eight 20mm; call sign NKHB. Campaign/awards block: Gilbert Islands (Tarawa landing 13 Nov-8 Dec 1943), Marianas (Saipan 16-17 and 25-28 June 1944), Leyte (20 Oct and 18 Nov 1944), Manila Bay-Bicol (Zambales-Subic Bay 29-31 Jan 1945), Okinawa Gunto (10-19 April 1945); Combat Action Ribbon retroactive 25 October 1944; five Purple Hearts WIA at Leyte 25 October 1944; Navy Occupation Service Medal (Asia clasp) service 26 Sep-27 Nov 1945; Philippines Presidential Unit Citation; Philippine Liberation Medal (2); five battle stars. Commanding officers: LCDR John G. Hart, USNR (1 Apr 1943-9 Dec 1944); LCDR Charles Henry Fonda (9 Dec 1944-22 Jan 1946).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- Study period
- 1942-1970
- Limitations
- Volunteer-compiled secondary reference used for cross-check; the spec block (turbine plant, 4,000 shp, 14.7 kts, 26+232 complement), campaign windows, Purple Heart count, and Fort Eustis detail rest on NavSource's compilation of official sources and are flagged where they conflict (complement 258 vs 198 elsewhere; armament differs across sources). Its campaign table gives campaign-credit windows - DANFS gives the ship's actual dates (e.g., Tarawa 17-24 January 1944 inside the Gilbert Islands campaign window). Contains no asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-auriga-ak98-03
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[4]Naval Historical Center, Online Library of Selected Images, 'USS Auriga (AK-98), 1943-1946' (photo NH 91135) - live NHHC page located via the HyperWar mirror (ibiblio.org/hyperwar/OnlineLibrary/photos/sh-usn/usnsh-a/ak98.htm) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- Online Library AK-98 page, NH 91135 caption and ship-summary paragraph
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The Naval Historical Center's own Online Library photo page (photo NH 91135, 'our only view of USS Auriga') describes her as 'a 5,006-ton C1-B type cargo ship... built at Wilmington, Delaware, in 1942 as SS Alcoa Partner' - the 'Wilmington, Delaware' attribution conflicts with DANFS ('Wilmington, Calif.'), the MARAD status card ('Built by Consol Steel Corp... at Los Angeles, Cal.'), NavSource ('Wilmington, CA'), and the shipbuildinghistory.com yard table (Consolidated Steel's Wilmington yard stood in Los Angeles harbor; the builder also ran a second yard at Long Beach, CA). The Delaware reading is an error in the official photo page; the California attribution controls. The page otherwise corroborates the wartime summary (central/south Pacific supply runs, Saipan/Leyte/Luzon/Okinawa support, May-June 1945 San Francisco repairs, Yokosuka occupation run) and the postwar arc (returned to the Maritime Commission, merchant service as Alcoa Partner, laid up 1963, scrapped 1970).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- Study period
- 1942-1970
- Limitations
- Corrects a factual error inside an official Navy page; does not affect identity or custody timeline materially (the DANFS text and MARAD cards control). The page's '5,006-ton' figure is yet another displacement variant among sources (12,975 fl NavSource; 12,900 fl HyperWar; 4,023 lt/11,565 fl Wikipedia; 6,711 gross MARAD) - carried in gaps. Contains no asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-auriga-ak98-04
-
[5]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 Maritime Commission C1-B hull was built (1942-43) and operated - and that wartime demand drove unprecedented asbestos utilization aboard merchant-type and naval hulls.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- 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 the C1-B type 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-auriga-ak98-05
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[6]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) [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 exactly this hull's era and type.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- Study period
- 1940s survey; article 1946
- Population
- WWII pipe-covering trades at surveyed yards (class context)
- Limitations
- Era-level documentation of asbestos use in naval construction generally; does not name this vessel, class, or builder yard (whether Consolidated Steel Wilmington was among the surveyed contract yards is unverified) and establishes nothing about this hull's materials, condition, or any individual exposure.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-auriga-ak98-06
-
[7]Batch-970 search ledger (this record): DANFS via HistoryCentral + Wikipedia mirrors; MARAD ShipHistory Detail 113 + six status-card scans + Detail 12544; NavSource AK-98; NHHC Online Library NH 91135 page; NARA Special List 44; shipbuildinghistory.com Consolidated Wilmington table; CourtListener API + site: web-index sweep; VA BVA index; HyperWar class pages [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-auriga-ak98-01 through sl-uss-auriga-ak98-11
- 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 Auriga / AK-98 / Alcoa Partner (O.N. 242914) / MC hull 493 was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). CourtListener API v4 queries for 'Auriga' and 'AK-98' were rate-limit blocked at cutoff (HTTP 429, shared 2800/day quota exhausted); supplemental site:courtlistener.com web-index searches surfaced only name collisions (Auriga Innovations patent litigation; Auriga International/Auriga USA Madoff-feeder-fund and securities matters) - not this hull. VA BVA index returned no decision naming the hull. Law-firm marketing pages that name USS Auriga AK-98 (freeasbestostesting.com auxiliary-ships list entry; mesotheliomaveterans.org generic auxiliary page) are an excluded source class per the no-law-firm-sources rule and are logged, not cited.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- Study period
- 2026-09-21
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1942-43 C1-B steam-turbine auxiliary is era-consistent with asbestos-containing materials, and her construction, Matson conversion, wartime operation with three documented navy-yard repair periods and combat damage, 1946 merchant refit, un-preserved layup, Army training use, and 1970 foreign scrapping are undocumented disturbance phases. CourtListener ship-name and hull-number surface remains unqueried due to API rate limits - the litigation sweep is incomplete, not negative-proven.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-auriga-ak98-07
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[8]NARA Special List 44 named-vessel deck-log index (archives.gov/research/military/logbooks/special-list-44-named, 'Auriga (AK-98) 4/1/1943-6/30/1945' row) + NARA Guide to Federal Records: RG 24, RG 19 (Bureau of Ships), RG 178 (U.S. Maritime Commission), RG 248 (War Shipping Administration), RG 357 (Maritime Administration), RG 26 (USCG merchant logs) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Special List 44 'Auriga (AK-98)' entry (coverage 4/1/1943-6/30/1945); archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records/groups/024.html, /019.html, /178.html, /248.html, /357.html, /026.html
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads (not retrieved - require research-room or reproduction order; no spend authorized): NARA's published named-vessel index (Special List 44) explicitly indexes Auriga (AK-98) Navy deck logs covering 4/1/1943-6/30/1945 - the commissioning-through-Okinawa run of this Navy-manned hull, the most promising ship-specific operational lead (RG 24, Records of the Bureau of Naval Personnel/Navy deck logs). Also: Bureau of Ships records incl. conversion/outfitting files for the Matson Navigation Co. 1943 naval conversion (RG 19); Maritime Commission construction-contract records for MC hull 493 at Consolidated Steel Wilmington (RG 178); WSA vessel files and MARAD custody records incl. the PL-86-575 exchange contract 3469 file, the 1966-68 Army stevedore-training loan file (Fort Eustis), and the PD-X-813/861/863 disposal files (RG 248/RG 357) - the disposal file is the most promising scrapping-prep hazmat lead; merchant logbooks for the Alcoa Partner era in RG 26 (USCG) distributed by port of submission.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- Study period
- 1943-1970 records
- Limitations
- Finding-aid mapping only - Special List 44 confirms the deck logs exist and their coverage window, but no page-level retrieval was 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-auriga-ak98-08