Evidence
7 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-7).
-
[1]research packet crew-fh-packet.md (3 sources cited) [nhhc_danfs]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED (weaker provenance)
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-brown-dd546-pkt-crew-fh-packet-md
-
[2]DANFS, 'Brown' (DD-546) - verbatim transcription re-hosted by Destroyer History Foundation (sourced on-page to Naval History & Heritage Command / DANFS) + Destroyer History Foundation USS Brown ship page ('the third Fletcher-class destroyer delivered by Bethlehem San Pedro... the 83rd Fletcher placed in commission'; DesDiv 92/DesRon 46; 13 WWII + 5 Korean service stars table) + hazegray.org DANFS mirror (dd546txt) indexed but not directly fetchable; live NHHC pages return 404 on every URL pattern tested [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry 'Brown' (DD-546) - destroyerhistory.org/fletcherclass/index.asp?pid=54605 (DANFS tab): spec block + full service narrative incl. yard periods, transfer, stricken; ship page /fletcherclass/ussbrown/ (construction ranking, DesDiv 92 formation); service-stars table index.asp?r=54600&pid=54611; hazegray.org/danfs/destroy/dd546txt.htm (indexed transcription)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for this hull: second ship named for George Brown (seaman/quartermaster of the Intrepid raid that burned Philadelphia, Tripoli, 16 Feb 1804); built by Bethlehem Steel Co., San Pedro Plant, Terminal Island, Calif.; laid down 27 June 1942; launched 21 February 1943, sponsored by Mrs. Claude O. Kell; commissioned 10 July 1943, Lt. Comdr. Thomas H. Copeman; spec block as printed: dp. 2,060; l. 376'5"; b. 39'7"; dr. 17'9"; s. 35.2 k.; cpl. 329; cl. Fletcher (armament line garbled in transcription). WWII Pacific service with DesDiv 92/DesRon 46 and the fast carriers: Gilberts (Makin/Tarawa), 28 Nov 1943 torpedo hit that failed to arm; Nauru; Kavieng-Rabaul; Marshalls; Truk 16-17 Feb 1944; Hollandia; Satawan/Ponape; Marcus/Wake; Saipan/Guam and Battle of the Philippine Sea (19-20 Jun 1944, pilot rescues); Bonins; Palaus/Morotai; Formosa/Okinawa/Luzon; Leyte and the Battle off Cape Engaño 25 Oct 1944; Intrepid rescue 25 Nov; Typhoon Cobra 17-18 Dec - on 21 Dec rescued 13 men of Hull (DD-350) and the only 6 survivors of Monaghan (DD-354); Puget Sound Naval Shipyard overhaul, arrived 12 Jan 1945, ready 1 Mar; Okinawa radar picket (10 Apr-16 May, 16-20 Jun 1945) - Navy Unit Commendation; Apra Harbor repairs; East China Sea minesweep cover to 25 Aug; occupation mail courier; San Diego 17 Nov 1945; decommissioned 1 Aug 1946 (San Diego Group, Pacific Reserve Fleet). Recommissioned at Long Beach 27 Oct 1950 (Comdr. Emerson H. Dimpfel), DesDiv 132; Korea from 7 Mar 1951: TF 77 screen/plane guard, Wonsan siege bombardment, ROK fire support; first tour ended 24 Sep 1951; 'returned to Long Beach in October for a six-month yard period'; second Korean tour reporting to the 'Bombline' 29 July 1952 (DANFS prints '1951' - internal misprint, context is 1952); Eighth Army/Fifth ROK fire support, Nan-Do defense, Hungnam/Chaho/Songjin gun strikes, 37 Korean refugees taken aboard and transferred to HMS Charity; Taiwan Strait patrol from Kao-Hsiung 27 Oct 1952; California Jan 1953; DesDiv 52; Far East 23 Jul 1953; San Diego 20 Nov 1953, then 'overhaul in the San Francisco Naval Shipyard'; Pearl Harbor ASW Jun 1954; Seventh Fleet cruise to 19 Dec 1954; Far East cruise 2 Aug 1955-5 Feb 1956; Far East cruise 12 Sep 1956-10 Mar 1957; school-ship duty; ninth Far East cruise 9 Nov 1957-14 May 1958; 'overhaul in the Mare Island Naval Shipyard (23 July-23 October 1958)'; 1959 Seventh Fleet incl. exercise Sea Turtle; sonar-school and hunter-killer duty (Raton SSR-270; Bennington CVS-20); departed San Diego 22 Jan 1962 for 'inactivation overhaul in the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard,' decommissioned there 9 Feb 1962 (with San Pedro sister Bradford, DD-545); transferred to the Government of Greece 27 September 1962 under the Military Assistance Program (both destroyers same day, per the destroyerhistory ship page); 'struck from the Navy list on 1 September 1975'; 'awarded 15 [sic] battle stars for her World War II service' (count conflict carried in gaps).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1942-1975
- Population
- Bethlehem San Pedro construction trades 1942-43; USN crew 1943-46 and 1950-62 (design complement 273-329); navy-yard overhaul/inactivation workforces (Puget Sound 1945, 1962; San Francisco NSY 1953-54; Mare Island 1958; Long Beach 1951-52); Hellenic Navy crew 1962-81
- Limitations
- DANFS documents service history, yard periods, and disposition - not materials or asbestos content. Live NHHC pages return 404 on every pattern tried (b/brown.html, b/brown-ii.html, b/brown-dd-546.html, danfs index b.html); verbatim transcription cited via destroyerhistory.org, which attributes the text to NHHC/DANFS. Internal misprints documented: '29 July 1951' for the second Korean tour start is impossible (first tour ended 24 Sep 1951 and a six-month yard period followed - context supports 1952); '15 [sic]' WWII battle stars vs the Destroyer History Foundation campaign table itemizing 13 WWII + 5 Korean stars; the hazegray transcription misprints the launch year as '1948' (1943 confirmed by destroyerhistory, NavSource, and the Fletcher-class profile). Spec-block armament line reads '6 6-inch' - a print artifact; NavSource's as-built line (5 x 5"/38) is the consistent figure.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-brown-dd546-01
-
[3]NavSource Naval History, Destroyer Photo Index DD-546 USS Brown (via Wayback capture 2024-05-24; live fetch failed) [other_primary]
- Locator
- navsource.org/archives/05/546.htm - 'CLASS - FLETCHER' data block and 'Operational and Building Data' lines; Wayback capture 20240524154821
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource per-hull building/operational data: class Fletcher as built; displacement 2,924 tons (full); dimensions 376'5"(oa) x 39'7" x 13'9" (max); armament 5 x 5"/38AA, 6 x 40mm, 10/11 x 20mm AA, 10 x 21" tt (2x5); machinery 60,000 SHP, Allis-Chalmers turbines, 2 screws; speed 38 knots; range 6,500 NM at 15 knots; crew 273; flag hoist/radio call sign NBKJ. Dates: laid down 27 June 1942 (Bethlehem Steel, San Pedro); launched 21 Feb 1943; commissioned 10 Jul 1943; decommissioned 1 Aug 1946; recommissioned 27 Oct 1950; decommissioned 9 Feb 1962; stricken 1 Sep 1975; 'To Greece September 27 1962, renamed Navarino (D-63). Decommissioned October 31 1981. Fate: Stricken and scrapped in 1981.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1942-1981
- Population
- Crew complement data; hull custodial history
- Limitations
- NavSource is the standard photographic-archive reference but a secondary compilation, not a primary document; no asbestos or materials content. Per-hull machinery line (Allis-Chalmers turbines, 38 kt) and crew 273 differ from class-standard figures (GE turbines; cpl 329 in the DANFS spec block) - conflicts carried in gaps. Greek-phase dates agree with the Hellenic Navy official page (ev-03).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-brown-dd546-02
-
[4]Hellenic Navy official fleet page, HS NAVARINON (F-461) - ship-name history paragraph [other_primary]
- Locator
- hellenicnavy.gr/en/fleet/frigates/hs-navarinon-f-461 - 'second ship (D-63)... ex. U.S.S. Brown (DD 546)' paragraph
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Official Hellenic Navy record corroborating this hull's post-USN custody: the name honors the allied victory at the Battle of Navarino (20 October 1827); 'The second ship (D-63) with the same name was granted by the U.S.N. She was a Destroyer type «Fletcher», ex. U.S.S. Brown (DD 546), built in USA in 1942. She was commissioned on September 27th 1962 in Seattle and remained in the Hellenic Naval Force until decommissioned on October the 31st, 1981.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1962-1981
- Population
- Hellenic Navy crew 1962-1981
- Limitations
- Confirms the transfer commissioning (Seattle, 27 Sep 1962, consistent with the Puget Sound inactivation) and the 1981 Hellenic decommissioning date; contains no material-condition, refit, or scrapping detail - nothing about asbestos. The page is the name-history section of the current F-461's fleet page, the authoritative operator source for the D-63 custody phase.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-brown-dd546-03
-
[5]NavSource DD-546 machinery line + DANFS yard-period narrative + Atlas shipyard dataset records (puget-sound-naval-shipyard, hunters-point-naval-shipyard, mare-island-naval-shipyard, long-beach-naval-shipyard) + Fletcher-class class profile (fletcher-class.class.json, batch class-c) + GAO HRD-80-2 (Navy asbestos substitution not begun until early 1970s) [other_primary]
- Locator
- navsource.org/archives/05/546.htm machinery line; DANFS yard-period sentences (1945, 1953, 1958, 1962 overhauls; Oct 1951 Long Beach yard period); shipyards.json yard records; fletcher-class.class.json propulsion/notes; gao.gov/products/hrd-80-2
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/yard inference: a Fletcher-class destroyer built 1942-43 with the class four-boiler, 60,000-shp geared-turbine steam plant (per-hull machinery line: Allis-Chalmers turbines, 2 screws) would have carried period-standard asbestos insulation - boiler and steam-line lagging, gaskets, packing, block insulation, fireproofing, and deck coverings - squarely inside the Navy's documented peak asbestos-use era (GAO HRD-80-2: substitution not begun until the early 1970s, after this hull had already been transferred). Documented yard periods on this hull's own DANFS record put her inside Atlas-listed asbestos-era yards: Puget Sound Naval Shipyard (12 Jan-1 Mar 1945 overhaul; 22 Jan-9 Feb 1962 inactivation overhaul and decommissioning), San Francisco Naval Shipyard (Nov 1953 overhaul - the Hunter's Point facility), Mare Island Naval Shipyard (23 Jul-23 Oct 1958 overhaul), and a six-month 'yard period' at Long Beach from Oct 1951 (yard not named verbatim - identification as Long Beach Naval Shipyard inferred). The builder, Bethlehem Steel San Pedro (Terminal Island), is not an Atlas shipyards.json entry - carried in gaps.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1942-1962
- Population
- Bethlehem San Pedro construction trades 1942-43; navy-yard overhaul workforces 1945-1962; crew 1943-1962
- Limitations
- Class/era and builder-yard inference only - NOT a ship-specific finding; nothing here establishes that any particular material aboard this hull contained asbestos, and no 'typical of the class' claim is asserted as installed on DD-546. Yard-level findings are yard findings, not hull findings. The 1951-52 Long Beach yard is not named in DANFS; the Long Beach Naval Shipyard identification is an inference from the named port. NARA GIB/S39 retrieval not performed.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-brown-dd546-04
-
[6]NARA, 'Researching Asbestos aboard US Naval Vessel up through 1961' (verified live 2026-09-27): RG19 Bureau of Ships correspondence filed by hull designation ('DD546') and class code ('DD445 Class' for Fletcher), General Information Books (Entry P 9), ship engineering drawings filed by hull number including possible 'S39' insulation-and-lagging sheets; 'Logbooks of U.S. Navy Ships and Stations, 1941-1978' series spans this hull's entire commissioned life [other_primary]
- Locator
- archives.gov/research/military/navy/guided-topics/asbestos - RG19 Entries P 29/A1 1266, P 9 GIBs, Navy Filing Manual hull-code discussion; catalog.archives.gov searches for DD-546 file units returned no locatable record
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA publishes a research guide naming the exact record series that could establish hull-level asbestos documentation for this hull: RG19 BuShips general/confidential correspondence 1940-1961 filed by ship designation (this hull: 'DD546'; class: 'DD445 Class'), General Information Books (Entry P 9), and ship engineering drawings by hull number that can include 'S39' insulation-and-lagging sheets; WWII-and-later deck logs ('Logbooks of U.S. Navy Ships and Stations, 1941-1978') cover 1943-1962 for this hull. No DD-546-specific file unit (hull plans, GIB, or deck-log scan set) was located in the NARA catalog searches made - the series route is the lead, not a located record.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1940-1961 records series
- Limitations
- Archival leads only - a record-series route, not proof that any DD-546 GIB, S39 sheet, work package, or deck log survives or names asbestos. NARA itself cautions deck logs do not directly establish asbestos aboard. No asbestos statement is asserted from these holdings.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-brown-dd546-05
-
[7]Batch-3519 search ledger (this record): NHHC DANFS live site + destroyerhistory/hazegray transcriptions; NavSource (Wayback); Hellenic Navy official fleet page; Naval Vessel Register; NARA asbestos-research guide and catalog; CourtListener API v4 opinion and RECAP sweeps; web sweep for asbestos/abatement/survey/hazmat records naming the hull [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-brown-dd546-01 through sl-uss-brown-dd546-13
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or docketed asbestos case naming USS Brown or DD-546 as an exposure site was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). The hull left U.S. custody in September 1962 and was scrapped in Greece in 1981 - no preserved-hull, museum-disclosure, or domestic-scrapping record surface exists. Completed CourtListener sweeps: 'USS Brown' opinions returned exactly 1 hit - Brown v. United States Steel Corp., 698 F. Supp. 1375 (N.D. Ill. 1988), a Title VII employment-discrimination case in which 'USS' abbreviates United States Steel throughout; full text verified (opinion 2356678) - zero asbestos/vessel references, a pure name collision. 'DD-546' opinions returned 1 hit - Computer Products International, Inc. v. United States (U.S. Court of Claims, 29 May 1992), in which 'DD 546' is DD Form 546, a DoD inventory/schedule form in a contract-termination settlement proposal; full text verified (opinion 6827411) - a form-number collision, not the hull. 'USS Brown' RECAP docket sweep returned 0 dockets. 'DD-546' RECAP docket sweep returned 2 dockets, both non-qualifying name collisions - Williams v. Big Picture Loans, LLC 3:17-cv-00461 (E.D. Va., RICO payday-loan case) and Kerwin v. McConnell 1:05-cv-00093 (W.D. Pa., prisoner civil-rights case); 'DD-546' appears as a docket-text string only. Name-collision check: 'Brown' is a ubiquitous surname in case captions; a first USS Brown (SP-1050, WWI minesweeping tug, stricken 1920) shares the name; and 'USS' collides with the standard citation abbreviation for U.S. Steel - all collision types observed were resolved. Law-firm marketing lists (shepardlawfirm.com, mesotheliomasymptoms.com, mesotheliomahelp.org) name 'USS Brown (DD-546)' generically without primary support - excluded source class.
- 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 - WWII-era steam-ship construction commonly used asbestos, but for this hull that remains class/era inference, not ship-proven. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility. CourtListener coverage: exact-phrase 'USS Brown' (opinions + RECAP dockets) and 'DD-546' (opinions + RECAP dockets); sweeps completed across multiple fleet-pacing stand-downs on 2026-09-27.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-brown-dd546-06