Evidence
8 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-8).
-
[1]NHHC DANFS, Brownson I (DD-518) - revised entry, pub. 13 Sep 2019 (author J.B. Blanton, dated 15 Aug 2019); live page 404 - cited via Wayback capture 2024-06-03 [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry 'Brownson I (DD-518)' - stat block + full service narrative; Wayback capture 20240603200245 of https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/b/brownson-i.html
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for this hull: laid down 15 February 1942 at Staten Island, N.Y., by Bethlehem Steel Co.; launched 24 September 1942, sponsored by Mrs. Cleland S. Baxter, granddaughter of Rear Adm. Brownson; commissioned 3 February 1943 at the New York Navy Yard, Brooklyn, Lt. Cmdr. Joseph B. Maher in command; fitted out there. Struck by the steamship Pearson while loading ammunition at Gravesend Bay 14 February 1943 (superficial damage only); shakedown off Cuba concluded 17 March; post-shakedown availability at the New York Navy Yard 20 March; Atlantic convoy escort and ASW (UGF-8/GUF-8 Casablanca runs April-May 1943); Panama Canal transit 18 June 1943; Aleutians operations July-November including screening Santa Fe's Kiska bombardment 15 August 1943, transporting an Assistant Secretary of War party to a conference aboard Pennsylvania off Kiska 18-19 August, and TF 94 patrols toward the Komandorski Islands; Pearl Harbor Dry Dock No. 3 availability 2-8 November 1943; joined Seventh Fleet at Milne Bay 21 December 1943. On 26 December 1943, while escorting fleet tug Sonoma (AT-12) and seven tank landing ships to Borgen Bay in support of the Cape Gloucester landings (Operation Backhander), hit at approximately 1442 by two bombs from a Japanese Aichi D3A (Val) dive bomber; abandon ship ordered 1450; sank 1459; 108 of her crew lost; survivors rescued by Daly (DD-519) and Lamson (DD-367). Stricken from the Naval Vessel Register 22 January 1944. One battle star for WWII service. Stat block: displacement 2,050; length 376'5"; beam 39'7"; draft 17'9"; speed 35.5 knots; complement 329; armament 5 5-inch, 4 40-millimeter, 5 20-millimeter, 10 21-inch torpedo tubes, 6 depth charge projectors, 2 depth charge tracks; class Fletcher. Namesake: Rear Adm. Willard Herbert Brownson (1845-1935), former Superintendent of the Naval Academy, CinC Asiatic Fleet, and Chief of the Bureau of Navigation.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1942-1944
- Population
- Bethlehem Steel Staten Island construction trades 1942-43; wartime crew (DANFS complement 329; 108 lost 26 Dec 1943)
- Limitations
- DANFS documents identity, service history, and specifications - not materials or asbestos content. Live NHHC page returns 404 (standing link-rot across the sprint); cited via the 2024-06-03 Wayback capture of the canonical URL. The older DANFS Vol. I transcription (hazegray mirror) prints complement '829' - an OCR artifact of the printed '329' carried in the modern NHHC entry.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-brownson-dd518-01
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[2]Bureau of Ships, Navy Department, War Damage Report No. 51: 'Destroyer Report - Gunfire, Bomb and Kamikaze Damage Including Losses in Action, 17 October 1941 to 15 August 1945' (25 January 1947), Section IX (U.S.S. BROWNSON (DD518), Loss in Action, Off Cape Gloucester, 26 December 1943), pp. 80-83 (HyperWar/NHC transcription) [other_primary]
- Locator
- War Damage Report No. 51, Section IX, pp. 80-83 + Plate IX; summary Tables I-II (BROWNSON, DD518, Cape Gloucester, 12/26/43); see also Summary of War Damage PDF (ibiblio) one-line entry
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Official BuShips loss-in-action case history for this hull: two bomb hits (estimated one 250 kg SAP or GP and one 63 kg GP, from Aichi D3A 'Val' dive bombers) struck just abaft the after stack slightly to starboard of centerline, apparently detonating in the uptakes of the after stack and the tube nest of No. 3 boiler. The midships deckhouse and all superstructure between the galley and No. 3 upper handling room were obliterated; main deck plating frames 86-135, the after stack, waist 40mm mounts, after torpedo mount, and radar antennas were carried away; No. 3 boiler demolished and the top of No. 4 blown off; no survivors from either engineroom or the after fireroom; the emergency diesel generator forward of the forward fireroom ran until the ship sank. BuShips concluded the loss resulted from structural failure following probable fragment-initiated detonation of one or more of the ship's own TNT-loaded torpedo warheads - the only confirmed war-era case of that failure mode; a post-sinking underwater explosion (presumably depth charges) killed two swimmers. Report sources: C.O. BROWNSON ltr. A15/DD518 Serial 008 of 4 January 1944 (Action Report); A9/DD518 Serial 009 of 6 January 1944 (War Damage Report); COMDESRON 24 ltr A16-3 Serial 006 of 29 December 1943; C.O. SHAW ltr DD373/A16 Serial 003 of 9 January 1944.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 26 December 1943 (event); report published 25 January 1947
- Population
- Wartime crew at time of loss (108 killed; survivors rescued by Daly DD-519 and Lamson DD-367)
- Limitations
- Damage-control and engineering analysis - contains no asbestos, insulation, or materials information. Its value to this record is establishing the hull's total loss on 26 December 1943 (ending the exposure footprint - no postwar service, abatement, transfer, or scrapping phase) and identifying the underlying NARA-held CO reports. Transcription note: the report's own summary text misprints the hull number once as 'DD513' (section 2-60) while the case section and tables correctly read DD518.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-brownson-dd518-02
-
[3]NavSource Naval History, Destroyer Photo Index DD-518 USS BROWNSON (compiled archive; live host unresolved 2026-09-27 - cited via Wayback capture 2024-05-27) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource DD-518 page - spec block, Operational and Building Data, commanding-officer list, photo caption credits (NARA photo numbers)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Corroborating compilation and photographic index for this hull: lifecycle block confirms laid down 15 February 1942 by Bethlehem Steel, Staten Island; launched 24 September 1942; commissioned 3 February 1943; stricken 22 January 1944 (matching NHHC); 'Sunk by Japanese Aircraft off Cape Gloucester, New Guinea December 26 1943. 108 of her crew were lost with the ship and remain on duty.' Spec block: 2,924 tons full, 376'5" x 39'7" x 13'9", 5 x 5"/38, 4 x 40mm, 4 x 20mm, 10 x 21" TT, 60,000 shp GE geared turbines, 2 screws, 38 knots, crew 273. Commanding officer: LCDR Joseph Benedict Maher, 3 Feb 1943 - 26 Dec 1943 (later RADM). Indexes the official photo record: NARA 80-G-240245 and 80-G-240246 (sinking/explosion film clips, 26 Dec 1943), 19-N-44518 (New York Navy Yard, 27 Apr 1943), NH 107241 (underway, early 1943), Australian War Memorial 302518, and the BuShips damage diagram from War Damage Report No. 51. Companion Destroyer History Foundation caption (edited from NARA photo 19-N-40834) identifies DD-518 as 'the lowest-numbered low-bridge Fletcher'; the Foundation's DesRon 24 history records that DesDiv 47 ships Bache (DD-470), Beale (DD-471), Brownson (DD-518) and Daly (DD-519) were all built by Bethlehem Steel, Staten Island.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1942-1944; compilation ongoing
- Population
- Wartime crew
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer-compiled secondary archive drawing on NVR/DANFS-type data and donated photo identifications, not an official record; carried as corroboration plus an index to the NARA/NHHC/AWM primary photo holdings. Complement '273' vs the NHHC stat block '329' is carried in gaps. No asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-brownson-dd518-03
-
[4]Era/yard inference grounded on the documented class plant (Fletcher class: 4 Babcock & Wilcox boilers, GE geared turbines, 60,000 shp - War Damage Report No. 51 class block for this hull) + Atlas shipyard dataset check for the builder yard [other_primary]
- Locator
- WDR No. 51 Section IX class block (FLETCHER DD445 class, commissioned Feb 1943); shipyards.json 37-yard index (Bethlehem Staten Island absent); GAO HRD-80-2
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/class inference: a Fletcher-class destroyer built February 1942 - February 1943 with a four-boiler, 60,000-shp geared-steam-turbine plant would have carried period-standard asbestos insulation - boiler and steam-line lagging, turbine lagging, gaskets, packing, fireproofing, and deck coverings - the fit documented at class/era level for this machinery type. The Navy's documented asbestos-use era covers this hull's entire construction and service window (substitution not begun until the early 1970s per GAO HRD-80-2). The builder, Bethlehem Steel's Staten Island (Mariners Harbor/Port Richmond) yard, is NOT an entry in the Atlas shipyards.json dataset (the 'bethlehem-shipbuilding' record is the Quincy/Fore River yard, a different facility), so yard-level asbestos documentation could not be cross-linked for this hull.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1942-1943
- Population
- Bethlehem Staten Island construction trades 1942-43; crew Feb-Dec 1943
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - NOT a hull-specific finding. No insulation schedule, BuShips material specification, or hull-specific record located for DD-518; nothing here establishes what was installed aboard, any quantity, or any individual's exposure. WDR 51 documents the machinery plant and loss, not insulation content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-brownson-dd518-04
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[5]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (Oct 18, 1979) [gao]
- Locator
- GAO product page HRD-80-2 (description)
- 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 - placing this hull's construction (1942-43) and entire service life (1943) squarely inside the documented asbestos-use era.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1979
- Population
- Navy shipyard workers; asbestos program review
- Limitations
- Program-level documentation; supports era context only, not any fact specific to this hull. Full report text not retrieved (gao.gov blocks automated fetch, HTTP 403 - standing issue since Batch-01); content via product-page description.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-brownson-dd518-05
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[6]CourtListener API v4 authenticated searches (opinion type=o and RECAP/docket type=r indexes) [court_record]
- Locator
- cl-auth-search.py authenticated queries: "USS Brownson" type=o count=0; "USS Brownson" type=r count=0; "DD-518" type=o count=0; "DD-518" type=r count=0
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Complete CourtListener sweep for this hull: 'USS Brownson' returned 0 opinions and 0 dockets; 'DD-518' returned 0 opinions and 0 dockets (authenticated API v4, 2026-09-27, all four queries completed). Web-surface check located one official adjudication naming 'USS Brownson' in an asbestos claim - VA Board of Veterans' Appeals decision no. 1107042 (22 Feb 2011) - which resolves by service window (veteran served May 1961 - April 1964) to the second USS Brownson (DD-868, Gearing class, in commission 1945-1976); DD-518 sank 26 December 1943. No qualifying asbestos litigation naming this hull located in indexed sources.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 2026-09-27
- Limitations
- CourtListener indexes published opinions and RECAP dockets only; state-court and non-RECAP records are not fully indexed, and asbestos plaintiff complaints often list vessels only in unindexed attachments. A zero result proves nothing was located in the indexed corpus - not that no claim was ever filed. Name-collision risk runs toward DD-868 for any postwar exposure window.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-brownson-dd518-06
-
[7]U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Board of Veterans' Appeals decision no. 1107042 (Docket No. 09-37 497, decided 22 February 2011; Nashville RO; VLJ L.B. Cryan) - REMAND [other_primary]
- Locator
- BVA decision 1107042, REMAND paragraphs 1-3 (service dates May 1961 - April 1964; 'USS Brownson' recitals)
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Name-collision documentation: the only official adjudication located naming 'USS Brownson' in an asbestos claim is this BVA remand, in which the veteran 'asserts that he incurred a lung disorder as a result of in-service asbestos exposure aboard the USS Brownson' and the Board conceded exposure 'aboard the USS Brownson, a World War II era destroyer, during service in the 1960s.' The veteran's service window was May 1961 - April 1964, when the only commissioned USS Brownson was DD-868 (Gearing-class, in commission 17 November 1945 - 30 September 1976). DD-518 sank in action 26 December 1943 - eleven months of total service - and cannot be the vessel referenced. Carried to fix attribution, not as evidence for this hull.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1961-1964 (service); 2009-2011 (claim)
- Population
- One USN veteran (boilerman), service 1961-1964 - aboard DD-868, not this hull
- Limitations
- Administrative benefits remand - an allegation conceded for development, not an adjudicated exposure finding even as to DD-868. Documents only that 'USS Brownson' asbestos references in postwar service windows resolve to DD-868, and that ship-name-only references are ambiguous between the two hulls.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-brownson-dd518-07
-
[8]Batch-3496 search ledger (this record): NHHC DANFS (Wayback capture of live page); hazegray DANFS Vol. I transcription (Wayback); BuShips War Damage Report No. 51 (HyperWar/NHC); NavSource DD-518 index (Wayback); Atlas shipyards.json; GAO HRD-80-2; CourtListener API v4; VA BVA decisions search; wreck-survey surface check [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-brownson-dd518-01 through sl-uss-brownson-dd518-11
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located for DD-518: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, insulation schedule, or qualifying litigation names this hull in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). The hull sank in action 26 December 1943 with 108 lives lost - a war grave with no museum, reserve-fleet, transfer, or scrapping phase in which modern asbestos documentation typically originates - and no public wreck survey was located. Competitor/marketing pages listing DD-518 on 'asbestos ships' lists exist (asbestos-ships.com, navyshipexposure.com class-pattern manifest) but are excluded per batch policy; the latter itself states that ship-specific BuShips documentation for DD-518 'has not yet been published' and offers only class-pattern content.
- 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 - era-consistent applications are documented at class/era level (ev-04, ev-05), and NARA RG 19 BuShips records (CO action report and war damage report cited by WDR 51; the class's General Information Books) remain unretrieved archival leads. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-brownson-dd518-08