Evidence
9 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-9).
-
[1]research packet jd-packet.md (3 sources cited) [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED — real identity: USS Case (DD-285), destroyer, Clemson-class — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Case_(DD-285) (DANFS text, mirror-sourced)
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-case-dd285-pkt-jd-packet-md
-
[2]DANFS, 'Case' I (DD-285), verbatim entry (live history.navy.mil DANFS URL returns HTTP 404 on 2026-09-27 - 2004 Wayback capture of the official NHHC page cited; identical transcription at the hazegray/losthistory.net mirror) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry, specifications parenthetical + full service narrative (construction; DesDiv 43/25; 1926-27 European deployment; London Treaty designation; Philadelphia decommissioning; sale)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for this hull: '(DD-285. dp. 1,215; l. 314'4"; b. 30'8"; dr. 9'4"; s. 35 k.; cpl. 122; a. 4 4", 12 21" tt.; cl. Clemson)'. Named for Rear Admiral Augustus Ludlow Case. Launched 21 September 1919 by Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corp., Squantum, Mass.; sponsored by Miss A. R. Case; commissioned 8 December 1919, Commander C. S. Joyce in command; reported to Destroyer Division 43, Atlantic Fleet. January-July 1920 east coast and Caribbean winter maneuvers (tactical data for Naval War College study); July 1920-December 1921 in reduced commission at fifty percent of complement; from December 1921 permanently assigned to Destroyer Division 25; division flagship 1924-1925; April 1926 sailed to the European station with goodwill visits to British and Mediterranean ports, returning about a year later; then east coast and Caribbean operations. 'Designated for scrapping in accordance with the London Treaty in 1929'; 'decommissioned at Philadelphia 22 October 1930, and sold as a stripped hulk 17 January 1931.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1919-1931
- Population
- Bethlehem/Squantum construction trades, Quincy, 1919; USN crew 1919-1930 (design complement 122; reduced to 50 percent July 1920-December 1921)
- Limitations
- DANFS documents identity, specifications, service narrative, and disposition only - it contains no asbestos or materials information and does not establish asbestos presence, quantity, location, or any individual's exposure aboard this hull. DANFS does not give a keel-laying date for this hull (Ships' Data 1921 supplies it: 3 June 1919). The live NHHC DANFS page returned HTTP 404 on 2026-09-27; the 2004 Wayback capture of the official page and the verbatim hazegray mirror transcription agree word-for-word. DANFS's 'decommissioned 22 October 1930' conflicts with NavSource/NavalCoverMuseum's 1 May 1930 decommissioning (22 October is the strike date in those sources) - conflict logged in gaps rather than silently reconciled.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-case-dd285-01
-
[3]Bureau of Construction and Repair, Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels, July 1, 1921 edition (Navy Department; Google digitization via shipscribe.com), destroyer tabulated tables, CASE DD-285 rows (table row 40) [other_primary]
- Locator
- SDB 1921 destroyer tables, printed pp. 80-85: CASE DD-285 row 40 on the dimensions, trial/fuel/complement, machinery, armament/builder, and dates pages
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- Official Navy Department data book rows for this hull as of 1 July 1921 (alphabetical destroyer table row 40, 'CASE DD285'): dimensions 314'4.5" overall, 310'0" designed waterline, 30'11.5" breadth on waterline, 9'4" mean draft, normal displacement 1,215 tons, full-load displacement 1,308 tons, 9'9.25" draft aft; machinery - two propellers, 'Curtis geared turb.', four Yarrow oil-burning boilers, designed power 27,540 shp, trial maximum 27,900 shp; trial displacement 1,267 tons and trial speed 34.54 knots; rig 4 funnels, 2 masts; armament 4 x 4"/50 cal., 1 x 3"/23 cal. A.A., 4 x 21" triple deck torpedo tubes; builder 'Bethlehem S. B. Corp., Squa[n]tum', contract 'Cost+fee', act authorizing building Oct. 6, 1917; dates - contract signed Dec. 6, 1917, keel laid June 3, 1919, launched Sept. 21, 1919, preliminary acceptance Nov. 29, 1919, first and latest commission Dec. 8, 1919.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1917-1921
- Population
- Bethlehem Squantum construction trades 1919; commissioned crew as of 1921 (8 officers + 8 CPOs + 106 men)
- Limitations
- Official contemporaneous characteristics table - documents machinery type and count, dimensions, armament, builder, contract type, and dates for this hull; contains no materials or asbestos information. Values read directly from the image-only Google scan (table pages have no text layer). SDB's 30'11.5" waterline beam differs from DANFS's 30'8" (moulded vs. extreme beam measurement - variant logged in gaps). Complement shown as messes (8 wardroom officers, 8 chief petty officers, 106 men = 122, matching DANFS); NavSource's 'Crew 114' is a variant, logged in gaps.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-case-dd285-02
-
[4]NHHC Online Library of Selected Images, photo NH 55053, 'USS Case (Destroyer # 285, later DD-285)' [museum_official]
- Locator
- NH 55053 picture-data page (title, caption, date); IWM HU 107167 caption via NavSource DD-285 page and Wikimedia Commons category
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The NHHC photographic catalog holds NH 55053, captioned 'USS Case (Destroyer # 285, later DD-285). Underway circa 1920. Note the ship's name painted on the side of her hull amidships.' An Imperial War Museum photograph (HU 107167, Belfast Telegraph collection) separately shows this hull at anchor off Belfast, Northern Ireland, in 1926 - corroborating the European-station deployment DANFS describes beginning April 1926.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- circa 1920; 1926
- Limitations
- Photographic records establish hull identity and approximate locations only - no asbestos, material, or work-scope information. The IWM catalog page was unreachable to direct retrieval (HTTP 403) on 2026-09-27, and the Belfast photo's catalog date conflicts between secondary hosts (NavSource caption reads 08 February 1926; Wikimedia Commons/Wikidata title reads 2 August 1926) - the conflict is logged, not resolved. NHHC image catalog retrieved via the ibiblio HyperWar mirror.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-case-dd285-03
-
[5]NavSource Destroyer Photo Index, USS Case (DD-285) - operational/building data block and commanding officers list; NavalCoverMuseum entry for CASE DD-285 [other_primary]
- Locator
- navsource.org/archives/05/285.htm data block + commanding officers list; navalcovermuseum.org/wiki/CASE_DD_285 ship-name/designation history
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Secondary naval-history compilations supply operational detail DANFS omits and split the date DANFS conflates. NavSource: 'Built by Bethlehem Shipbuilding, Squantum, MA (YN 365); Laid down 03 June 1919; Launched 21 September 1919; Commissioned 08 December 1919; Decommissioned 01 May 1930; Stricken 22 October 1930; Sold in a block buy to Boston Metals, Baltimore, MD, at $5,789.00 each, 17 January 1931'; flag hoist/radio call sign NUNX; machinery '26,500 SHP; Geared Turbines, 2 screws'; crew 114; commanding officers list ends with LT Clarence Vaille Lee, September 15, 1927 - May 1, 1930. NavalCoverMuseum concurs: 'Decommissioned 1 May 1930; Struck from Naval Register 22 October 1930; Sold 17 January 1931 and broken up for scrap' and 'Designated (DD) 17 July 1920'. NARA Special List 44 lists DD-285 logbooks spanning 12/8/1919-5/1/1931.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1919-1931
- Population
- USN crew 1919-1930; disposal/caretaker custody at Philadelphia 1930-31
- Limitations
- Secondary/reference sources - corroborating and correcting context for the DANFS narrative, not independent primary authority. NavSource was not directly retrievable on 2026-09-27 (connection failure); contents were captured from the indexed page extraction. The 1 May 1930 decommissioning is supported by the CO-tour end and NavalCoverMuseum; the 22 October 1930 date DANFS gives for decommissioning matches the strike date in these sources - conflict logged in gaps. The Boston Metals sale-price detail rests on NavSource alone. None of these sources documents asbestos or materials aboard the hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-case-dd285-04
-
[6]Johns-Manville Corp. v. United States, 13 Cl. Ct. 72 (1987), trial discussion of Navy magnesia-insulation specifications; vacated on jurisdictional grounds, 855 F.2d 1571 (Fed. Cir. 1988) [court_record]
- Locator
- Opinion findings paragraphs 222-226, especially paragraph 225; appellate disposition at 855 F.2d 1571 (Fed. Cir. 1988)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- The Claims Court's findings describe Navy magnesia insulating-covering specifications in effect across 1908-1941. The court states the specifications consistently required at least 10 percent asbestos and discusses a 1918 revision. This establishes a Navy procurement specification contemporaneous with Case's 1919 construction and 1919-1930 service, not an installation on DD-285.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1908-1941 specifications; 1987-1988 decisions
- Limitations
- The trial decision was vacated on jurisdictional grounds by 855 F.2d 1571 (Fed. Cir. 1988) - the Claims Court lacked jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. Sec. 1500 and the appellate court vacated without reaching the merits ('We vacate and do not reach the merits'), so this is a historical account of documents discussed at trial, not a surviving merits judgment or binding finding. It addresses Navy procurement and later wartime shipbuilding without naming Case or identifying her suppliers, machinery insulation, repairs, or crew tasks. A Navy specification does not show purchase or installation on this hull. The trial opinion's transcription hosts blocked direct automated retrieval (HTTP 403); the vacatur language was verified in the appellate text; the trial findings' paragraph detail is carried consistent with the cited locator.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-case-dd285-05
-
[7]DANFS specifications block for this hull ('s. 35 k.'; 'cl. Clemson') + documented machinery for this hull (Ships' Data 1921 row 40: 4 Yarrow oil-burning boilers, Curtis geared turbines, 2 shafts, 27,540 shp) + Atlas shipyard dataset check for the builder (no Squantum-specific yard_id exists; 'bethlehem-shipbuilding' is a corporate record whose documented evidence concerns other Bethlehem plants) [other_primary]
- Locator
- DANFS specifications parenthetical; Ships' Data 1921 row 40 machinery columns; shipyards.json yard_id list (37 records; no Squantum-specific record)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/class inference only: Case was a Clemson-class 'flush-deck' four-stack steam-turbine destroyer built in 1919 at Bethlehem Shipbuilding's Victory Destroyer Plant, Squantum (Quincy, MA) - a WWI-era steam warship of a type whose documented plant (4 Yarrow oil-burning boilers, Curtis geared turbines, 2 shafts) would have carried period-standard asbestos boiler and steam-line insulation, lagging, gaskets, packing, and fireproofing common to naval steam propulsion of the era. The build yard has no dedicated record in the Atlas shipyards dataset (no 'squantum' yard_id; the 'bethlehem-shipbuilding' corporate record's documented evidence concerns Sparrows Point/Baltimore and the Quincy Fore River plant), so no yard-level asbestos record exists to cite for the build site.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1919
- Population
- Bethlehem Squantum construction trades, Quincy, 1919 (era context only)
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - this row does not establish that asbestos-containing material was installed, present, or handled aboard this specific hull; it does not identify products, quantities, or locations aboard USS Case. No ship-specific asbestos documentation exists for this hull (see ev-08, negative finding); the hull was sold as a stripped hulk in 1931 and scrapped, so no surviving structure exists to survey.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-case-dd285-06
-
[8]National Archives, 'Researching Asbestos aboard US Naval Vessel up through 1961,' General Information Books and engineering-drawings sections; NARA Special List 44 named-vessels list (DD-285 logbook holdings) [other_primary]
- Locator
- archives.gov asbestos guide: 'General Information Books' (RG 19 Entry P 9) and 'Cartographic Branch' (19-Hull, S39) sections; SL44 named-vessels list, 'Case (DD-285)' entry
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA identifies RG 19, Entry P 9, Destroyer, Destroyer Escort, and Frigate General Information Books and Related Documentation, 1907-1961, as a potentially relevant record series, and describes RG 19 ship engineering drawings arranged by hull number including insulation and lagging material group S39. NARA Special List 44's named-vessels index lists 'Case (DD-285)' logbooks spanning 12/8/1919 to 5/1/1931 - deck logs for this hull survive in NARA custody. These are leads for checking whether DD-285 plans or a General Information Book survive.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1907-1961 archival series; DD-285 logs 1919-12-08 to 1931-05-01
- Limitations
- NARA warns that General Information Books are incomplete and does not state that one exists for Case. The asbestos guide primarily addresses 1941-1961 research, after Case's service and scrapping; no DD-285 GIB, S39 drawing, or logbook page was retrieved or examined. A logbook's existence (SL44) does not indicate asbestos content - deck logs record events, not materials inventories. An archival series description is not evidence of asbestos aboard this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-case-dd285-07
-
[9]Batch-3280 search ledger for DD-285: NHHC DANFS (Wayback/hazegray mirrors) and photographic catalog; Ships' Data 1921 official tables; NARA asbestos research guide and Special List 44; NavSource/NavalCoverMuseum operational data; authenticated CourtListener API v4 opinion and RECAP docket searches [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-case-dd285-07 through sl-uss-case-dd285-10
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos documentation or litigation naming USS Case (DD-285) was located in the public sources searched and the completed authenticated CourtListener queries recorded in the search ledger. Exact-name opinion search '"USS Case"' returned 3 hits, all name collisions (two United States Steel Corp. cases and a 1911 New York appeal predating this hull); exact-name RECAP search returned 92 dockets, none containing a contiguous 'USS Case' vessel reference; hull-number opinion search '"DD-285"' returned zero hits; hull-number RECAP search returned 2 dockets, both collisions (a 2025 Georgia fraud case and a 2007 California criminal case - the string matches form/exhibit identifiers in those dockets, not the vessel). A second USS Case (DD-370, Mahan-class) served 1936-1947 - any post-1936 'USS Case' litigation would name that hull, and none was located either.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 2026-09-27 research sweep
- Limitations
- A negative search result is limited to the named public indexes and queries. It does not prove the ship lacked asbestos, that an unindexed case does not exist, or that any person was or was not exposed. The 2 DD-285 docket hits were classified as collisions from docket-level fields and document descriptions; full-text filings were not retrieved. NARA's underlying DD-285 logs, plans, and General Information Books were not inspected.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-case-dd285-08