Evidence
8 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-8).
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[1]DANFS, Vol. I pp. 118-19, 'Benson' (DD-421) - namesake, spec block, service narrative (verbatim transcription via hazegray.org mirror, Wayback capture 2021-04-18; live NHHC page returns 404) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- hazegray.org danfs/destroy/dd421txt.htm, via Wayback capture 2021-04-18 (DANFS Vol. I pp. 118-19)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for this hull: name ship of the Benson class, named for Admiral William Shepherd Benson, first Chief of Naval Operations (1915-1919). Spec block: 1,620 t, 348'2" x 36'1" x 17'6", 36.5 kt, complement 276, 5x5", 10x21" TT. Launched 15 November 1939 by Bethlehem Steel Co., Quincy, Mass.; sponsored by Mrs. W. S. Benson, the admiral's widow; commissioned 25 July 1940, Lt. Cmdr. C. A. Fines in command. Atlantic Fleet east-coast patrol; from 1 July 1941 escorted convoys to Iceland (six Newfoundland-Iceland convoys by year end); Iceland run until 29 March 1942, then trans-Atlantic convoys to Britain and North Africa; 19 October 1942 extensively damaged in collision with Trippe (DD-403), repaired at New York. Mediterranean from May 1943: Sicily invasion 6 July-21 August (18 men wounded by bomb near-miss 11 July), Salerno landings 5-21 September, Mediterranean convoys October-December; New York repairs/training to 20 April; southern France invasion 13 August-17 September 1944; fire support along French and Italian coasts 30 September 1944-18 January 1945; one convoy run to Britain April 1945; Pacific transfer: Pearl Harbor arrival 28 May, Wake Island strike screening 13-20 June, Ulithi-Okinawa and Philippines-Japan convoys July-October; reported to Charleston Navy Yard 7 December 1945; out of commission in reserve 18 March 1946; transferred to Nationalist China 26 February 1954. Four battle stars for Mediterranean service.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1938-1954
- Population
- Bethlehem Quincy construction trades (1938-40); wartime crew (design complement 276)
- Limitations
- Documents identity, construction milestones, and service history; contains no materials or asbestos content. The Vol. I entry is a compressed narrative - several documented operations (the 11 May 1944 air attack, the U-960 sinking, the San Remo blockade, Tokyo Bay occupation duty, the Yokohama departure) appear only in the ship's unit history (ev-02). Transcription mirror cited because the live NHHC page returns 404 (standing link rot per batch-01).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-benson-dd421-01
-
[2]U.S.S. Benson DD-421: 1940-1946 - the ship's unit history (contemporaneous ship-authored narrative with chronological annex; 78-page scanned booklet, worldwartwoveterans.org) [other_primary]
- Locator
- U.S.S.-Benson-DD-421-1940-1946-Unit-History.pdf - narrative pp. 1-6 and monthly chronological annex (May 1944, August-September 1945, December 1945-March 1946 entries)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Ship-authored history for this hull covering 1940-46: 'authorized March 27, 1934; keel laid May 16, 1938; launched November 15, 1939 and first commissioned July 25, 1940' at the Bethlehem Steel Company Plant, Quincy - 'one of thirty destroyers built to Bethlehem-prepared plans.' Chronological annex documents: convoy UGS-40 escort and the 11 May 1944 glide-bomb and torpedo attack by about 30 German aircraft east of Algiers (2 Ju-88s downed; the commanding officer awarded the Silver Star); anti-submarine operations north of Oran with USS Ludlow and USS Niblack resulting in the sinking of U-960; southern France operations; the San Remo blockade and bombardment, supporting French cruisers Montcalm and Jeanne d'Arc, and explosive-boat attack; flagship duties (TF 94.62 / TG 94.6, Western Caroline Islands; screening force of TF 33 on 2 September 1945); escort to Tokyo Bay with the first occupation troops and Yokohama landing support; DesDiv 13 to Charleston Navy Yard December 1945 for deactivation; 'Decommissioned and transferred to INACTIVE FLEET' March 1946.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1940-1946
- Population
- Wartime crew; embarked staff during flagship periods
- Limitations
- Contemporaneous ship-authored narrative - primary-quality for operations and dates, written in wartime-publicity tone; contains no materials or asbestos content. Hosted as a scan on a veterans' history site; document itself is the ship's official unit history. Confirms the March 1946 Charleston decommissioning.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-benson-dd421-02
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[3]Bureau of Ships, Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels, Vol. 1 (January 1945) - contract-data table and destroyer machinery table, 'No. 421 Class' roster (shipscribe.com scan; image-only PDF read by targeted OCR) [other_primary]
- Locator
- SDB1945v1.pdf - destroyer contract-data table and DD machinery table (book pp. 140-141 region; PDF pp. ~74-80), 'No. 421 Class' roster
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Official BuShips reference data for this hull: contract-data table records DD-421 contracted to Bethlehem Steel Co. on 30 September 1937 at a contract price of $5,232,500; machinery table lists the No. 421 Class entry for DD-421 with two Bethlehem geared turbines at 47,000 shp and four Babcock & Wilcox boilers at 575 psi / 700 F; accommodations column indicates approximately 16 officers and 260 enlisted; roster groups the class under 'No. 421 Class.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1937-1945
- Population
- n/a
- Limitations
- Primary-quality official machinery and contract data; the 53 MB scan is image-only and was read by targeted OCR, so per-cell transcription errors are possible and the complement figure is partially OCR-degraded. The 47,000 shp figure conflicts with the 50,000-shp designed plant in the ship's 1940 GIB (ev-04) and the 50,000 h.p. in DANFS-type spec blocks - documented, not reconciled. No asbestos or insulation-material content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-benson-dd421-03
-
[4]General Information Book, Destroyers DD-421 (Benson) and DD-422 (Mayo) - Office of the Supervisor of Shipbuilding, U.S.N., Bethlehem Steel Co., Quincy, 1940 (BuShips/NARA-origin document; Destroyer History Foundation scan, indexed at destroyerhistory.org/destroyers/records/) [other_primary]
- Locator
- 421Benson_GIBook.pdf - title page (SupShip Quincy 1940), principal-dimensions and machinery sections
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- A per-vessel as-built BuShips document survives for this hull: the 1940 General Information Book prepared by the Supervisor of Shipbuilding at Bethlehem Quincy covers DD-421 and DD-422 with hull dimensions, machinery figures, and ordnance - including four Babcock & Wilcox Express boilers at 618 psi designed working pressure and a 50,000-shp designed plant. This is the deepest primary document located for this hull.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1940
- Population
- n/a (as-built documentation)
- Limitations
- Covers dimensions, machinery, and ordnance but contains NO insulation-material specifications - the document references a separate 'General Specifications for Machinery' volume that remains the deeper archival lead (not yet retrieved). Does not establish or exclude asbestos content aboard. The 50,000-shp designed figure vs the 47,000-shp BuShips Ships' Data wartime figure is documented, not reconciled.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-benson-dd421-04
-
[5]NavSource Destroyer Archive, USS Benson (DD-421) page - as-built data block, milestones, ROC service data, commanding-officer list (via Wayback capture 2024-12-09; direct fetch fails); corroborated for ROC service by Taiwan's TELDAP 'Lo-Yang Destroyer' archive entry (culture.teldap.tw) [other_primary]
- Locator
- navsource.org/archives/05/421.htm header block + CO list (Wayback 2024-12-09); culture.teldap.tw 'Lo-Yang Destroyer' entry
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Cross-check data for this hull. NavSource as-built block: 2,103 t full, 341'4" oa x 35'5" x 12'4" max, 5x5"/38 AA, 12x21" tt (3x4), 47,000 shp Bethlehem turbines, 2 screws, 36.5 kt, 6,500 NM at 12 kt, crew 158; laid down Bethlehem Steel Quincy 16 May 1938, launched 15 November 1939, commissioned 25 July 1940, decommissioned 18 March 1946; to Taiwan 25 February 1954, renamed Lo Yang; U.S. stricken 1 November 1974; 'Stricken in 1975 and broken up for scrap.' TELDAP (Taiwan digital archives): DD-14 was ex-USS Benson DD-421, received by the ROC on 26 February 1954 and renamed Lo-Yang, decommissioned 1 November 1974, replaced by ex-Allen M. Sumner-class destroyers in 1974.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1938-1975
- Population
- ROC Navy crew 1954-1974 (context)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer-curated photo archive - cross-check grade, not a government source. Variances against DANFS: Taiwan transfer 25 vs 26 February 1954; crew 158 as-built vs 276 wartime; beam 35'5" vs 36'1"; overall length 341'4" vs 348'2". The specific replacement hull (ex-USS Taussig DD-746, which took the same Lo Yang name) rests on secondary compilations (Wikipedia, historyofwar.org) - TELDAP confirms replacement by ex-Allen M. Sumner-class units without naming the hull. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-benson-dd421-05
-
[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; standing policy (1975) removed asbestos insulation only when damaged or required for repairs, modified 1979 to selective replacement in high-maintenance areas. This hull's entire U.S. career (built 1938-40; transferred abroad 1954) predates the substitution era - any original insulation was never subject to the Navy's documented replacement program.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1979
- Population
- Navy shipyard workers; asbestos program review
- Limitations
- Program-level documentation; contains no ship-specific data. Full text not retrieved - gao.gov returns HTTP 403 to automated fetch, so content is via the product-page description (standing limitation per batch-01). The hull left U.S. custody two decades before the report period.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-benson-dd421-06
-
[7]Batch-274 search ledger (this record): CourtListener opinion and RECAP sweeps; NHHC DANFS (live + mirrors); ship's unit history; NARA catalog; Destroyer History Foundation; BuShips Ships' Data 1945; NavSource; NVR; indirect web search [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-benson-dd421-01 through sl-uss-benson-dd421-16
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, materials inventory, museum hazmat disclosure, or docketed asbestos litigation naming USS Benson or DD-421 was found in the official and authoritative sources searched (see search_ledger). CourtListener sweep completed 2026-09-19 after documented rate-limit windows: 'USS Benson' opinions 0; 'DD-421' opinions 0; 'USS Benson' RECAP dockets 0; 'DD-421' RECAP returned 5 hits, all surname 'Benson' and document/lease-number collisions - no vessel litigation. Indirect web searching surfaced only law-firm and aggregator list pages naming the hull - excluded per batch source rules.
- Verification
- verified
- 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. The ship left U.S. custody in 1954 - decades before routine ACM documentation - and was scrapped abroad, so the disclosure channels that produced records for preserved hulls never applied. RECAP coverage is limited to indexed text; non-indexed dockets and un-digitized records are outside coverage. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-benson-dd421-07
-
[8]Consolidated era/design inference - BuShips Ships' Data 1945 machinery data (ev-03), 1940 GIB machinery figures (ev-04), GAO HRD-80-2 era documentation (ev-06), class profile benson-gleaves-class [other_primary]
- Locator
- machinery figures from ev-03/ev-04; substitution-era documentation ev-06; class profile benson-gleaves-class.class.json
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A 1938-40 high-pressure steam destroyer of this class (4 Babcock & Wilcox superheated boilers, geared turbines, ~47,000-50,000 shp, built at Bethlehem Quincy in the Navy's peak asbestos-use era) would have carried period-standard asbestos applications: boiler insulation, steam-line and turbine lagging, valve and flange gaskets, machinery packing, fireproofing, and deck coverings. Navy-wide substitution of insulation materials did not begin until the early 1970s - after this hull left U.S. custody in 1954.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1938-1975
- Population
- Bethlehem Quincy construction trades (1938-40); New York Navy Yard repair workers (1942, 1944); wartime crew (design complement 276); ROC Navy crew (1954-74); foreign scrapping workers (post-1975)
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, or abatement record was located. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials; establishes no quantities and no exposure for any individual; cannot support 'documented aboard this hull' wording.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-benson-dd421-08