Evidence
12 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-12).
-
[1]research packet 377-packet.md (2 sources cited) [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED as to identity, builder, launch date, PYc-
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-black-douglas-ix55-pkt-377-packet-md
-
[2]Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, 'Black Douglas (IX-55)' - live NHHC DANFS page (Raymond A. Mann, 6 Feb 2006; published 25 Jun 2015) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry, full text + specifications block
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record (live NHHC page, verified): 'a steel-hulled auxiliary schooner built in 1930 at Bath, Maine, by the Bath Iron Works' was acquired by the Navy from the Department of the Interior's Fish and Wildlife Service on 2 January 1942; designated IX-55; converted for naval service at Winslow, Wash., by the Winslow Marine Railway & Shipbuilding Co.; placed in service in the 13th Naval District 18 April 1942, Lt. Robert W. Copeland in command. Patrolled 13th Naval District waters for 30 months. Reclassified coastal patrol yacht and redesignated PYc-45 on 8 April 1943; placed in full commission 19 April 1943; patrol continued until late summer 1944. Placed out of commission at the Puget Sound Navy Yard 20 September 1944; returned to FWS 4 October 1944; name struck 14 October 1944. Listed stats: dp 371; l 133'5"; b 32'; dr 12'; s 9.5 kts; a. 1 4", 4 .50-cal mg.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 1942-1944
- Population
- Ship's company 1942-1944 (no complement figure given)
- Limitations
- Authoritative Navy history for identity, acquisition, service, and disposal; contains no asbestos, insulation-material, or hazardous-material information and supports no asbestos claim. Publishes no complement figure.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-black-douglas-ix55-01
-
[3]Shipscribe.com, 'USS Small IX: Auxiliary Schooners etc. (1)' - Stephen S. Roberts compilation from CNO/BuShips correspondence and ship notes (compiled 21 Dec 2010) [other_primary]
- Locator
- IX-55 class notes, construction/disposition tables, ship notes
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Stephen S. Roberts' 'Small IX: Auxiliary Schooners' compilation (drawn from CNO/BuShips records): on 13 Dec 1941 CNO asked BuShips to arrange transfer of the auxiliary schooner BLACK DOUGLAS from the Fish and Wildlife Service; designed by H. J. Gielow & Co., built 1930 for Robert C. Roebling; transferred 2 Jan 1942 at Winslow, Wash., assigned to the 13th Naval District; one 4"/50 gun and one 'Y' antisubmarine gun installed at her conversion yard (Winslow Marine Railway & S.B. Co.) on 11 Mar 1942; VCNO asked 18 May 1942 that a lighter gun be fitted, and wrote 2 Jun 1942 'due to the slow speed of the BLACK DOUGLAS it is not desired that her designation be changed to PYc' - the designation was so changed April 1943 when reassigned to the Northwestern Sea Frontier, and main armament was reduced to a 3" gun. Specifications: 395 t light / 371 t gross; 153.0' oa, 118.0' wl x 32.0' x 12.0'; 1 screw, diesel, 450 hp; 9.5 kts. Post-war: FWS and Bureau of Fisheries until early 1960s; Caribbean resupply/treasure ship until 1967; Flint School 1972 as sail-training 'teQuest'; sold 1981, totally rebuilt in Germany as yacht AQUARIUS; later AQUARIUS W; in use as EL BOUGHAZ I, property of King Mohammed VI of Morocco. FY 1942 BuShips Maintenance funds applied to this group.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 1941-1944; career summary through 2010
- Population
- Conversion-yard workforce (Winslow Marine Railway, 1942); ship's company 1942-1944
- Limitations
- Scholarly compilation of official BuShips/CNO records (author is the recognized authority on this material), not the underlying documents themselves; contains no asbestos or materials information and supports no asbestos claim. Post-Navy career summary is the compiler's - corroborated in outline by NavSource and NOAA cruise data.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-black-douglas-ix55-02
-
[4]National Archives Catalog, file unit NAID 125573492, 'Black Douglas (PYC-45), 4/19/43-9/20/44', RG 24 muster rolls (124 digitized images) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NAID 125573492; sampled images 00003-00007 (April 1943 commissioning roll, enlisted pp. 1-3 + officers p. 7) and 00060 (Dec 1943 report of changes)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Digitized NARA muster-roll file unit for this hull: 'Black Douglas (PYC-45), 4/19/43-9/20/44' (NAID 125573492, RG 24 Bureau of Naval Personnel, series 'Muster Rolls of U.S. Navy Ships, Stations, and Other Naval Activities', 124 images via Ancestry partnership scan). Sampled pages verify: REPORT OF CHANGES for month ending 19 April 1943 (the commissioning muster) lists enlisted entries 1-47 alphabetically across four pages (Antonich, Anthony M., MM2c through Wilson, Armer C., CM3c), records 'transferred from rolls of Com. 13 upon vessel being placed in full commission'; the officers page lists 14 names - incl. Copeland, Robert W., Lieut. (service no. 74669); Fox, Cyril and Wade, Walter W., Lieut.; Walcott, William S. III, Lieut.(jg); and Bell, Robert B., Ensign - several marked 'Temporary duty under instruction.' A December 1943 report-of-changes page documents routine rating advancements and a transfer to U.S. Naval Hospital, Seattle.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 1943-04-19 to 1944-09-20
- Population
- 47 enlisted + 14 officers at commissioning 1943-04-19 (roll includes temporary-duty officers)
- Limitations
- Primary personnel record for this hull; contains no asbestos or materials information and supports no asbestos claim. Enlisted pages 1-4 and officers page 7 were read directly (47 enlisted + 14 officers); remaining 117 images not individually reviewed - quarterly rolls would refine wartime strength. Confirms Copeland's presence aboard as a Lieutenant at commissioning.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-black-douglas-ix55-03
-
[5]NOAA SWFSC ERDDAP dataset 'CalCOFI NOAA Cruises' (erdCalCOFIcruises), ship='BLACK DOUGLAS' subset - cruises 195102 through 196509 [other_primary]
- Locator
- ERDDAP tabledap query: ship="BLACK DOUGLAS" distinct on cruise/year/month - 85 rows
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center CalCOFI cruise dataset (ERDDAP table 'erdCalCOFIcruises') lists ship 'BLACK DOUGLAS', ship code BD, on 85 distinct research cruises from February 1951 through September 1965 - quarterly-pattern CalCOFI survey cruises off California/Baja California, corroborating her post-Navy career as a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service / Bureau of Fisheries research vessel on the Pacific coast.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 1951-1965
- Population
- FWS/Bureau of Fisheries scientific parties and crews, 1951-1965
- Limitations
- Operational dataset documenting research-cruise dates only; contains no asbestos, materials, condition, or crew-exposure information and supports no asbestos claim. Dataset carries NOAA's own 'may contain inaccuracies' disclaimer; cruise count read as 85 distinct rows on 2026-09-29.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-black-douglas-ix55-04
-
[6]NavSource Online Patrol Craft/Gunboat/Submarine Chaser Photo Archive, 'Black Douglas (PYc 45), ex-IX 55' (J. M. Radigan/T. Bateman), incl. NHHC NH 83303 and NOAA photolib ship0309 images [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 12/1445 entry: chronology block, specifications, commanding-officer list, photo captions
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NavSource photo-archive entry (PYc-45 page) corroborates and extends the official record: laid down 22 Nov 1929 as the 3-masted staysail auxiliary schooner GRENADIER by Bath Iron Works for Robert C. Roebling of Savannah, GA; renamed BLACK DOUGLAS prior to completion; launched 9 Jun 1930; delivered 29 Jul 1930; sold to the FWS September 1941; armament incl. one 4"/50, four .50-cal MGs and one 'Mousetrap' depth-charge projector; original aux engine 325-hp Cooper-Bessemer (confirmed by a 1930 Yachting-magazine Cooper-Bessemer advertisement archived on the page), later a 400-hp Enterprise per the page text; commanding officers list gives LT Robert Witcher Copeland USNR (later Navy Cross, RADM) from 18 Apr 1942, then FWS masters Walter K. E. Johanson (1944) and Clyde I. Dell (1947-48); sale to Louis Black 1966; Flint School 'teQuest' 1972; sold 1982; Aquarius/Aquarius W; renamed El Boughaz I under King Mohammed VI of Morocco. Page archives NHHC photo NH 83303 (30 Mar 1943, post-refit) and NOAA photo ship0309 (FWS configuration).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 1929-present (chronology)
- Population
- Ship's company and FWS crews (CO list: Copeland, Johanson, Dell)
- Limitations
- Volunteer-compiled secondary archive aggregating official photos and records - details beyond DANFS/Shipscribe (original name Grenadier; FWS-1105 designation; 400-hp Enterprise figure; Mousetrap projector; post-Navy chain) are corroborating/secondary-tier, not primary; contains no asbestos information. 400-hp Enterprise figure conflicts with other secondary figures (see gaps).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-black-douglas-ix55-05
-
[7]Atlas shipyard dataset record 'bath-iron-works' (shipyards.json), citing PMID 21016030 (Drinker/Fleischer et al., J. Ind. Hyg. 1946); OSHA Inspection 101450294 + Chemical Exposure Health Data labs B24809/B24801; Austin v. Raybestos-Manhattan, 471 A.2d 280 (Me. 1984); Shorette v. Bath Iron Works, BRB 93-1090 (1996) and Bath Iron Works Corp. v. Director OWCP, 109 F.3d 53 (1st Cir. 1997) [other_primary]
- Locator
- shipyards.json 'bath-iron-works' evidence rows ev-bath-iron-works-01/-02/-03/-05
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Builder-yard asbestos documentation (yard level, not hull level): Bath Iron Works, Bath ME - the yard that built this hull 1929-30 - is a documented asbestos-exposure site in the Atlas shipyard dataset (tier 2): Dr. Philip Drinker's 1942-era Harvard industrial-hygiene study recorded 'fairly serious dust risk' with exposure ~10x the safe threshold in the yard's pipe-covering shops (published 1946, PMID 21016030); OSHA health inspection 101450294 (1987) recorded asbestos-standard citations incl. an 80% bulk sample (Lab B24809) and a 1.71-f/cc personal sample (Lab B24801); litigated Maine records include Austin v. Raybestos-Manhattan, 471 A.2d 280 (Me. 1984) - painter's widow's verdict identifying Johns Manville, Raymark, UNARCO, and H.K. Porter products - and Shorette v. Bath Iron Works, BRB 93-1090 (1996) - medical benefits affirmed for 1981-82 asbestosis exposure.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 1942-1996 documented; hull built 1929-30
- Population
- Bath Iron Works pipe coverers, painters, cleaners and construction trades (1942 study; 1977-88 litigation; 1981-82, 1987 samples)
- Limitations
- Yard-level documentation only: none of these records names this hull, and the dated evidence clusters are 1942 and 1981-87 - AFTER this yacht's 1929-30 construction. Documents asbestos conditions at the builder's yard in the wartime era and later, not aboard this vessel; does not establish asbestos installed on hull 131, exposure of her builders or crew, quantity, or present-day presence.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-black-douglas-ix55-06
-
[8]Atlas shipyard dataset record 'puget-sound-naval-shipyard' (shipyards.json), citing DTIC AD0715808; PMID 1065583; EPA Superfund WA2170023418 / EPA ID 1001107 [other_primary]
- Locator
- shipyards.json 'puget-sound-naval-shipyard' evidence rows ev-01/-02/-03/-04/-09
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Decommission-yard asbestos documentation (yard level, not hull level): Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton WA - where this hull was placed out of commission 20 Sep 1944 - is a heavily documented asbestos site in the Atlas shipyard dataset: DTIC AD0715808 (Mangold/Beckett/Bessmer, Mar 1970) reported pulmonary abnormalities in 21% of ~7,000 workers incl. pipe coverers/insulators, 40-150 f/cc during rip-out, and 4-fold mesothelioma mortality elevation with moderate exposure; peer-reviewed follow-up (PMID 1065583) documents amosite/chrysotile exposure during ship overhaul work incl. preformed magnesia block (~15% asbestos), asbestos cements, and asbestos cloth; the yard is an NPL-listed Superfund site (WA2170023418) with documented asbestos contamination.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 1962-1972 documented; hull present Sep-Oct 1944
- Population
- Puget Sound NSY overhaul trades 1962-1972 (documented period); ship's company present only ~2 weeks Sept-Oct 1944
- Limitations
- Yard-level documentation only: the documented exposure studies postdate this hull's presence by decades (1970 study, 1962-72 follow-up period). Her Puget Sound Navy Yard stay was brief - placed out of commission 20 Sep 1944 and returned to FWS 4 Oct 1944 (~2 weeks) - a decommissioning evolution, not an overhaul; no record ties asbestos work to this hull. Does not establish exposure of her crew or material aboard.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-black-douglas-ix55-07
-
[9]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
- Era-level scholarship: peer-reviewed history documents that asbestos was used extensively as fireproofing and insulating material across U.S. shipbuilding and ship conversion during WWII - the program under which this yacht was converted to naval service in 1942 at a commercial yard (Winslow Marine Railway, Winslow WA) with FY 1942 BuShips maintenance funds - and that wartime demand drove unprecedented asbestos utilization in ship construction and refit.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 1940s era documented; article 1987
- Population
- WWII shipyard workers and ship crews (class context); Winslow Marine Railway conversion workforce, early 1942 (not named in source)
- Limitations
- Program/era-level documentation; does not name this vessel, her builder, or her conversion yard, and does not establish that asbestos was installed aboard IX-55/PYc-45 during conversion - a diesel-auxiliary yacht carried no boilers or steam plant, so her machinery-space asbestos loading would in any case have been far lighter than a steam combatant's. Establishes era context only - not presence, quantity, location, exposure, or causation for this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-black-douglas-ix55-08
-
[10]CourtListener API v4 search, q="Black Douglas", type=o, 2026-09-29 - 711 hits, all name collisions on inspection of ranked results [court_record]
- Locator
- Opinion search ranked results, first page (15 results inspected: Sebastian v. Douglas County; Standard Industries v. Tigrett; DeBacker v. Brainard; et al. - all non-vessel)
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- CourtListener search of the opinion index for exact phrase 'Black Douglas' (API v4, type=o, authenticated): 711 hits, all name collisions - co-appearances of Justice Black and Justice Douglas, persons surnamed Black or Douglas, and Douglas-County officials (e.g., Sebastian v. Douglas County, 2016 CO 13); the relevance-ranked top results contain no vessel, schooner, yacht, IX-55, PYc-45, Navy, asbestos, or maritime content. Vessel-qualified and docket-level queries were queued but deferred - the fleet-wide CourtListener request budget was repeatedly exhausted during the session (see search_ledger); the completed phrase sweep supports the 'no qualifying litigation located' classification, subject to the narrower queries logged as pending.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 2026-09-29
- Population
- None
- Limitations
- Phrase-level sweep only: 'Black Douglas' collisions dominate the index, and a vessel case captioned otherwise (e.g., under a plaintiff name alleging exposure aboard IX-55 without the ship name in the caption/indexed text) would not surface. Hull-number and docket-level queries remain pending in the ledger - classification reflects the completed sweep, classified down accordingly.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-black-douglas-ix55-09
-
[11]Batch-4848 search ledger (this record): NHHC DANFS (live); Shipscribe Small IX compilation; NARA catalog incl. NAID 125573492 (sampled); NOAA SWFSC ERDDAP CalCOFI; NavSource 12/1445; general-web asbestos sweep; CourtListener phrase sweep; Atlas shipyards.json yard records; FWS/DOI press-release leads (dead links) [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-black-douglas-ix55-01 through sl-uss-black-douglas-ix55-10
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, museum or owner hazmat disclosure, government materials record, or docketed asbestos case naming Black Douglas, IX-55, PYc-45, Grenadier, FWS-1105, teQuest, Aquarius, or El Boughaz I was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). The DANFS entry, BuShips-derived class notes, the digitized muster-roll file unit, and NOAA cruise data contain no asbestos or materials information.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 2026-09-29
- Population
- None
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1930 yacht with a 1942 naval conversion is era-consistent with some asbestos-containing materials, and her builder's yard is asbestos-documented. This finding establishes only that no public ship-specific record was located; it does not establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility. Original-material survival is in any case unlikely after multiple re-enginings and the 1982-83 total rebuild.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-black-douglas-ix55-10
-
[12]NARA catalog (NAID 125573492; RG 24/RG 22 record-group mapping); DOI/FWS historic press-release URLs (dead); Maine Maritime Museum / BIW records lead [other_primary]
- Locator
- NARA catalog search 'Black Douglas' (707 hits, vessel-relevant subset identified); fws.gov/news/historic/1947/19470528.pdf and 1949/19491020.pdf (404)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads identified but not retrieved: (1) remaining ~117 unsampled images in NARA muster-roll file unit NAID 125573492 (quarterly rolls could refine wartime complement); (2) NARA WWII deck logs for IX-55/PYc-45 if filed (RG 24) - would document day-to-day 13th Naval District / Northwestern Sea Frontier operations and any yard availabilities; (3) FWS/Bureau of Fisheries vessel records in NARA RG 22 for the 1941-42 acquisition and 1944 return, and postwar research-vessel outfitting; (4) two Department of the Interior press releases (1947-05-28 and 1949-10-20) cited in secondary bibliographies - original fws.gov URLs return 404 and Wayback captures did not resolve in this session (link rot logged); (5) Bath Iron Works builder records / Maine Maritime Museum for hull 131 construction specifications.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 1941-1965 records
- Population
- None
- Limitations
- Repository and record-unit mapping only - no box-level retrieval; whether any asbestos-specific documents exist for this hull is unknown until surveyed. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding. FWS press-release leads are dead links pending Wayback recovery.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-black-douglas-ix55-11