Evidence
8 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-8).
-
[1]research packet jo-packet.md (2 sources cited) [nhhc_danfs]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-buck-dd420-pkt-jo-packet-md
-
[2]DANFS, Buck II (DD-420) - updated NHHC entry (published 2015-06-29, captured 2015-09-07); verbatim older transcription at https://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/ships/dafs/DD/dd420.html; live NHHC page serves 404 [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS Buck II (DD-420) entry, specifications block + service narrative
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for this hull (spec block: dp. 1570; l. 348'3"; b. 36'1"; dr. 17'4"; s. 37 k.; cpl. 257; a. 4 5", 8 21" tt.; cl. Sims): launched 22 May 1939 by Philadelphia Navy Yard, sponsored by Mrs. Julius C. Townsend, commissioned 15 May 1940 (Lt. Cmdr. Horace C. Robison). Atlantic Fleet, then Pacific Fleet Feb-Jun 1941; TF 19 convoy carrying First Marine Brigade (Provisional) to Reykjavik 1-7 Jul 1941; convoy escort US-Iceland and to Newfoundland, Northern Ireland, North Africa, Caribbean. Collision with British transport Awatea in fog off Nova Scotia 22 Aug 1942 - keel broken, fantail cut two-thirds through, seven killed; Ingraham (DD-444) mortally damaged colliding with oiler Chemung (AO-30) while closing to assist; towed by Chemung then Cherokee (AT-66); Boston repairs 26 Aug-Nov 1942; Atlantic escort to Jun 1943; Mediterranean patrol out of Tunisian/Algerian ports; Western Naval Task Force, Operation Husky Sicily 10 Jul 1943; sank Italian submarine Argento 3 Aug 1943 (36deg52'N, 12deg08'E), 45 of 49 captured; returned for Operation Avalanche (Salerno). Ambushed just after midnight 9 Oct 1943 by U-616, hit forward starboard by at least one and possibly two torpedoes, sank within four minutes; underwater depth-charge explosion killed and wounded sailors in the water; 97 survivors rescued by Gleaves (DD-423) and British LCT-170. Three battle stars.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1938-1943
- Population
- Philadelphia Navy Yard construction trades 1938-40; wartime crew (design complement 257)
- Limitations
- DANFS documents service history and specifications, not materials or asbestos content; the entry does not state a laid-down date or a stricken date. The updated NHHC text contains internal errors - Operation 'Avalance' [sic] is described as 'the landings at Anzio' (Avalanche was the 9 Sep 1943 Salerno landings; Anzio was Operation Shingle, Jan 1944) and the transport is spelled 'Atwatea'; the older transcription misprints the sinking year as 1948. Live NHHC page returns 404; Wayback capture and verbatim HyperWar/ibiblio transcription cited.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-buck-dd420-01
-
[3]NavSource Naval History, Destroyer Photo Index DD-420 USS Buck (operational and building data; NARA photographs 19-N-23206, 19-N-29233, 19-N-36643) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource DD-420 page: 'Operational and Building Data' block + photo captions 19-N-29233 and 19-N-36643
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource building and operational data for this hull: laid down by Philadelphia Navy Yard 6 April 1938 (the date DANFS omits); launched 22 May 1939; commissioned 15 May 1940; machinery 52,000 shp, Westinghouse geared turbines, 2 screws; sunk by U-616 off Salerno 9 October 1943. NARA photographs hosted place the ship 'off the Boston Navy Yard, Massachusetts' 19 April 1942 and 24 November 1942 (19-N-29233, 19-N-36643) - the latter inside the DANFS-documented Boston repair period after the August 1942 collision.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1938-1943
- Population
- Philadelphia Navy Yard construction trades 1938-40; Boston Navy Yard repair trades Aug-Nov 1942; wartime crew
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer-run archival compilation, not an official record; its building dates and machinery figures are consistent with DANFS and uboat.net, and its photograph captions cite National Archives photo numbers (the underlying primary records). Repair-yard attribution to the Boston Navy Yard is photographic inference - no repair contract or work order located. NavSource's '150 of her crew were lost' conflicts with DANFS/DPAA (97 survivors) and uboat.net (168 lost/94 survived); carried in gaps.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-buck-dd420-02
-
[4]uboat.net, Allied Warships entry 'USS Buck (DD 420)' and U-boat attack record (U-616, Oblt. Siegfried Koitschka) [other_primary]
- Locator
- uboat.net warship entry + linked U-boat attack report for USS Buck
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Specialist loss record for this hull: at 00.40 on 9 October 1943, on patrol off Salerno, Buck was hit in the bow by a Gnat acoustic torpedo fired by U-616 (Koitschka), the forward magazine exploded, and she sank within four minutes in position 39deg57'N, 14deg28'E; 168 were killed including commanding officer Lt. Cdr. Millard J. Klein, and 94 survivors were picked up by USS Gleaves (DD-423), USS Plunkett (DD-431), HMS Delhi, and HMS LCT-170.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1943-10-09
- Population
- Crew at loss (~262 aboard per this source); CO Lt. Cdr. Millard J. Klein killed
- Limitations
- uboat.net is a specialist reference compilation cross-checking Allied and German records, not a primary document; NHHC DANFS independently names U-616, so the attacker attribution is corroborated. Its casualty split (168 killed / 94 survivors of ~262 aboard) and rescue-ship list (adds Plunkett and Delhi) differ from DANFS/DPAA (97 survivors; Gleaves and LCT-170) - conflict carried in gaps. Contains no materials or asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-buck-dd420-03
-
[5]DPAA service-member profile, RM3 Richard N. Donovan, USNR (World War II, USS Buck DD-420) - dpaa.mil official casualty accounting [other_primary]
- Locator
- DPAA service-member profile narrative + associated service members list
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Official DoD casualty-accounting corroboration of the loss: the DPAA profile for Radioman Third Class Richard N. Donovan states the USS Buck (DD-420) was ambushed by a German submarine off Salerno while protecting the delivery of reinforcements and supplies to southern Italy; struck by at least one torpedo she quickly flooded and sank; an underwater explosion injured and killed crew members in the water; ninety-seven survivors were rescued the following morning. Donovan is unaccounted-for, assessed Non-recoverable, and memorialized on the Walls of the Missing at Sicily-Rome American Cemetery, Nettuno; the profile's associated-personnel list names dozens of additional unaccounted Buck crewmen.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1943-10-09
- Population
- Crew lost with the ship (unaccounted-for) and survivors (1943)
- Limitations
- Documents casualty status and loss narrative, not materials or asbestos content. The DPAA narrative mis-dates the sinking 'October 9, 1944' - a typographical error for 1943 (verified against DANFS and uboat.net). Its 97-survivor figure matches DANFS but not the specialist accounting (94); carried in gaps.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-buck-dd420-04
-
[6]DANFS specifications block (Sims class; 37 kt) + Atlas shipyard dataset, Philadelphia Naval Shipyard and Boston Naval Shipyard records (era litigation product identifications); Sims-class machinery per standard references (3 Babcock & Wilcox boilers, 600 psi superheated, Westinghouse geared turbines, ~51,000 shp) [other_primary]
- Locator
- DANFS specifications block; shipyards.json records 'philadelphia-naval-shipyard' and 'boston-naval-shipyard'; Sims-class engineering data
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/yard inference: a Sims-class destroyer built 1938-40 and commissioned 1940 with a three-boiler 600-psi superheated steam plant would have carried period-standard asbestos insulation, lagging, gaskets, packing, fireproofing, deck coverings, and compartment insulation; builder Philadelphia Navy Yard is documented in the Atlas yard dataset (tier 3) with named era asbestos products in litigation product identifications covering 1941-84 (Eagle-Picher Super 60, Thermasil, Unibestos, Kaylo, Garlock sheet gaskets and packing, Johns-Manville pipe insulation, and others); the inferred 1942 repair yard, Boston Naval Shipyard, is likewise tier 3 with gasket/packing product identification. NARA RG19 'General Information Books' (per-vessel material specifications) and Bureau of Ships war-damage/loss records (incl. the surviving officer's loss report by Ens. R.J. Kendall cited in secondary literature) are archival leads for hull-level detail.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1938-1943
- Population
- Philadelphia Navy Yard construction trades 1938-40; Boston Navy Yard repair trades Aug-Nov 1942; crew 1940-43
- Limitations
- Class/era and builder-yard inference only - NOT a hull-specific finding. No insulation or materials survey for DD-420 exists or is feasible (wartime loss; wreck unsurveyed); this row does not quantify material, does not establish any individual's exposure, and makes no claim about the lost crew. NARA retrieval not performed this batch.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-buck-dd420-05
-
[7]CourtListener API v4 authenticated sweep: "USS Buck" (type=o), "DD-420" (type=o), plus deferred docket-type queries [court_record]
- Locator
- CourtListener API v4 /api/rest/v4/search/ responses, 2026-09-27
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- CourtListener exact-name and hull-number opinion queries returned zero results: "USS Buck" (type=o) count 0; "DD-420" (type=o) count 0. The docket (type=r) query for "USS Buck" succeeded once before the pace limiter re-engaged: the observed hit is United States v. QTC Medical Services, Inc., 2:14-cv-08961 (C.D. Cal., False Claims Act) - a name collision in which 'USS Buck' matches text inside a filed document, not litigation naming the hull (non-qualifying). No asbestos opinion naming this hull was located. 'Buck' is a high-collision surname (e.g., Buck v. Bell line of litigation) - unquoted name matches were not treated as evidence.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 2026-09-27
- Limitations
- Zero-result sweep covers CourtListener's indexed opinions for the quoted exact name and hull designator; unindexed or differently-phrased filings (e.g., 'aboard the Buck' without USS, state-court complaints not in RECAP) are outside coverage. Docket sweep partial: one hit observed and classified as a non-qualifying name collision; the full result count and the 'DD-420' docket query could not be re-enumerated before the fleet pace limiter stood the session down - see search_ledger sl-08.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-buck-dd420-06
-
[8]Batch-3406 search ledger (this record): NHHC/DANFS (Wayback + HyperWar/ibiblio); NavSource; uboat.net; DPAA; CourtListener exact-name and hull-number queries; NPS/NHL applicability check; NARA catalog [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-buck-dd420-01 through sl-uss-buck-dd420-09
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: the hull is a wartime loss and war grave (sunk 9 October 1943 in the Tyrrhenian Sea), so no insulation survey, abatement record, or hazmat disclosure exists or is feasible; the wreck has no documented NHHC Underwater Archaeology survey; and the CourtListener sweep located no asbestos litigation naming USS Buck or DD-420.
- 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 - a destroyer sunk with her 1943 fit intact retains era materials in the wreck; the ship never underwent postwar abatement or scrapping. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-buck-dd420-07