Evidence
12 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-12).
-
[1]DANFS, Breckinridge (DD-148) - builder, specifications, full service narrative, AG-112 reclassification, disposal (verbatim transcription; live NHHC page 404s, hazegray.org offline - text via losthistory.net mirror of the hazegray DANFS Online archive) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS DD-148 entry, specifications block + service narrative (full text)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for this hull: launched 17 August 1918 by William Cramp and Sons Ship and Engine Building Co., Philadelphia; sponsored by Miss Genevieve Dudley Breckinridge, niece of the namesake ensign; commissioned 27 February 1919 (Cmdr. A. L. Bristol). Destroyer Force Atlantic Fleet; east-coast sonar development and tests; out of commission in reserve at Philadelphia 30 June 1922. Recommissioned May 1930; Scouting Force east coast to late 1932, then Pacific (Alaska to Pearl Harbor); Training Squadron 10 May 1936; out of commission in reserve September 1936; three years at Philadelphia; recommissioned September 1939, Division 66 Atlantic Squadron Neutrality Patrol; Inshore Patrol Station Canal Zone December 1940; Key West from May 1941. Caribbean Sea Frontier patrol/escort to December 1943; TG 21.13 hunter-killer group 14 January 1944; Norfolk 27 February; Boston overhaul; TF 6 convoy escort departing 24 March 1944; convoy attacked by German aircraft night of 11-12 April (Holder damaged); Boston 11 May 1944; Caribbean Sea Frontier Guantanamo to 7 February 1945; Boston Navy Yard overhaul 10 February-31 March 1945; New London flagship Destroyer Division 54; reclassified AG-112 30 June 1945; conversion at New York Navy Yard Annex, Bayonne, N.J.; San Diego 21 August; Commander Carrier Division 12 plane guard/escort from 24 August; decommissioned 30 November 1945; sold 31 October 1946. Spec block: 1,154 t, 314'5" x 31'8" x 9', 35.2 kt, cpl. 122, four 4-inch + two 3-inch guns, twelve 21-inch torpedo tubes, class Wickes. One battle star for WWII service.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1918-1946
- Population
- Cramp construction trades 1918-19; interwar and WWII-era crew (design complement 122)
- Limitations
- DANFS documents service history and specifications only - it says nothing about construction materials or asbestos content. Transcription mirror cited because the live NHHC page returns 404 and hazegray.org (the DANFS Online project's own archive) is unreachable. The OCR transcription garbles 'Holder' as 'Hollder' and '1945' as '104.5'; date-level decommissioning/recommissioning conflicts with NavSource/NavalCoverMuseum are carried in gaps.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-breckinridge-dd148-01
-
[2]NavSource Destroyer Photo Index, DD-148/AG-112 USS Breckinridge - as-built specifications, operational/building data, NARA and NHHC photo captions [other_primary]
- Locator
- navsource.org/archives/05/148.htm, 'As Built' specifications block and 'Operational and Building Data' block; photo caption for 19-N-15765 and 19-LCM entries
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Compiled building/operations record for this hull: laid down by Cramp, Philadelphia, 11 March 1918; launched 17 August 1918; commissioned 27 February 1919; decommissioned 30 June 1922; recommissioned 18 March 1930; decommissioned September 1936; recommissioned September 1939, Neutrality Patrol; reclassified AG-112 30 June 1945; decommissioned 30 November 1945; stricken 19 December 1945; sold 31 October 1946 and broken up for scrap. As-built machinery: 24,200 shp, Parsons-design turbines, 2 screws. The page also carries the namesake biography: Ens. Joseph Cabell Breckinridge (Jr.), born Fort Monroe, Va., 6 March 1872, USNA class of 1895, served in USS Texas, washed overboard from USS Cushing (TB-1) and drowned in Cuban waters 11 February 1898 - consistent with DANFS's 'Ensign Breckinridge' and the niece sponsor. Photo captions document hull-specific yard events: NARA 19-N-15765 (Cramp yard, 1 October 1918 - boilers on the dock awaiting installation in Breckinridge and sisters); NARA 19-LCM series (Norfolk Navy Yard, 3 November 1932 - Breckinridge and Blakeley moored, being prepared to resume active service in reconstituted Destroyer Squadron Two out of Rotating Reserve Destroyer Squadron 19).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1918-1946
- Population
- Cramp yard workers 1918; Norfolk Navy Yard workforce 1932 availability
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer-run photographic archive, not an official publication - its data lines derive from official records but are cited as a secondary compilation. The laid-down date (11 March 1918) does not appear in the DANFS extract and rests on NavSource plus derivative sources; the 18 March 1930 recommissioning conflicts with DANFS 'May 1930'. Complement 103 (NavSource) vs 122 (DANFS) conflict carried in gaps. Nothing in the page addresses materials or asbestos.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-breckinridge-dd148-02
-
[3]NHHC Online Library photo NH 63303 - USS Breckinridge (DD-148) off the Charleston Navy Yard, S.C., 24 October 1943 (official U.S. Navy photograph, NHHC collections) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- NHHC Online Library picture-data sheet for photo NH 63303 (ibiblio HyperWar mirror)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Official Navy photograph documents this hull off the Charleston Navy Yard, South Carolina, on 24 October 1943 - a documented presence at a navy yard during her WWII escort period, between her Caribbean Sea Frontier duty and the December 1943 Atlantic Fleet assignment.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1943
- Population
- Crew; any Charleston Navy Yard trades working the ship that day undocumented
- Limitations
- A dated photograph proves presence at the yard, not a documented overhaul scope or any work performed - the nature and duration of the Charleston availability is not described in the source. No materials content is documented.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-breckinridge-dd148-03
-
[4]Haney v. 3M Company, No. 1:12-cv-01396-MJG (D. Md.), Memorandum and Order granting Crane Co. summary judgment as to all direct, cross-, and third-party claims, ECF No. 956 (filed 2015-07-16) [court_record]
- Locator
- D. Md. No. 1:12-cv-01396, ECF No. 956, pp. 4-5 (recital of exposure allegation and service dates) and disposition (SJ for Crane Co. on all claims)
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Asbestos personal-injury docket in which 'USS Breckinridge' appears in indexed text - but NOT this hull. The opinion recites the plaintiffs' contention that decedent Charles Ambrose Haney 'installed and removed "hundreds and hundreds" of Crane Co. [Cranite] asbestos-containing sheet packing gaskets ... while serving aboard the USS Breckinridge from 1951 to 1955 as a machinist mate.' DD-148 was sold for scrap in October 1946; the only USS Breckinridge in service 1951-55 was the commissioned MSTS transport USS General J. C. Breckinridge (T-AP-176). The allegation therefore belongs to T-AP-176's record, not this hull's. Disposition: Crane Co.'s summary judgment granted on all claims 16 July 2015 - a merits-level defense outcome against that plaintiff, in any event alleging exposure on a different ship.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1951-1955 (alleged exposure); 2012-2015 (litigation)
- Population
- Charles Ambrose Haney (USN machinist mate, claimed service 1951-1955) - aboard T-AP-176, not this hull
- Limitations
- Name collision resolved by service dates (1951-55) - DD-148 did not exist after 1946. Even taken at face value the claim was a pleading-stage allegation decided adversely to plaintiffs on summary judgment; it never established asbestos presence aboard any Breckinridge. Cited here to prevent misattribution of 'USS Breckinridge' litigation to DD-148.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-breckinridge-dd148-04
-
[5]Clayton v. Air & Liquid Systems Corp., No. 1:13-cv-00847-RJA (W.D.N.Y.), Order granting motion to remand, ECF No. 72 (filed 2013-12-12) [court_record]
- Locator
- W.D.N.Y. No. 1:13-cv-00847, ECF No. 72, pp. 1-2 (removal basis, service dates) and order (remand granted)
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Asbestos personal-injury docket in which 'USS Breckinridge' appears in indexed text - but NOT this hull. The remand order recites that defendant Crane Co. removed on information that plaintiff Edward Clayton 'was exposed to asbestos while working with Crane Co. valves and pumps while serving in the United States Navy Reserves aboard the USS Rizzi from 1953 to 1957 and in the United States Marine Corps aboard the USS Breckinridge from 1957 to 1959.' DD-148 was scrapped by 1947; the only USS Breckinridge then in service was T-AP-176. The court granted remand to New York state court for lack of federal jurisdiction after finding Crane Co. produced insufficient evidence of exposure to its products.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1957-1959 (alleged exposure); 2013 (litigation)
- Population
- Edward Clayton (USNR 1953-57; USMC 1957-59) - aboard T-AP-176, not this hull
- Limitations
- Name collision resolved by service dates (1957-59) - DD-148 did not exist after 1946. Removal/remand posture only; exposure allegation was recited, not adjudicated, and in any event points to T-AP-176. Cited to prevent misattribution.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-breckinridge-dd148-05
-
[6]Board of Veterans' Appeals, Citation Nr. 0501510 (decision 2005-01-19, docket 04-08 980) [court_record]
- Locator
- BVA decision 0501510, REMAND section (service personnel record recital, duties, remand instructions)
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- VA administrative appellate decision naming 'U.S.S. Breckinridge' in an asbestos claim - but NOT this hull. Service personnel records confirmed the veteran served aboard 'the U.S.S. Breckinridge' from August 1947 to August 1951 with duties as 'engineering hand and boiler repairman'; his claim for squamous cell carcinoma of the vocal cord as due to asbestos exposure was remanded for development (never adjudicated on the merits). DD-148 was sold for scrap in October 1946; the vessel in this record is T-AP-176, then running commissioned MSTS transport service out of San Francisco.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1947-1951 (claimed exposure); 2005 (decision)
- Population
- Unnamed veteran (USN 1947-1951, engineering/boiler duties) - aboard T-AP-176, not this hull
- Limitations
- Name collision resolved by service dates (1947-51) - DD-148 did not exist after 1946. The decision is a remand only; it establishes nothing about asbestos aboard any Breckinridge. The veteran also held a 2000 settlement against asbestos manufacturers that the Board noted did not establish when exposure occurred. Cited to prevent misattribution.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-breckinridge-dd148-06
-
[7]Board of Veterans' Appeals, Citation Nr. 1528494 (decision 2015-07-02, docket 12-20 409) [court_record]
- Locator
- BVA decision 1528494, REMAND section (personnel-records recital and claimed-exposure testimony)
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- VA administrative appellate decision naming 'the USS Breckinridge' in an asbestos claim - but NOT this hull. Service personnel records showed the veteran (active duty March 1955-September 1958) was stationed on USS Iowa (BB-61) 'as well as the USS Breckinridge'; his own hearing testimony claimed exposure aboard Iowa only. DD-148 was scrapped in 1946; the 1955-58 Breckinridge was T-AP-176. Claim remanded for a VA examination; not adjudicated.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1955-1958 (service); 2015 (decision)
- Population
- Unnamed veteran (USN 1955-1958) - aboard T-AP-176, not this hull
- Limitations
- Name collision resolved by service dates (1955-58). Breckinridge appears only as a second vessel in the personnel records - the claimed asbestos exposure was aboard USS Iowa. Remand posture; no finding on asbestos aboard any vessel. Cited to prevent misattribution.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-breckinridge-dd148-07
-
[8]CourtListener API v4 sweep 2026-09-26: '"USS Breckinridge"' type=o -> 0 opinions; type=r -> 2 dockets (Haney 1:12-cv-01396 D. Md.; Clayton 1:13-cv-00847 W.D.N.Y.), both resolved to T-AP-176; '"DD-148" OR "DD 148"' type=o -> 7 hits, all name collisions (NY family-court anonymized-caption cases; an unrelated industrial-injury case); '"DD-148"' type=r -> 13 dockets, all exhibit/document-number collisions (e.g. 'Exhibit DD-148', DD Form 148), including two asbestos dockets (Gitto S.D.N.Y.; Nelson v. Crane D. Haw.) whose match is exhibit numbering, not the hull [court_record]
- Locator
- CourtListener search API v4 results (counts: 0 type=o; 2 type=r; 7 hull-number type=o collisions)
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Systematic CourtListener sweep located NO qualifying asbestos litigation naming this hull: zero opinion hits for the exact ship name; the only two dockets containing 'USS Breckinridge' are asbestos personal-injury cases (Haney, Clayton) whose service windows (1951-55, 1957-59) postdate this hull's 1946 scrapping and resolve to USS General J. C. Breckinridge (T-AP-176); all hull-number hits on both sides are non-ship collisions (anonymized family-court captions; 'Exhibit DD-148' / DD Form numbering). Combined with the two BVA name collisions, every asbestos-adjacent 'USS Breckinridge' legal record located points to the later transport, not DD-148.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 2026-09-26 (search date)
- Limitations
- CourtListener covers published opinions and PACER/RECAP dockets - it cannot exclude unindexed state filings, settled cases, or claims naming the hull that never reached a docketed document. Absence of docketed litigation is a finding about the indexed record, not proof none was ever filed.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-breckinridge-dd148-08
-
[9]DANFS spec block + NavSource as-built machinery line (24,200 shp Parsons-design turbines, 2 screws) + NARA photo 19-N-15765 (boilers on the dock at Cramp, 1 Oct 1918); era practice per GAO HRD-80-2 program documentation [other_primary]
- Locator
- DANFS spec block; NavSource as-built data; NARA 19-N-15765 caption; yard events per DANFS narrative + NH 63303 + 19-LCM caption
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/class inference only: this hull was built in 1918 with a Wickes-class four-boiler geared steam plant (NARA photo 19-N-15765 shows boilers being installed at Cramp), and WWI-era steam warships carried period-standard asbestos thermal insulation - boiler and steam-line lagging, turbine insulation, gaskets, packing, and fireproofing. Her documented wartime yard availabilities (Norfolk Navy Yard 1932; Charleston Navy Yard October 1943; Boston Navy Yard overhauls March 1944 and 10 February-31 March 1945; New York Navy Yard Annex Bayonne conversion June-July 1945) are the events during which any such material would have been installed, disturbed, or removed.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1918-1945
- Population
- Cramp construction trades 1918-19; navy-yard trades at documented availabilities; crew (design complement 122)
- Limitations
- INFERENCE, not a ship-specific finding: no hull-specific insulation schedule, survey, or abatement record was located. The boiler count is class-standard (four stacks/four boilers as built; secondary sources conflict on whether one boiler was landed in WWII escort conversion - carried in gaps). Yard periods are documented; any asbestos scope during them is not. Does not quantify material, establish crew exposure, or speak to legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-breckinridge-dd148-09
-
[10]NARA archival leads: RG 19 Bureau of Ships General Information Books (per-hull material specifications); RG 24 deck logs (DD-148 WWII-era logs); NARA still photos 19-N-15765 (Cramp yard, Oct 1918) and 19-LCM series (Norfolk Navy Yard, Nov 1932) already located via NavSource citations [other_primary]
- Locator
- catalog.archives.gov (search returned no digitized hull records; leads per NARA record-group structure)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads for any hull-level material specification: NARA RG 19 General Information Books hold per-vessel Bureau of Ships material data for hulls of this era, and RG 24 deck logs cover the ship's WWII periods; the NARA-credited construction and yard photos (19-N-15765, 19-LCM) confirm record groups holding this hull's files. A web-level catalog search for DD-148 returned no digitized records - retrieval would require an on-site or request-based pull.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Limitations
- Lead only - no NARA records for this hull were retrieved or reviewed; whether the GIB covers DD-148 is unverified. Nothing here evidences asbestos aboard the hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-breckinridge-dd148-10
-
[11]U.S. Navy Radio Call Sign Book (WWII), Section 17 - 'BRECKINRIDGE DD148 NERZ' (HyperWar/ibiblio transcription of the wartime Navy document) [other_primary]
- Locator
- HyperWar Call Signs section 17, alphabetical listing (BRECKINRIDGE DD148 NERZ)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- A wartime Navy document (radio call sign book) independently corroborates this hull's WWII commissioned service: 'BRECKINRIDGE - DD148 - NERZ.' Confirms the hull-number/name pairing in period records - useful corroboration that WWII-era 'Breckinridge' references mean DD-148, while post-1946 references mean T-AP-176.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- WWII
- Limitations
- Identity corroboration only; says nothing about materials or asbestos.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-breckinridge-dd148-11
-
[12]DANFS, Holder I (DE-401) - verbatim HyperWar/ibiblio transcription (independent corroboration of the April 1944 convoy action) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS DE-401 entry (ibiblio HyperWar), service narrative paragraphs 1-2; UGS-37 identification per ussholder.com unit history and historyofwar.org
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The DANFS entry for USS Holder (DE-401) independently documents the convoy action in which this hull participated: Holder 'departed 24 March escorting a convoy bound for Mediterranean ports' - the same 24 March 1944 TF 6 departure DANFS records for Breckinridge - was trailed by German aircraft 10-11 April, and was torpedoed amidships just before midnight 11 April off the Algerian coast, matching the 'Hollder' (Holder) reference in Breckinridge's own narrative. Secondary accounts (the USS Holder unit history, historyofwar.org) identify the convoy as UGS-37 and list the escort's DES DIV 66 as Breckinridge, Barney (DD-149), Blakeley (DD-150), and Biddle (DD-151); Breckinridge's single WWII battle star corresponds to this action.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1944-03-24 to 1944-04-12
- Population
- WWII crew
- Limitations
- Corroborates the shared convoy event only. DANFS does not name the convoy designation - 'UGS-37' rests on secondary accounts - and Breckinridge is not named in Holder's entry; the pairing is inferred from identical departure dates and the Holder reference in Breckinridge's narrative. No materials or asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-breckinridge-dd148-12