USS Catbird (AM-68)

Evidence

9 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-9).

1. [1]DANFS, 'Catbird' (AM-68) entry, Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (verbatim transcription - live NHHC page https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/c/catbird.html serves 404) [nhhc_danfs]

   Locator

   DANFS 'Catbird' entry - spec block + full service narrative (mirror losthistory.net/hazegray/danfs/mine/am68.htm)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   DANFS record for this hull: 'Catbird (AM-68) was built in 1938 by Charleston Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co., Charleston S.C., as Bittern, acquired by the Navy 12 August 1940; and commissioned 27 November 1940, Lieutenant E. Johnson USNR, in command.' Operated in New England waters through 31 March 1941 on tests and exercises; after overhaul at Brooklyn sailed 5 October for Cristobal, on duty in the 15th Naval District until 29 January 1944; local operations at Norfolk until 16 April 1944; Boston 19 April 1944; reclassified IX-183 15 August 1944 and placed out of commission in service 17 August 1944; provided services out of New York until 23 May 1945; Cape Cod waters until 3 June under direction of Naval Mine Testing Facilities; New York 4 June 1945; placed out of service and laid up 7 November 1945; transferred to the Maritime Commission for disposal 24 January 1947. Spec block: dp. 570; l. 147'10"; b. 28'8"; dr. 12'; s. 12 k.; a. 1 3".

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1938-1947

   Population

   Charleston construction trades (1937-38); Quincy conversion workforce (1940-41); wartime crew; Brooklyn overhaul workforce (1941); New York/Cape Cod mine-testing support crews (1944-45)

   Limitations

   DANFS documents service history, dates, and specifications - not materials or asbestos content. The Brooklyn overhaul, the conversion period, and the IX-183 service phase are events whose materials scope the source does not describe. Acquisition date (12 Aug 1940) conflicts with NavSource's 6 Aug 1940 - carried unreconciled in gaps. Live NHHC page returns 404; verbatim mirror cited.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-catbird-am68-01

2. [2]NavSource Online: Mine Warfare Vessel Photo Archive - Catbird (IX 183) ex-AM 68, file 11/02068 [other_primary]

   Locator

   NavSource 02068.htm - chronology block, specifications block, commanding-officer table, photo credits

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   NavSource file for this hull corroborates DANFS and adds detail: built 1938 as the steel-hull trawler Bittern by Charleston Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co., Charleston SC, for the Atlantic Fisheries Co. of Charleston; acquired by the Navy 6 August 1940 (conflicts with DANFS 12 August - in gaps); renamed Catbird 14 August 1940; conversion to a minesweeper began 3 September 1940 at the Quincy Dry Dock and Yacht Corp., Quincy, MA; commissioned USS Catbird (AM-68) 27 November 1940; conversion completed 10 May 1941; reclassified Miscellaneous Unclassified Auxiliary IX-183 15 August 1944 'and used for salvage work'; placed out of commission, in service 17 August 1944; placed out of service and laid up 7 November 1945; transferred to the Maritime Commission for disposal 24 January 1947; 'Fate unknown.' Spec block: 570 t., 147'10" x 28'8" x 12', 12 kts, one 3"/23 gun mount; propulsion one 575-shp Fairbanks-Morse diesel engine, one shaft - diesel, no boilers or steam plant. Call sign Nan-Easy-Dog-Oboe. CO table: LT Edgar Johnson USNR (27 Nov 1940-Sep 1942); LT Edwin Boardman Dexter USNR, USNA 1929, later Rear Admiral (Sep 1942-Mar 1943); LT Michael A. Donohue USNR (Mar-Jun 1943); LTJG Phillip M. Irvine USNR (Jun 1943-Jun 1944).

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1938-1947

   Population

   Quincy Dry Dock & Yacht Corp. conversion workforce 1940-41; wartime crew; salvage-work detail 1944-45

   Limitations

   Volunteer-compiled archive quoting official records (DANFS, Navy photos NH 81359) - corroborating source, not the official record itself. Documents machinery and chronology, not materials or asbestos content. Acquisition date conflicts with DANFS; 'fate unknown' conflicts with compiled secondary fate (Salhus/Punta Palma/scrapped 1966) - both carried in gaps. Page title artifact reads 'Catbird (AMc 68)' - possible original coastal-minesweeper designation unverified; body and official sources read AM-68.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-catbird-am68-02

3. [3]HyperWar 'US Navy Unclassified Vessels (IX), 1940-1945' table (Patrick Clancey compilation of official data), IX-183 row [other_primary]

   Locator

   ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/ships/ships-ix.html - IX-183 table row

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   HyperWar IX-table corroborates the reclassification chain: 'IX-183 | Catbird | 1944 | 505 | Converted from Minesweeper AM-68' - this hull became the unclassified miscellaneous auxiliary IX-183 in 1944, consistent with DANFS's 15 August 1944 reclassification date.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1944

   Population

   IX-183 service crew 1944-45

   Limitations

   Compiled table of official-derived data, not the primary record. Its 505-ton figure conflicts with the DANFS spec block's 570-ton displacement (different tonnage bases likely - unreconciled, in gaps). No materials or asbestos content.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-catbird-am68-03

4. [4]Shipbuilding History (Tim Colton), Charleston Shipbuilding & Dry Dock yard table + yard corporate history, Charleston SC [other_primary]

   Locator

   shipbuildinghistory.com/shipyards/small/charleston.htm - yard table row 2300 (Bittern) + row 2250 (Kittiwake) + yard history header

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Colton's Charleston yard table independently corroborates the builder and gives the merchant-registry trail: yard hull no. 2300, Official Number 237113, trawler Bittern for Portland Trawling (conflicts with NavSource's 'Atlantic Fisheries Co. of Charleston' - in gaps), 355 GT, delivered Mar-38; 'To USN 1940 as Catbird (AM 68), sold 1947 as Salhus, later Punta Palma 1952, scrapped 1966.' Yard history: the Concord Street site ran as Pregnall Shipyard 1869-1912, Valk & Murdoch Iron Works, Charleston Dry Dock & Machine Co. (1919), Charleston Dry Dock Co. (1934), Charleston Dry Dock & Shipbuilding Co. (1936); the Navy took control of the yard in 1942 and renamed it Charleston Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Co.; leased to Todd postwar, later Detyens; site is now the Charleston Maritime Center. Sister hull in the same table: yard hull no. 2250, O.N. 236979, trawler Kittiwake, delivered Jan-38, 'To USN 1940 as Curlew (AM 69), sold 1946 as Raagan, multiple owners, now Clipper Express.'

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1937-1966

   Population

   Charleston yard construction trades 1937-38

   Limitations

   Compiled yard table - corroborating secondary source, not a Navy or registry record. Confirms builder, yard hull number, delivery date, and post-Navy merchant names; the Salhus/Punta Palma/scrapped-1966 disposition is compiled data, not registry-verified, and conflicts with NavSource's 'fate unknown' (carried in gaps). No materials or asbestos content. Per Colton's yard history the yard's 1938 name was Charleston Dry Dock & Shipbuilding Co. - DANFS's 'Charleston Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co.' is the later (1942) name of the same yard, an anachronism carried in gaps.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-catbird-am68-04

5. [5]Consolidated era/design inference - NavSource machinery line for this hull (one 575-shp Fairbanks-Morse diesel, one shaft) + DANFS-documented 1938 commercial build and 1940-41 Navy conversion + GAO HRD-80-2 policy context [other_primary]

   Locator

   NavSource spec block (machinery line, conversion entry); DANFS service narrative; GAO product page HRD-80-2 (full text historically blocked to automated fetch, HTTP 403 - product-page description relied on)

   Finding type

   asbestos_application

   Finding

   Era/design inference for a diesel-driven converted trawler built commercially at Charleston in 1938 and converted to a minesweeper at Quincy Dry Dock & Yacht Corp. in 1940-41: NO boilers or steam plant - the steam-ship boiler/turbine lagging pathway does not apply to this hull. Plausible period asbestos applications on this type concentrate in diesel-engine and exhaust-system insulation, gaskets and packing throughout the engineering spaces, electrical insulation and cable, deck coverings, accommodation-space insulation, and brake/friction linings on winches and sweep-gear handling machinery. GAO HRD-80-2 documents that the Navy did not begin systematic asbestos substitution until the early 1970s - decades after this hull's construction and after its disposal. Documented disturbance events for this hull: 1938 commercial construction at Charleston, the September 1940-May 1941 Quincy minesweeper conversion (armament and sweep gear added), the 1941 Brooklyn overhaul, 1944-45 salvage and mine-testing duty, lay-up November 1945, and Maritime Commission disposal 1947 with a compiled merchant afterlife to scrapping in 1966.

   Verification

   inferred

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1938-1966

   Population

   Charleston construction trades 1937-38; Quincy conversion trades 1940-41; Brooklyn overhaul workforce 1941; wartime crew; disposal/scrapping workforce (compiled 1947-1966)

   Limitations

   Class/era and design inference only - no hull-level material schedule, insulation spec, or survey exists in the located public record for this ship. Establishes no asbestos content, quantity, location, individual exposure, or causation. Inference is weakened twice over: by the diesel (non-steam) plant, and by commercial pre-war construction whose material standards differed from wartime naval builds. Whether era materials persisted through merchant service to the compiled 1966 scrapping is undocumented.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-catbird-am68-05

6. [6]Corn, Jacqueline Karnell, and Jennifer Starr, 'Historical perspective on asbestos: Policies and protective measures in World War II shipbuilding,' American Journal of Industrial Medicine 11(3):359-373 (1987) [other_primary]

   Locator

   Abstract and article, AJIM 11(3):359-373

   Finding type

   asbestos_application

   Finding

   Peer-reviewed historical study documents that asbestos was used extensively as a fireproofing and insulating material in U.S. shipbuilding during WWII - the era under which this hull was converted (1940-41) and operated (1940-47) as a naval vessel, and shortly after the 1938 commercial build.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1940s era documented; article 1987

   Population

   WWII shipyard workers and ship crews (era context)

   Limitations

   Program/era-level scholarly documentation of asbestos use in WWII shipbuilding generally; does not name this vessel or class, and this hull's commercial pre-war construction predates the wartime program the paper covers - applicability is strongest to the 1940-41 conversion and service era. Does not establish that asbestos was or remains aboard this hull, nor quantity, location, condition, exposure, or causation.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-catbird-am68-06

7. [7]Fleischer, W.E., Viles, F.J. Jr., Gade, R.L., and Drinker, P., 'A health survey of pipe covering operations in constructing naval vessels,' J Ind Hyg Toxicol 28(1):9-16 (Jan 1946), PMID 21016030 [other_primary]

   Locator

   PubMed record PMID 21016030; article pp. 9-16 (pipe covering material section)

   Finding type

   gov_survey

   Finding

   The U.S. Maritime Commission-commissioned industrial-hygiene survey of WWII pipe-covering operations at two Navy yards and two Navy contract yards documented that 'an important ingredient of pipe covering material used on U.S. Navy vessels is amosite' - i.e., asbestos insulation was standard material in wartime naval-vessel construction of this hull's operating era, including at contract yards of the type that converted her.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   survey ~1944-45; published 1946

   Population

   WWII pipe coverers and insulators at Navy and contract yards (era context)

   Limitations

   Era-level documentation of asbestos use in naval construction generally; does not name this vessel or class, and whether Quincy Dry Dock & Yacht Corp. was among the surveyed contract yards is unverified - establishes nothing about this hull's materials, condition, or any individual exposure. Applicability is further bounded by this hull's small diesel plant: the pipe-covering load on a converted trawler is materially lighter than on the steam combatants at the center of the survey. (The study's exculpatory 'not a dangerous occupation' conclusion has since been heavily criticized - see the 2026 critique at DOI 10.1177/10482911261446696.)

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-catbird-am68-07

8. [8]NARA Special List #44, 'Logbooks of U.S. Navy Ships and Stations' ship-number index (archives.gov), AM-68 row; plus RG 24 / RG 19 / RG 181 record-group leads [other_primary]

   Locator

   https://www.archives.gov/files/research/military/logbooks/sl-44-ship-number.pdf - 'AM-68 (Catbird) 4/1/1941 9/30/1943'; NWC Archives MSC-385 Series I-D Item 100.5819

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   NARA's ship-number index to the digitized Navy deck-log collection lists this hull by name: 'AM-68 (Catbird) 4/1/1941 - 9/30/1943' - ship-specific deck logs exist in the National Archives covering April 1941 through September 1943, the span containing the Quincy conversion's completion, the Brooklyn overhaul, and most of the Cristobal/15th Naval District minesweeping tour. Logs for October 1943 through the November 1945 lay-up (the Canal Zone wind-down, Norfolk, Boston, IX-183 salvage and Naval Mine Testing Facilities period) are not in the digitized listing. Additional unretrieved leads: BuShips conversion and contract records for the Quincy work (RG 19), 15th Naval District and Naval Mine Testing Facilities records (RG 181), the Maritime Commission disposal file, and merchant-registry entries for Salhus/Punta Palma. A photographic print of USS Catbird (AM-68), c. 1940-1950, is held by the Naval War College Archives (MSC-385, Box 37, Folder 7).

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   archival_lead

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1941-1943 (digitized log range); 1938-1947 records

   Limitations

   Index-level confirmation that deck logs exist for part of the service span - logs document operations, locations, and yard periods, not materials or asbestos content; no box-level retrieval performed (no spend authorized). Whether the digitized range or the undigitized remainder contains material-relevant entries is unknown until surveyed.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-catbird-am68-08

9. [9]Batch-1419 search ledger (this record): NHHC/DANFS via losthistory/hazegray mirror; NavSource 02068; HyperWar IX table; Colton Charleston yard table; NARA Special List #44; NWC Archives catalog; CourtListener API v4 (blocked); indexed-web litigation checks; VA BVA index; NVR; MARAD ShipHistory [other_primary]

   Locator

   search_ledger rows sl-uss-catbird-am68-01 through sl-uss-catbird-am68-11

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   No qualifying ship-specific record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or docketed case naming USS Catbird, AM-68, or IX-183 was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). CourtListener API v4 queries were rate-limit blocked on 2026-09-22 (HTTP 429; authenticated 2,800/day quota exhausted by prior batch work on this machine - backed off per batch instruction rather than retrying); residual litigation surface was assessed via indexed-web checking, which surfaced only law-firm marketing ship lists (mesothelioma.com minesweeper roster, mesotheliomahelp.org ship roster) that name the hull in generic minesweeper rosters without primary support - an excluded source class - and no qualifying case or opinion. The VA BVA index returned no decision naming the ship. MARAD ShipHistory name-search errors for Catbird/Bittern/Salhus (endpoint error shell). The NVR carries no per-hull record (pre-1987 disposal exclusion).

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   negative_finding

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   2026-09-22

   Limitations

   Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1938 hull sold into merchant service and reportedly scrapped in 1966 is consistent with era materials removed at unknown points or retained; nothing here establishes presence, absence, quantity, exposure, or legal eligibility. The litigation negative is partial: direct CourtListener API search was blocked, so unindexed or very recent filings naming the hull cannot be ruled out.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-catbird-am68-09