Evidence
11 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-11).
-
[1]DANFS, Barton I (DD-599) - verbatim transcription (live NHHC page returns HTTP 404; HyperWar/ibiblio transcription cited per standing Batch-01 convention) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry, spec block + namesake paragraph + full service narrative
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for this hull: spec block (DD-599: dp. 1620; l. 347'9"; b. 36'1"; dr. 17'4"; s. 36 k.; cpl. 276; a. 5 5", 10 21" tt.; cl. Benson). Namesake Rear Admiral John Kennedy Barton (b. Philadelphia 7 April 1853; Academy 1873; Engineer-in-Chief and Chief of the Bureau of Steam Engineering; retired 23 December 1908; d. 23 December 1921). First Barton (DD-599) launched 31 January 1942 by Bethlehem Steel Co., Quincy, Mass.; sponsored by Miss Barbara Dean Barton, granddaughter of Admiral Barton; commissioned 29 May 1942, Lt. Comdr. D. H. Fox in command. Departed the east coast 23 August 1942, arrived Tongatabu, Tonga Islands, 14 September 1942. October operations: Buin-Faisi-Tonolai raid (5 October); Battle of Santa Cruz (26 October); rescued 17 survivors of two downed air transports near Fabre Island 29 October. 13 November 1942, with Rear Adm. Callaghan's landing support group in the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal: opened fire approximately 0148, launched four torpedoes, made an emergency stop to avoid a collision; practically dead in the water, took two enemy torpedoes - the first in the forward fireroom, the second seconds later in the forward engine room; broke in two and sank within seconds, carrying an estimated 90 percent of her crew. Forty-two survivors rescued by Portland (CA-33) and Higgins boats from Guadalcanal. Four battle stars for October-November 1942 service.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1941-1942
- Population
- Bethlehem Quincy construction trades 1941-42; ship's company (design complement 276)
- Limitations
- DANFS documents identity, construction, service history, loss, and awards; it contains no asbestos, insulation, or materials information and supports no asbestos claim. Mirror transcription cited because the live NHHC page returns HTTP 404 (standing link-rot per Batch-01). DANFS omits the laydown date and any striking date for this hull - carried from secondary sources and gaps respectively. '90 percent' is DANFS's own estimate; secondary tabulations of the dead differ (164-175) - see gaps.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-barton-dd599-01
-
[2]Commander in Chief U.S. Fleet (King), 'U.S. Navy at War 1941-1945: Official Reports to the Secretary of the Navy', Appendix C - Losses of United States Naval Vessels From all Causes, 7 December 1941-1 October 1945 (HyperWar/ibiblio transcription) [other_primary]
- Locator
- USN-King-C.html Appendix C, DESTROYERS section, 'Barton' line
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Official CNO loss list entry for this hull: 'Barton | Off Guadalcanal I., Solomons | 13 November 1942' - the Navy's contemporaneous published record of the loss area and date, listed among destroyer losses. Consistent with the DANFS narrative (two torpedo hits, broke in two, sank during the first night engagement of the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1942-11-13
- Population
- Ship's company at loss (~90% lost per DANFS; survivor count 42 + Higgins-boat rescues)
- Limitations
- Official loss-list line item only - location label, date, and list membership; no cause detail, casualty count, position coordinates, or materials/asbestos content. 'Off Guadalcanal I., Solomons' is an area label, not a surveyed position.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-barton-dd599-02
-
[3]Naval Historical Center, Online Library of Selected Images, 'USS Barton (DD-599), 1942-1942' page incl. photos NH 97868 and NH 97869 (Boston Harbor, 29 May 1942, commissioning day) - verbatim HyperWar/ibiblio transcription of the NHHC page [other_primary]
- Locator
- NHHC Online Library usnsh-b/dd599.htm narrative + wreck paragraph; photos NH 97868, NH 97869
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NHHC Online Library record for this hull: 1,620-ton Benson-class destroyer built at Quincy, commissioned late May 1942; screened Hornet (CV-8) on the aborted Shortland Islands raid and at the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands 26 October 1942, 'in which her carrier was disabled and sunk'; rescued seventeen survivors of a crashed transport plane; escorted transports into Ironbottom Sound 12 November and was torpedoed by an enemy destroyer in the first surface engagement of the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, broke apart and quickly sank 'with the loss of most of her crew.' Wreck status: 'The 1992 Iron Bottom Sound expedition located and examined part of Barton's wreck, in over 2000 feet of water southeast of Savo Island in Iron Bottom Sound. All that was found was the first hundred feet or so of her bow, resting on its port side with both forward five-inch guns still trained to port. The ship's stern section must be nearby, but was not found.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1942; 1992
- Population
- Ship's company at loss; 1992 expedition survey team
- Limitations
- Official Navy historical-center publication (mirrored transcription): documents service history and the 1992 wreck finding; no asbestos, insulation, or materials content. The 1992 expedition located only the bow; the stern section's location and condition remain undocumented, and no materials survey of the wreck exists in located sources.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-barton-dd599-03
-
[4]Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, 'United States Navy' WWII accounting roster (official DoD unaccounted-for personnel list) and state-level WWII unaccounted-for PDF rosters [other_primary]
- Locator
- dpaa.mil WWII Accounting 'United States Navy' roster + state rosters (CA, NC, WA, MO PDFs), USS BARTON entries dated 11/13/1942
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Official DPAA WWII accounting rosters list USS Barton crew members among the Navy's unaccounted-for: indexed entries include 'ADIE, DONALD M | ENS | O-103706 | 11/13/1942 | USS BARTON; UNITED STATES NAVY RESERVE | MASSACHUSETTS | PACIFIC OCEAN', 'ADKERSON, HORACE A | SEA2 | 06622036 | 11/13/1942 | USS BARTON; UNITED STATES NAVY RESERVE | CALIFORNIA | SOLOMON ISLANDS', 'BREEDLOVE, CLAUDE H | F2C | 02626859 | USS BARTON | 11/13/1942 | NON RECOVERABLE | SOLOMON ISLANDS', 'BARNES, PHILLIP K | S2C | 03860877 | USS BARTON | 11/13/1942 | NON RECOVERABLE | SOLOMON ISLANDS', and 'BELL, PAUL JOSEPH | S2C | 06281085 | USS BARTON; UNITED STATES NAVY RESERVE | 11/13/1942 | NON RECOVERABLE | SOLOMON ISLANDS' - confirming that Barton dead from the 13 November 1942 sinking remain unaccounted-for and are handled within DPAA's WWII mission.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1942-11-13 (losses); roster current
- Population
- Unaccounted-for Barton crew members lost 13 November 1942
- Limitations
- dpaa.mil blocks automated fetch (HTTP 403); entries confirmed via search-index snippets, not a full-page read. The roster lists unaccounted-for individuals, not the total dead, so it cannot resolve the casualty-count conflict (DANFS ~90% vs. secondary 164-175 - see gaps). The wreck is a war grave; DPAA accounting status carries no materials or asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-barton-dd599-04
-
[5]Benson/Gleaves-class profile (ships-worktrees class-f/benson-gleaves-class.class.json) machinery and era data + Bureau of Ships, 'Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels' Vol. I (Jan 1945, shipscribe.com scan) + navypedia member-row data + Atlas shipyards.json bethlehem-shipbuilding and fore-river-shipyard records (yard-level asbestos product identification) [other_primary]
- Locator
- class-f benson-gleaves-class.class.json member row DD-599 + propulsion/notes blocks; SDB1945v1 'No. 421 Class' machinery table; navypedia us_dd_bristol.htm DD-599 row; shipyards.json yard_ids 'bethlehem-shipbuilding' and 'fore-river-shipyard'
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/yard inference: this hull is a WWII Benson-class destroyer (1941-repeat 'Laffey group' per navypedia; Bethlehem design-office subclass) built 1941-42 at Bethlehem Steel's Fore River yard, Quincy, Mass. (yard no. 151 per navypedia), carrying the class-standard steam plant - 4 Babcock & Wilcox superheated boilers (575 psi/700F per BuShips Ships' Data 1945), 2 geared steam-turbine sets, 2 shafts, nominally 50,000 shp (BuShips table shows 47,000 shp for lead ship DD-421 - class discrepancy). Steam destroyers of this configuration and era carried period-standard asbestos boiler and steam-line insulation, turbine lagging, valve/flange gaskets, machinery packing, fireproofing, and deck coverings. The builder yard is documented at yard level in the Atlas shipyards dataset (bethlehem-shipbuilding and fore-river-shipyard records, evidence tier 3): documented yard-level products include Unibestos, Transite, Marinite, pipe insulation/lagging, thermal and block insulation, gaskets, packing, asbestos wire insulation, asbestos cement, and asbestos-containing paint - yard-level evidence, not a hull finding.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1941-1942
- Population
- Bethlehem Quincy construction trades 1941-42; ship's company May-November 1942
- Limitations
- Class/era and builder-yard inference only - NOT a hull-specific finding. No BuShips material schedule, insulation specification, or hull-level survey naming DD-599 was located (NARA RG 19 retrieval not performed). Yard-level product documentation does not establish that any given product went aboard this hull, establishes no quantities, and establishes no individual's exposure. The two torpedo hits were in the forward fireroom and forward engine room - the machinery spaces where such insulation was concentrated - but no source documents the material consequences.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-barton-dd599-05
-
[6]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 - placing this hull's construction (1941-42) and its entire commissioned service (May-November 1942) inside the documented asbestos-use era. The hull was lost three decades before the substitution era began, so whatever period material was aboard went down undocumented with the ship.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- 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 report text not retrieved (gao.gov blocks automated fetch, HTTP 403) - content via product-page description. No hull-level survey for DD-599 exists in this record.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-barton-dd599-06
-
[7]CourtListener API v4 sweep (authenticated, via cl-auth-search.py): "USS Barton" type=o; "USS Barton" type=r; "DD-599" type=o and type=r [court_record]
- Locator
- CourtListener API v4 search results, 2026-09-27 (queries and counts in search_ledger)
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- CourtListener API v4 authenticated sweep for this hull (2026-09-27): the 'USS Barton' opinion-index query returned zero hits - no published opinion names a 'USS Barton'. The remaining queries ('USS Barton' docket index, 'DD-599' opinion and docket indexes) were pacing-blocked by the shared fleet quota and are logged pending in the search ledger.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 2026-09-27
- Limitations
- Sweep is partial: opinion coverage verified clean for the exact name; docket coverage and the hull-number queries incomplete at commit - absence of hits in the queried indexes is not proof that no case naming the hull exists. Name-collision note: two Navy ships carried 'USS Barton' - this hull (DD-599, sunk 13 November 1942) and DD-722 (Allen M. Sumner class, in commission 1943-1969); any future 'USS Barton' hit with postwar exposure dates almost certainly refers to DD-722, and 'Barton' alone is a high-collision surname. Per batch discipline a pleading-stage reference would classify as allegation, not adjudicated exposure.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-barton-dd599-07
-
[8]Batch-3571 search ledger (this record): DANFS verbatim transcription (ibiblio); NHHC Online Library ship page; CNO King Appendix C official loss list; DPAA WWII Navy roster (indexed entries); navypedia member table; class-f Benson/Gleaves profile; Atlas shipyards.json (bethlehem-shipbuilding, fore-river-shipyard); CourtListener API v4; NHHC live-page check; general-web asbestos-mention check [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-barton-dd599-01 through sl-uss-barton-dd599-13
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located for DD-599: no hull ACM survey, no abatement record, no materials inventory, and no asbestos case naming this hull in the completed CourtListener indexes. The configuration of the loss record limits what could exist: the hull was a total loss on 13 November 1942 with roughly nine-tenths of the crew - there was no postwar disposal, mothballing, overhaul, museum, or scrapping phase under which asbestos documentation would typically be generated, and the wreck rests in Ironbottom Sound in over 2,000 feet of water as a war grave with only the bow section ever located.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 2026-09-27
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1941-42 Bethlehem-built steam destroyer is era-consistent with asbestos-containing insulation, lagging, gaskets, packing, and fireproofing (ev-05, ev-06), and whatever material was aboard sank with the ship undocumented. This row records that no ship-specific documentation was located; it does not establish presence or absence, exposure, or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-barton-dd599-08
-
[9]NARA record series leads (RG 24 deck logs 1942; RG 38 action report A16-3/L11 of 26 November 1942 filed by Barton's senior surviving officer, endorsed CINCPAC serial 00554 of 18 February 1943; RG 19 BuShips per-vessel files incl. any DD-599 General Information Book; 80-G still-picture series incl. commissioning-day views NH 97868/NH 97869) + E. Andrew Wilde private compilation 'The USS Barton (DD-599) in World War II: Documents, Recollections and Photographs' (1993, rev. 2000/2003, addendum 2006; hosted by the Destroyer History Foundation) + Bureau of Personnel casualty report (NARA) cited in the Destroyer History Foundation page [other_primary]
- Locator
- archives.gov RG 24/RG 19/RG 38 series descriptions; action-report serials A16-3/L11 (26 Nov 1942) and CINCPAC 00554 (18 Feb 1943) per transcription; destroyerhistory.org/benson-gleavesclass/ussbarton (DHF page and Wilde PDF reference); NHHC photo nos. NH 97868, NH 97869
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads (not retrieved - research-room or reproduction order; no spend authorized): (a) NARA RG 24 'Logbooks of U.S. Navy ships and stations, 1801-1946' - DD-599 deck logs for the full commissioned period 1942-05-29 to 1942-11-13 including the final entries before loss; (b) the surviving officers' report of action, serial A16-3/L11 of 26 November 1942, 'U.S.S. BARTON (DD599), Report of Action of November 12-13, 1942,' Senior Surviving Officer to Commander South Pacific Force via Commander Destroyer Squadron TWELVE, endorsed as CINCPAC serial 00554 of 18 February 1943 (an amateur-site transcription was consulted for document identification only - it records the TG 67.4 battle order with Barton eleventh in column, ~60 rounds from the forward 5-inch battery, and the two torpedo hits); (c) NARA RG 19 BuC&R/BuShips construction records incl. any hull-specific General Information Book for DD-599 and Bethlehem Quincy construction correspondence; (d) the Bureau of Personnel casualty report for Barton cited by the Destroyer History Foundation - the likeliest resolver of the casualty-count conflict; (e) Naval Vessel Register - not applicable: sunk 1942, predating NVR coverage (ships disposed before 1987 not included); (f) the Wilde private compilation of documents, recollections, and photographs hosted by the Destroyer History Foundation - a private memorial publication, not an official source.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1941-1943 records; 1993-2006 private compilation
- Limitations
- Record-group/collection mapping only - no box-level retrieval performed; existence of asbestos-specific documents for DD-599 is unknown until surveyed. The A16-3/L11 content description derives from an amateur-site transcription of the NARA document, not the document itself; the Wilde compilation is a private publication, not an authoritative source. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-barton-dd599-09
-
[10]Cross-source reconciliation: DANFS (ibiblio transcription) vs. CNO King Appendix C vs. NHHC Online Library vs. DPAA roster vs. NavSource compiled data vs. MaritimeQuest/Wikipedia secondary compilations vs. navypedia [other_primary]
- Locator
- DANFS spec block and narrative; USN-King-C Appendix C; NHHC Online Library dd599.htm; navsource.org/archives/05/599.htm data block (indexed text); maritimequest.com Barton DD-599 builder's data; en.wikipedia.org DD-599 infobox (secondary leads only); navypedia us_dd_bristol.htm DD-599 row
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Source discrepancies logged, not silently reconciled: (a) Casualty count - DANFS reads an estimated 90 percent of the crew lost with 42 survivors rescued by Portland (CA-33) and Higgins boats; NavSource reads '175 of her crew were lost'; MaritimeQuest reads 165 killed with 42 survivors to Portland and 26 to a Higgins boat (68 total rescued); Wikipedia reads 164 (13 officers and 151 crew). DANFS's '90 percent' and 42-survivor core carried as official; full range logged. (b) Laydown date - DANFS omits it; NavSource and Wikipedia read 20 May 1941; navypedia records only May 1941; the class profile reads 1941-05. 20 May 1941 carried as secondary-sourced; the DANFS omission is logged. (c) Tongatabu arrival - DANFS reads 14 September 1942; the Destroyer History Foundation compilation reads 13 September. (d) Striking - no source consulted (DANFS, NavSource, MaritimeQuest) states a date the name was struck from the Navy list; presumed administrative and undocumented here. (e) Attacker attribution - DANFS reads 'two enemy torpedoes' without naming the firing ship; NavSource and secondary compilations name the Japanese destroyer Amatsukaze; the near-collision vessel is unnamed in DANFS and identified as the cruiser Helena in secondary accounts. (f) Spec block - DANFS reads a. '5 5", 10 21" tt.' (the as-designed fit); the HyperWar ships page reads the wartime fit 4 x 5"/38 and 1 x 5 21" tt. - both recorded, reflecting the class's wartime land-of-one-mount/topweight changes.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1941-1992
- Limitations
- Reconciles publication-level discrepancies among official and secondary sources; none of the underlying sources contains asbestos information, and none of the variances affects identity, the loss timeline, or the asbestos documentation status.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-barton-dd599-10
-
[11]U.S. Navy news release + Ocean Exploration Trust NA173 expedition summary, 'Marine Archaeology of Guadalcanal: Iron Bottom Sound (NA173)', 2-23 July 2025 (nautiluslive.org), NOAA Ocean Exploration / OECI sponsored [other_primary]
- Locator
- navy.mil release 4272152 site list; NA173 expedition summary PDF (nautiluslive.org/sites/default/files/documents/2025-11/NA173 Expedition Summary.pdf) ROV summary
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The July 2025 OET/NOAA NA173 expedition aboard E/V Nautilus conducted ROV surveys of thirteen maritime heritage sites in Iron Bottom Sound; the published site list (USS New Orleans bow, IJN Teruzuki, USS Vincennes, USS Astoria, USS Quincy, USS Northampton, USS Laffey DD-459, USS DeHaven, USS Preston, USS Walke, HMAS Canberra, IJN Yudachi, and an unidentified landing barge) does not include Barton - the 1992 Ballard-expedition bow documentation remains the only located wreck imagery for this hull.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 2025-07
- Population
- OET NA173 expedition (ROV survey team)
- Limitations
- Establishes only that Barton was not among the 13 sites publicly listed as surveyed by NA173 in July 2025; the expedition mapped additional targets by sonar, so absence from the ROV-survey list does not prove the wreck was not re-observed. No materials or asbestos content in this source.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-barton-dd599-11