Evidence
10 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-10).
-
[1]DANFS, Charles R. Ware (DD-865) (builder, dates, service narrative through 1960; bracketed post-publication note on striking and sinking; verbatim transcription - live NHHC page returns 404; archived NHHC capture 2025-02-02 confirms same entry text) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry, specifications block + service narrative + bracketed note (ibiblio dd865.html); Wayback capture 20250202151155 of history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/c/charles-r-ware-dd-865.html
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for this hull: launched 12 April 1945 by Bethlehem Steel Co., Staten Island, N.Y.; sponsored by Mrs. Z. Ware; commissioned 21 July 1945, Commander H. R. Wier in command. Operated from Norfolk, Va., and (after December 1950) Newport, R.I., on Atlantic Fleet schedule through 1960: first major cruise 1 March-9 April 1946 to northern waters developing cold-weather techniques (crossed the Arctic Circle); target ship for submarines training off New London; first 6th Fleet tour 10 November 1947-11 March 1948; 1949 Mediterranean tour included two weeks patrolling off the Levant Coast for the UN Palestine Truce Commission; Naval Reserve training cruises in the Caribbean summer 1949; 1951 tour with Royal Hellenic Navy units; 1953 ASW exercises with British ships off Northern Ireland plus exercises with HMCS Magnificent; 1954 NATO operation; 1955 ASW off Northern Ireland plus 6th Fleet; 1956 midshipmen cruise to northern Europe; 1957 escorted the ship carrying King Saud of Saudi Arabia into New York and exercised with Spanish destroyers; 20 January 1958 rescued a downed pilot from Essex (CVA-9); summer 1959 Operation 'Inland Sea' - first naval passage through the St. Lawrence Seaway into the Great Lakes, 26 June 1959 Naval Review in Lake St. Louis for Queen Elizabeth II and President Eisenhower; 1960 Mediterranean tour carried German naval observers. Bracketed post-publication note: 'Charles R. Ware was struck from the Navy list on 1 July 1974, and sunk as a target in the Caribbean on 13 November 1981.' Specifications block: dp. 2,425; l. 390'6"; b. 41'1"; dr. 18'6"; s. 35 k.; cpl. 367; a. 6 5", 5 21" tt., 6 dcp., 2 dct.; cl. Gearing. Namesake: Lt. Charles Rollins Ware (b. 11 March 1911, Knoxville, Tenn.; USNA 1934; Scouting Squadron 5, Yorktown CV-5), MIA 4 June 1942 at Midway, posthumous Navy Cross. Also of record: 'Charles R. Ware (DE-547) was canceled prior to construction.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1944-1960 (narrative); bracketed note to 1981
- Population
- Bethlehem Steel Staten Island construction trades 1944-45; crew 1945-1974 (design complement 367)
- Limitations
- DANFS documents service history and design specifications, not materials or asbestos content. The narrative ends with the 1960 Mediterranean tour - FRAM (1961-62), the 1967 Vietnam deployment, NRT service (1973-74), and decommissioning are not covered by this source. The bracketed stricken date (1 July 1974) and sinking date (13 November 1981) conflict with NavSource/veterans' sources (12 December 1974 and 15 November 1981) - carried in gaps. Transcription mirrors cited because the live NHHC page returns 404; a 2025-02-02 Wayback capture of the NHHC page confirms identical entry text (without the bracketed note).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-charles-r-ware-dd865-01
-
[2]NavSource Naval History, Destroyer Photo Index DD-865 USS Charles R. Ware (operational and building data; class machinery block; FRAM assignment table) - secondary compilation consistent with NavalCoverMuseum and Wikipedia [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource DD-865 index 'Operational and Building Data' table + CO list; navsource.net/archives/05/helpers/fram.htm FRAM table row '865 Charles R. Ware / New York / 01-62' (via Wayback capture of navsource page, 2024)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Secondary vessel index record for this hull: laid down 1 November 1944 by Bethlehem Steel, Staten Island, N.Y.; launched 12 April 1945; commissioned 21 July 1945; 'Completed FRAM upgrade January 1962'; decommissioned 12 December 1974; sunk as target in Caribbean 15 November 1981. NavSource FRAM assignment table entry: '865 - Charles R. Ware - New York - 01/62' (FRAM Mark I at New York Naval Shipyard, completing January 1962). Class machinery block: 60,000 shp General Electric geared turbines, two screws, 36.8 kt, crew 336. Commanding-officer list runs CDR H. R. Wier (July 1945) through CDR Gary G. Christensen (September 1973-12 December 1974).
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1944-1981
- Population
- Crew 1945-1974; New York Naval Shipyard trades during FRAM I (January 1961-January 1962)
- Limitations
- Secondary compilations, not primary documents: laid-down date, FRAM completion month, decommissioning date (12 December 1974), and sinking date (15 November 1981) are not in the DANFS narrative and are carried on the consistency of multiple indexes; the decommissioning and DANFS bracketed stricken/sinking dates conflict - see gaps. NavSource's 'crew 336' conflicts with the DANFS spec block complement 367.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-charles-r-ware-dd865-02
-
[3]USS Charles R. Ware DD-865 veterans' association history, 'From start to finish' (deck-log-compiled ship chronology, ed. from shipmate Gerald R. Wilcox's 'Now Hear This' newsletter work; Wayback capture 2011-07-17) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Wayback capture 2011-07-17 of usscharlesrwaredd865.com/dd865history.htm, year sections 1944-1981
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Association-compiled deck-log chronology for this hull, documenting yard periods and later service absent from DANFS: launched with Mrs. Zena Ware as sponsor; towed to New York Naval Shipyard for fitting out after launch (1945); delivered to the Navy 20 July 1945; Navy Day exercises 27-30 October 1945; post-shakedown overhaul NYNS (1945); Operation Frostbite, 1 March-9 April 1946, Task Group 21.11 in company with USS Midway (CVB-41), USS Stormes (DD-780), USS Vogelgesang (DD-862) and a fleet oiler - cold-weather carrier-operations data gathering, Arctic Circle crossing; Charleston Naval Base drydock (December 1946); Charleston Naval Shipyard drydock (October 1947); NYNS overhaul (1 July-20 September 1948); awarded the Battle Efficiency Pennant 'E' for fiscal year 1948; 1949 Mediterranean tour included Haifa patrol 13-25 March under the UN Palestine Truce Commission - 'one of the first U.S. warships to fly the UN flag'; Norfolk Naval Shipyard four-month overhaul (from 23 May 1950); Philadelphia Navy Yard routine overhaul (10 March-10 June 1952); Boston Naval Shipyard (arrived 24 November 1953); Philadelphia Navy Yard three months major alterations (from 23 August 1954); NYNS three-month overhaul (August 1956); Boston Naval Shipyard routine overhaul and three-month yard period (1958-59) plus a three-week yard period (August 1959); FRAM MK1 Type B conversion at Brooklyn (New York) Naval Shipyard - arrived 11 January 1961, in-commission/in-reserve from 31 January 1961, thirteen-month conversion described as 'the first to be performed at the New York Naval Shipyard,' reverted to full commission 1 January 1962 with home port changed to Mayport, Fla., flagship DesDiv 162/DesRon 16; Cuban quarantine TF-135 duty 26 October-21 November 1962; Charleston drydock 21 February-18 April 1963; Charleston overhaul (from 1 March 1965); 1966 cruise included time off Palomares, Spain, supporting the nuclear-weapon recovery operation 'called BROKEN ARROW'; Subic Bay drydock repairs to sonar dome, rudders, screws (14-16 June 1967); Vietnam combat-zone service April-August 1967 including Yankee Station plane-guard/rescue duty and fifteen Operation Sea Dragon missions firing 1,045 rounds of 5"/38 (first hostile fire 9 July 1967; under fire on five missions, no hits or casualties); scheduled around-the-world return via Suez cancelled when 'the summer war in the Middle East closed the Suez Canal,' returning via the Pacific; 1968 Middle East Force deployment Mayport-Port Louis, Mauritius (11,000 miles each way); Charleston Naval Shipyard four-month major overhaul 21 May-24 September 1969; Middle East Force deployment departing 27 September 1972 - the ship's first circumnavigation, arriving Mayport 21 April 1973 after 207 days; complete overhaul at Todd Shipyards, New Orleans (June-September 1973) in preparation for Naval Reserve training duty; shifted to Galveston, Texas, November 1973 as 'flagship of the Texas Navy' (DesRon 34 NRT); decommissioned at Galveston 30 November 1974 after a fouled buoy chain bent a propeller shaft and repairs were judged prohibitive; struck from the Naval Vessel Register 12 December 1974; hulk held at Galveston 1975-1981; sunk 15 November 1981 at 1235 hrs by a Harpoon missile hit amidships, approximately 400 miles NE of Puerto Rico at about 21 deg. N, 62 deg. W (Puerto Rico Trough), during SINKEX operations in which CVW-3 aircraft flying from USS John F. Kennedy (CV-67) 'scored direct hits on the target, ex-Charles R. Ware (DD-865).'
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1944-1981
- Population
- Crew 1945-1974; shipyard trades at NYNS, Charleston, Norfolk, Philadelphia, Boston, Subic Bay, and Todd New Orleans during listed availabilities; Naval Reserve trainees 1973-74
- Limitations
- Ship-association secondary compilation drawn from deck logs - individual entries were not independently verified against the underlying logs; several minor internal inconsistencies exist (e.g., '263 days after keel laying'). Documents yard periods and operations as events, not materials or asbestos handling; insulation disturbance during documented yard periods is era inference, not a documented finding for this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-charles-r-ware-dd865-03
-
[4]NHHC Online Library of Selected Images, photo NH 107102 (ibiblio HyperWar mirror): 'USS Charles R. Ware (DD-865) Underway off the coast of Oahu, Hawaii on 28 August 1967. She is a unit of Destroyer Division 161 and wears the insignia of Destroyer Squadron Sixteen... Official U.S. Navy Photograph, from the collections of the Naval History and Heritage Command'; companion photo NH 96638 shows the ship off Staten Island in 1945 [other_primary]
- Locator
- NHHC Online Library picture-data pages NH 107102, NH 96638 (ibiblio HyperWar mirror)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Official U.S. Navy photograph record for this hull confirming the post-FRAM configuration and the 1967 Seventh Fleet deployment: NH 107102, DD-865 underway off Oahu 28 August 1967 (the return leg of the February-September 1967 WestPac tour documented in the veterans' chronology), DesDiv 161/DesRon 16 markings visible; NH 96638 documents the as-built 1945 configuration off Staten Island.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1945; 1967
- Population
- Crew at sea, August 1967
- Limitations
- Photo-caption documentation only - establishes the ship's location, unit markings, and configuration on the stated dates, not materials or asbestos content. DesDiv numbering on the photo (161) differs from the association chronology's DesDiv 162 for the FRAM period - see gaps.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-charles-r-ware-dd865-04
-
[5]Consolidated era inference - DANFS specifications block (Gearing class, 2,425 t, 35 kt) + Atlas shipyard dataset bethlehem-shipbuilding record (corporate asbestos product list incl. magnesia block, marinite, pipe covering, lagging, gaskets and packing) + NavSource FRAM program documentation [other_primary]
- Locator
- DANFS specifications block; shipyards.json record 'bethlehem-shipbuilding'; NavSource FRAM table
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/design inference: a Gearing-class destroyer built 1944-45 at Bethlehem Steel's Staten Island yard with a four-boiler superheated steam plant and 60,000-shp General Electric geared turbines would have carried period-standard asbestos insulation, lagging, gaskets, packing, fireproofing, and deck coverings - boiler casing and fireroom insulation, steam-line lagging, turbine lagging, valve and flange gaskets/packing, and accommodation insulation. Builder's corporate family (Bethlehem Shipbuilding) is documented at yard level in the Atlas dataset with extensive asbestos product listings. Documented yard periods for this hull - including the thirteen-month New York Naval Shipyard FRAM I conversion (January 1961-January 1962) and eleven other recorded availabilities at naval and private yards - are machinery-disturbance events under era practice; the Navy's pre-1979 policy left asbestos insulation in place unless damaged or removed for repairs.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1944-1981
- Population
- Bethlehem Steel Staten Island construction trades 1944-45; crew 1945-1974; yard trades during documented overhauls; Naval Reserve trainees 1973-74
- Limitations
- Class/era and builder-yard inference only - no hull-specific survey, contract, or work package establishes asbestos content aboard this ship. The Atlas shipyard record aggregates Bethlehem yards (Quincy/Sparrows Point/Union Iron Works); no separate Staten Island yard record exists in the dataset - see gaps. FRAM scope for this hull is not documented beyond the conversion event itself.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-charles-r-ware-dd865-05
-
[6]Goodrich v. Air & Liquid Systems Corp., Omnibus Opinion and Order, ECF No. 171, E.D. Va. No. 4:17-cv-00009 (Sept. 28, 2018) [court_record]
- Locator
- Omnibus opinion pp. 12, 19, 31 (per class-profile review of ECF 171 OCR)
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- A published federal omnibus opinion recites class-level material evidence covering this hull's design family: an engineering drawing 'for the insulation and lagging of forced draft blower turbines for the class of destroyers (DD 692, USS Allen M. Sumner class)' specifying 'amosite felts and asbestos cloths,' and an expert report's 'partial tally of the weight of the asbestos-containing thermal insulation and lagging products in the fire ... and engine rooms of a ship belonging to the USS Allen M. Sumner (DD 692) and USS Gearing (DD 710) classes of destroyers' of 30.3 tons. DD-865 is a Gearing-class member, so the recited class evidence brackets its design family. Name-collision caveat: the case is captioned for plaintiff Goodrich - this ship is not a party or a named exposure site; the exposure vessels recited are USS Harlan R. Dickson (DD-708) and USS Corry (DD-817).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1940s design era; opinion filed 2018-09-28
- Population
- Destroyer fire/engine-room crews (class context); litigation expert materials
- Limitations
- Litigation-record recital, not an adjudicated classwide finding: the drawing covers the Sumner DD-692 design group whose machinery the Gearing lengthening retained, and the 30.3-ton figure is an expert partial tally for fire/engine rooms - not a whole-ship inventory and not specific to this hull. The opinion treated some related exposure conclusions as speculative; underlying exhibits (drawing, expert report) not retrieved from RECAP. Establishes no materials aboard, and no exposure to any person aboard, this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-charles-r-ware-dd865-06
-
[7]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (Oct 18, 1979) [gao]
- Locator
- GAO product page HRD-80-2 (full text blocked to automated fetch)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- GAO documented the Navy's asbestos-protection program: standing policy from 1975 removed asbestos insulation only when damaged or when required for repairs, modified in 1979 to selective replacement in high-maintenance areas - meaning original-era insulation typically remained in place for decades unless a yard period disturbed it. Context for this hull's eleven-plus documented yard availabilities, the 1961-62 FRAM I conversion, and pre-1974 service era.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1979
- Population
- Navy shipyard workers; Navy asbestos program review
- Limitations
- Program-level documentation, not hull- or class-specific. Full text not retrieved (gao.gov returns HTTP 403 to automated fetch); content via product-page description. Supports era context only - establishes nothing about materials aboard this ship.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-charles-r-ware-dd865-07
-
[8]CourtListener API v4 sweep, 2026-09-28 (authenticated; opinion type=o and RECAP docket type=r indexes) [court_record]
- Locator
- search_ledger row sl-uss-charles-r-ware-dd865-06; query results saved outside repo at /tmp/cl-3830-q0 through q5.json
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Completed sweep results (all via cl-auth-search.py authenticated helper): '"Charles R. Ware"' opinions - 2 hits, both name collisions (Ware v. Ware, Va. App. 1990; Cunningham v. Hardware Mutual Casualty Co., La. App. 1969); '"Charles R. Ware"' RECAP dockets - 15 hits, 14 name collisions (personal bankruptcies, Nebraska criminal cases, corporate bankruptcies) and 1 qualifying asbestos case: Siders v. 20th Century Glove Corp. of Texas, S.D.W.Va. No. 2:15-cv-13278 (see ev-uss-charles-r-ware-dd865-10); '"USS Charles R. Ware"' dockets - 1 hit, Siders (the vessel name appears in that docket's indexed RECAP text); '"DD-865"' opinions - 0 results; '"DD-865"' dockets - 24 hits, all unrelated string collisions (consumer, patent, civil-rights dockets); '"Ware" "DD-865"' opinions - 0 results. Net: one qualifying asbestos docket names this vessel at pleading-allegation stage; no opinion or adjudicated finding for this hull.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 2026-09-28 (index coverage to date)
- Population
- n/a
- Limitations
- Index coverage limited to CourtListener's opinion and RECAP docket indexes: state-court complaints, settled MDL-875 claims, and vessel lists in unindexed or non-OCR'd filings would not surface. The Siders hit documents an allegation naming the vessel, not an adjudicated finding - see ev-uss-charles-r-ware-dd865-10 for stage classification.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-charles-r-ware-dd865-08
-
[9]Batch-3830 search ledger (this record): NHHC live DANFS (404) + ibiblio transcription + Wayback NHHC capture; NavSource index and FRAM table; veterans' association deck-log history; GAO product page; class-profile context (gearing-class.class.json) [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-charles-r-ware-dd865-01 through -09
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, or hazmat disclosure naming USS Charles R. Ware (DD-865) was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). One docketed asbestos case names the vessel in indexed docket text (Siders v. 20th Century Glove Corp. of Texas, S.D.W.Va. 2:15-cv-13278) - a pleading-stage allegation, not documentation of materials aboard (see ev-uss-charles-r-ware-dd865-10). Ship-specific asbestos documentation for this hull is otherwise unknown. The hull itself no longer exists - sunk as a target in deep water in November 1981 - so no present-day survey or inventory is possible; asbestos questions for this ship are entirely historical.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 2026-09-28
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - era construction, a documented thirteen-month FRAM yard period, and ten-plus other yard availabilities make era-consistent insulation likely but ship-unproven. Does not establish that asbestos is or was present; establishes or defeats no claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-charles-r-ware-dd865-09
-
[10]Siders v. 20th Century Glove Corporation of Texas, U.S. District Court S.D. West Virginia, No. 2:15-cv-13278 (filed 2015-09-18; suit nature 'P.I. : Asbestos'; cause '28:1441 Petition for Removal - Asbestos Litigation'; Judge Thomas E. Johnston). Published opinion: Siders v. 20th Century Glove Corp. of Texas, 2016 WL 1733473 / 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 57210 (S.D.W.Va. Apr. 29, 2016) [court_record]
- Locator
- CourtListener docket id 5570500 (api/rest/v4/dockets/5570500/); type=r hit on '"USS Charles R. Ware"' and '"Charles R. Ware"'; opinion cite via citing cases (Batchelor v. American Optical Corp., S.D. Fla. 2016)
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Qualifying asbestos litigation in which 'USS Charles R. Ware' appears in indexed CourtListener RECAP docket text: Siders v. 20th Century Glove Corporation of Texas, S.D.W.Va. No. 2:15-cv-13278, a multi-defendant asbestos personal-injury action (dozens of product defendants incl. 20th Century Glove, Foster Wheeler, John Crane, Cleaver-Brooks, Weil-McLain). The vessel's role in the docket text is most consistent with an exposure-site entry in the complaint or removal papers - the specific filing carrying the name was not individually retrieved. The published 2016 opinion resolves federal-officer-removal and disclaimer-doctrine issues (procedural posture); it is frequently cited on remand practice in asbestos removals and does not adjudicate any exposure allegation naming this hull. During 1945-1974 the only commissioned USS Charles R. Ware was DD-865 (the DE-547 name assignment was cancelled before construction).
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 2015-2016 (litigation); alleged exposure era unverified
- Population
- Plaintiff(s) Siders; alleged Navy-service exposure window unverified
- Limitations
- Pleading-allegation stage at most: a vessel name in docket text is an allegation, not a finding - the case establishes nothing adjudicated about asbestos aboard this hull, product identity, quantities, or any individual's exposure. Hull attribution to DD-865 is strong (sole commissioned ship of the name, 1945-1974) but the precise document carrying the name and the plaintiff's claimed service dates aboard were not retrieved - individual docket-entry fetches were not completed in this pass. The 2016 published opinion is procedural (removal/remand); subsequent merits history not located.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-charles-r-ware-dd865-10