Evidence
10 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-10).
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[1]research packet 846-packet.md [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-bobolink-mhc44-pkt-846-packet-md
-
[2]DANFS, Bobolink II (YMS-164) - construction, sponsor, commissioning, WWII Mediterranean service, naming/AMS-2, reserve training, 1950-1957 service, MHC-44 conversion, disposal, battle star (live NHHC page; Raymond A. Mann, 30 January 2006) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS 'Bobolink II (YMS-164)' service narrative and spec block; entry by Raymond A. Mann, 30 Jan 2006; page published 25 Jun 2015
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull: laid down 24 April 1942 at Benton Harbor, Mich., by Dachel-Carter Shipbuilding Corp.; launched 28 November 1942; sponsored by Mrs. Anna Arny; commissioned 14 April 1943, Lt. (jg.) Robert W. Cumming, USNR, in command. First 15 months on the U.S. east coast; crossed the Atlantic July 1944 for the invasion of southern France, sweeping mines off that coast from the first assaults of 15 August until 21 September (replenishment at Corsica); then minesweeping at Palermo, Sicily, and various Mediterranean locations through the end of hostilities in Europe. Returned to New York 4 July 1945; on duty at Pearl Harbor at war's end; decommissioned at San Diego 7 June 1946. Named Bobolink and redesignated AMS-2 on 17 February 1947; naval-reserve training ship, 12th Naval District, November 1948-May 1950. Recommissioned San Diego 9 May 1950; Pearl Harbor, Pacific Fleet Mine Force, to July 1953; San Diego five months; January 1954 via Panama Canal to Charleston SC (MinDiv 43); March 1954 to Mine Countermeasures Station, Panama City FL, for a year; February 1955 returned to Charleston for conversion to coastal mine hunter; redesignated MHC-44 7 February 1955; conversion about seven months; refresher training Norfolk October-December; reported to Commandant 1st Naval District, operating out of Boston two years; decommissioned at Green Cove Springs FL 2 December 1957, berthed Atlantic Reserve Fleet; struck from the Navy list 1 January 1960. 'Bobolink earned one battle star for service in World War II as YMS 164.' Spec block: dp. 320; l. 136'; b. 24'6"; dr. 6'1"; s. 12 k.; cpl. 33; a. 1 3", 2 20mm.; cl. YMS-1.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1942-1960
- Population
- Dachel-Carter construction trades (1942-43); crew (1943-46, 1950-57); naval reservists (1948-50)
- Limitations
- Ship-specific history only; no asbestos or material content. DANFS does not give the builder-yard hull number, completion date, conversion-yard name, or post-strike disposition - those come from other rows. Decommissioning (7 June vs NavSource's 7 July 1946) and AMS-2 naming (17 vs NavSource's 18 February 1947) carry one-day/date variants - see gaps.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-bobolink-mhc44-01
-
[3]NavSource Online: Mine Warfare Vessel Photo Archive, Bobolink (MHC 44) ex-AMS-2 ex-YMS-164 - designation timeline, specifications, commanding officers, commercial disposition chain (live page, verified 2026-10-03) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 11/19164.htm header block, specifications block, commanding-officers table
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource timeline for this hull: laid down 24 April 1942 by Dachel-Carter Shipbuilding Corp., Benton Harbor MI; launched 28 November 1942; completed 27 March 1943; commissioned USS YMS-164 14 April 1943 and assigned to the European Theater; decommissioned 7 July 1946; named Bobolink and reclassified Motor Minesweeper AMS-2 on 18 February 1947; Naval Reserve training vessel November 1948 at San Francisco CA; reclassified Coastal Minehunter MHC-44 on 7 February 1955; conversion began 1 March 1955 at Charleston Naval Shipyard, Charleston SC, completed 30 September 1955; struck from the Naval Register 1 January 1960. Commercial chain: sold 1961 to Borden Co. of Cape May NJ as fishing boat Gail Borden; sold 1969 to Operations Oceanographic, Inc. of Newton MA as Force Five; sold 1973 to J. F. White Contracting Co. of Newtonville MA; sold 1975 to Arctic Marine Enterprises, Inc. of Scituate MA as oil-exploration vessel Arctic Fox; burned 28 February 1975 at the Hingham Shipyard, Hingham MA; fate unknown. Call sign November-Xray-Zulu-Victor. Specs: 270 t., 136', 24'6", 8' draft, 15 kts., complement 32; one 3"/50 DP mount, two 20mm, two depth charge projectors; two 880-bhp General Motors 8-268A diesels, Snow-Knobstedt single reduction gear, two shafts. Commanding officers list runs from LTJG Robert W. Cumming Jr. (14 Apr 1943) through LT Clarence Earl Chinn (June 1956 - 2 Dec 1957), with LT Forrest Ronald Johns listed for 1959.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1942-1975
- Population
- Dachel-Carter construction trades (1942-43); crew (1943-46, 1950-57); Charleston Naval Shipyard trades (Mar-Sep 1955 conversion); commercial crews 1961-75
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry - milestone dates generally track DANFS/NVR but conflict with DANFS on three points (decommission 7 Jul vs 7 Jun 1946; naming 18 vs 17 Feb 1947; sale 1961 vs shipbuildinghistory's 1960) and its spec block differs from the DANFS spec block (270t/8'/15kt/32 vs 320t/6'1"/12kt/33) - variants in gaps. The 1959 CO entry postdates her 1957 decommissioning and is unexplained. Contains no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-bobolink-mhc44-02
-
[4]NavSource Online, Auxiliary Motor Minesweeper (YMS) / British Motor Minesweeper (BYMS) Index - class construction and characteristics (live page, verified 2026-10-03) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 11/19idx.htm class narrative and characteristics block
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Class documentation for the type: the YMS-1 class were WOODEN-hulled auxiliary motor minesweepers - 'the first wooden minesweeper of this class' (YMS-1, built by Henry B. Nevins Inc., City Island NY, keel laid 4 March 1941) - 561 built 1942-45 at 35 yacht yards (12 East Coast, 19 West Coast, four Great Lakes). Subclass variation: YMS-1 through 134 had two stacks, YMS-135 through 445/480/481 had one (this hull, YMS-164, is the one-stack subclass), YMS-446 through 479 none. Class characteristics per the index: 136' LOA, 24'6" beam, 320 tons, 6'1" max draft, complement 33, designed speed 12 kts, GM 8-268A diesel engines on two shafts (880 designed shp). Surviving YMS's were reclassified AMS in 1947 and given names; in 1955 they received the new type symbol MSC(O) for those retained as minesweepers.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1941-1969 (type service window)
- Population
- YMS-class construction trades at 35 yards (1942-45); class crews
- Limitations
- Class-level description, not a hull record - establishes construction material (wooden hull), machinery type, and the class-wide 1947 AMS renaming/redesignation program, not anything installed aboard YMS-164 specifically. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-bobolink-mhc44-03
-
[5]Shipbuilding History (Colton), Dachel-Carter Shipbuilding, Benton Harbor MI - yard history and hull table (live page, verified 2026-10-03) [other_primary]
- Locator
- shipbuildinghistory.com Dachel-Carter yard narrative and hull table row for YMS 164 (O.N. 286385)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Builder documentation for this hull: Dachel-Carter was founded 1915 by Peter Dachel and A. B. Carter (former Truscott Boatbuilding employees) on the Benton Harbor Ship Canal; grew to over 600 employees during WWII; folded after the war; the site later became a Whirlpool machining plant. The yard's hull table lists YMS 164 (U.S. official number 286385), type Minesweeper, built 27-Mar-43, disposition 'Later Bobolink (AMS 2) 1947, MHC 44 1955, sold 1960 as Gail Borden'.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1942-1960 (build and Navy disposition); 1915-1945 (yard history)
- Population
- Dachel-Carter construction trades (~600 employees at wartime peak)
- Limitations
- Secondary yard-compilation, not a registry - the build date (27-Mar-43) agrees with NavSource's completion date. The sale year (1960) conflicts with NavSource's 1961 - variant in gaps. Contains no asbestos content; the yard is not an Atlas shipyards.json entry.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-bobolink-mhc44-04
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[6]Hingham Anchor (Hingham, MA), 'Way Back Wednesday: 50 years ago, a fire destroyed the Artic Fox', Geri Duff, 12 Feb 2025 (live page, verified 2026-10-03) [reputable_press]
- Locator
- Hingham Anchor online article text (fire narrative)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Local-press corroboration of the final disposition: 'a converted minesweeper' named the Artic Fox, tied up at the Hingham Shipyard, caught fire about 4:30 a.m. on a cold February morning in 1975; two crewmen aboard escaped; over 100 firefighters from eight towns plus Navy and Coast Guard firefighters, three Coast Guard boats and a Mass Port boat worked the fire; the fire was declared out nine hours later.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1975-02
- Population
- Two crewmen aboard; ~100+ firefighters (8 towns) plus Navy/Coast Guard responders
- Limitations
- Corroborates the fire event only: the article does not name YMS-164/AMS-2/MHC-44 and does not give the exact February 1975 date (NavSource's 28 February stands on its own). Spelling 'Artic Fox' vs NavSource 'Arctic Fox' noted. No asbestos, hazmat, or post-fire disposition content - a vessel-destroying fire on a wooden-hulled craft is a plausible but undocumented end point.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-bobolink-mhc44-05
-
[7]Era inference built on: DANFS spec block (YMS-1 class, diesel craft); NavSource specifications (2 x GM 8-268A diesels, two shafts); NavSource class index (wooden hull, class characteristics); NavSource conversion dates at Charleston Naval Shipyard (1 Mar - 30 Sep 1955); shipyard-exposure-map Atlas shipyards.json documented asbestos product list for charleston-naval-shipyard; GAO HRD-80-2 (see ev-07) [other_primary]
- Locator
- DANFS spec block; NavSource 11/19164 specifications and conversion dates; NavSource 11/19idx class page; shipyards.json entry charleston-naval-shipyard
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A wooden-hulled diesel motor minesweeper built 1942-43 and refit at a naval shipyard in 1955 sits inside the Navy's documented asbestos-use era. Era-standard asbestos applications aboard a diesel small craft of this type and period were diesel-exhaust lagging, machinery and piping gaskets, valve packing, electrical insulation, and interior finishes (deck tile, bulkhead panels, accommodation insulation). The hull's only documented naval-yard availability - the 1955 MHC-44 conversion at Charleston Naval Shipyard - occurred at a yard whose Atlas record documents era asbestos products including pipe insulation (5-50% asbestos), asbestos gaskets in pumps and valves, packing for rotating equipment, thermal insulation, fireproofing in living quarters, and electrical insulation. As a diesel craft she carried no steam plant - the boiler/turbine lagging pathway of steam vessels does not apply; her asbestos-relevant scope is narrower than a steel steam ship's.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1942-1975
- Population
- Dachel-Carter construction trades (1942-43); crew (1943-46, 1950-57); Charleston Naval Shipyard conversion trades (1955); commercial crews (1961-75)
- Limitations
- Class/era and yard-level inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, conversion work package, or crew record located for YMS-164/AMS-2/MHC-44. The Charleston Naval Shipyard product list documents the YARD's products, not that any were installed aboard this hull; the conversion's material scope is undocumented. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials. No quantity.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-bobolink-mhc44-06
-
[8]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (Oct 18, 1979) [gao]
- Locator
- GAO HRD-80-2 full report, digest pp. i-ii and enclosure correspondence (thermal-insulation major application; 1973 specification change; May 1978 deliveries; 1975/1979 policies); product page https://www.gao.gov/products/hrd-80-2
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- GAO documented (fieldwork at Long Beach and Norfolk Naval Shipyards) that 'thermal insulation for machinery, equipment and piping systems has been the major application of asbestos' aboard Navy ships, that 'all ships' in service contain some asbestos in components such as clutches and electric cables, and that other (older) Navy ships 'contain large quantities of asbestos.' Product specifications for thermal insulation were changed in 1973 to specify asbestos-free materials, but asbestos already purchased/installed meant some ships were delivered with asbestos thermal insulation as late as May 1978; the Navy's 1975 policy was to remove/replace only damaged or work-required insulation, modified in 1979 to selective replacement in high-maintenance areas. This spans the hull's entire era: 1942-43 construction, 1955 MHC-44 conversion, and 1957 decommissioning.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1979 (report); asbestos thermal-insulation era documented through May 1978 deliveries
- Population
- Navy shipyard workers; asbestos program review
- Limitations
- Program-level documentation; supports era context only, not any fact specific to this hull. GAO fieldwork yards were Long Beach and Norfolk Naval Shipyards - Charleston is not a fieldwork site in this report. Full 26-page report extracted via firecrawl (direct fetch returns HTTP 403 to automated requests).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-bobolink-mhc44-07
-
[9]Batch-7550 search ledger (this record): live DANFS; NavSource ship page and class index; shipbuildinghistory Dachel-Carter yard table; Hingham Anchor 1975-fire retrospective; GAO product page; CourtListener (blocked); secondary web litigation sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-bobolink-mhc44-01 through -10
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or verified litigation naming USS YMS-164, USS Bobolink (AMS-2), or USS Bobolink (MHC-44) was found in the public sources searched. CAVEAT: CourtListener could not be queried this session - the authenticated helper reported the daily quota exhausted (~5.9 h to reset); logged as blocked in search_ledger, not as a negative result. Secondary web sweeps surfaced no qualifying case; the only 'asbestos aboard' material is law-firm marketing content (mesotheliomahelp.org lists 'USS Bobolink' in a generic minesweepers page without hull number; mesothelioma.com lists 'USS Bobolink AM-20' - the earlier, different hull) - excluded by source policy.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 2026-10-03
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - and the litigation repository search is a genuine open gap (throttled, not run). Deck logs (RG 24), Charleston Naval Shipyard 1955 conversion work packages, and any commercial-owner records are undigitized leads. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-bobolink-mhc44-08
-
[10]Designation cross-check: DANFS 'Bobolink II (YMS-164)' (NHHC); DANFS Bobolink (AM-20/ATO-131) via HyperWar transcription (ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/ships/dafs/ATO/ato131.html); mesothelioma.com minesweeper table (excluded source) listing 'USS Bobolink AM-20'; NavSource designation chain (YMS-164 -> AMS-2 -> MHC-44) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NHHC DANFS bobolink-ii page title; HyperWar DANFS AM-20/ATO-131 entry; NavSource 11/19164 designation line
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- DISAMBIGUATION: two U.S. Navy minesweepers carried the name Bobolink. Bobolink I - AM-20, later ATO-131 - was a steel Lapwing-class minesweeper launched 15 June 1918 by Baltimore Dry Dock & Shipbuilding, commissioned 28 January 1919, present at Pearl Harbor 7 December 1941, converted to an ocean tug 1942, sold 1946. This record's hull - 'Bobolink II' in DANFS - is the wooden YMS-1-class YMS-164, renamed Bobolink (AMS-2) in 1947. Marketing-source asbestos content does not distinguish the two: mesothelioma.com's minesweeper table lists 'USS Bobolink AM-20' (the earlier hull). Any future litigation or exposure hit keyed to 'USS Bobolink' must be hull-resolved before attachment to this record.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1918-1975 (both hulls' combined windows)
- Limitations
- Name-disambiguation note, not a material claim. The AM-20 details rest on the DANFS transcription for that hull; the marketing-table attribution is noted only to flag the collision risk (that source is excluded and carries no evidentiary weight).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-bobolink-mhc44-09