USS Chivo (SS-341)

Name
USS Chivo
Hull designation
SS-341
Vessel class
Balao
Evidence tier
Tier 2
Evidence entries
7
Record ID
uss-chivo-ss341
Dataset version
2026.10.12-rc.1
Canonical URL
https://asbestosatlas.org/ships/uss-chivo-ss341

Evidence

7 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-7).

  1. [1]DANFS, Chivo (SS-341) - verbatim transcription at losthistory.net/hazegray mirror (live NHHC DANFS page returned HTTP 404) [nhhc_danfs]
    Locator
    DANFS service narrative and spec block
    Finding type
    vessel_history
    Finding
    Documented for this hull: launched 14 January 1945 by Electric Boat Co., Groton (sponsor Mrs. R. E. Baldwin, wife of the Governor of Connecticut); commissioned 28 April 1945, Lt. Cmdr. W. B. Crutcher, USNR. Preparing for her first war patrol when hostilities ended. West-coast operations from San Diego; simulated war patrol to Suva, Guam, and Japan Aug-Nov 1947; Atlantic Fleet transfer - Key West home port 4 July 1949. Entered New London 30 October 1950 'to begin an extensive overhaul and modernization'; returned to duty July 1951 'with increased power and a new streamlined shape.' Key West and Charleston (1959) bases; 6th Fleet Mediterranean tour 1952; visits to Colombia (1953), Quebec (1959), South Africa (1960); exercises and tests off the east coast through 1963.
    Verification
    verified
    Role
    context
    Documentation level
    ship_specific
    Accessed
    2026-09-18
    Study period
    1944-1971
    Population
    EB construction trades (1944); New London/conversion-yard trades (1950-51); crew (1945-1971)
    Limitations
    Ship-specific history only; no asbestos or material content. Live NHHC page 404s; verbatim hazegray transcription used. The DANFS spec block lists class as 'Gato' - the hull is Balao class (DANFS spec blocks genericize the class label).
    Atlas source
    true
    Evidence ID
    ev-uss-chivo-ss341-01
  2. [2]NavSource Online Submarine Photo Archive, Chivo (SS-341) data block (keel, decommission/stricken dates, reclassifications, final disposition) - secondary compilation, not an official Navy source [other_primary]
    Locator
    NavSource Chivo (SS-341) data block (Wayback capture; navsource.net unreachable by direct fetch)
    Finding type
    vessel_history
    Finding
    NavSource data block: laid down 21 February 1944 at Electric Boat Co., Groton; converted to a GUPPY-type submarine at New London, CT, October 1950-July 1951; decommissioned, struck from the Naval Register, and transferred (sold) to Argentina under the Security Assistance Program 1 July 1971, renamed Santiago del Estero (S-22); decommissioned by the Argentine Navy January 1981; disposed of 1983.
    Verification
    partial
    Role
    context
    Documentation level
    ship_specific
    Accessed
    2026-09-18
    Study period
    1944-1983
    Population
    Crew (1945-1971); Argentine crew (1971-1981)
    Limitations
    NavSource is a volunteer-maintained photo archive, not an official record; post-service dates await NVR/NHHC confirmation (pre-1987 disposals are absent from the public NVR by its own notice). No asbestos content.
    Atlas source
    true
    Evidence ID
    ev-uss-chivo-ss341-02
  3. [3]Armada Argentina (Argentine Navy) official site - Submarine Force history page (argentina.gob.ar) [other_primary]
    Locator
    argentina.gob.ar/armada/fuerza-de-submarinos
    Finding type
    vessel_history
    Finding
    The Argentine Navy's official submarine-force page documents the 1971 acquisition from the United States of two Balao/GUPPY-class submarines - ARA Santa Fe (S-21, ex-Catfish) and ARA Santiago del Estero (S-22, ex-Chivo) - which served the force into the early 1980s.
    Verification
    verified
    Role
    context
    Documentation level
    ship_specific
    Accessed
    2026-09-18
    Study period
    1971-1981
    Population
    Argentine Navy crew (1971-1981)
    Limitations
    Official foreign-navy corroboration of the transfer and service span; Spanish-language page summarized - per-hull dates rest on NavSource. No asbestos or material content.
    Atlas source
    true
    Evidence ID
    ev-uss-chivo-ss341-03
  4. [4]Bureau of Ships, Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels, Vol. 1 (Jan 1945), submarine machinery tables (shipscribe.com scan) + Balao class profile (class-f/balao-class.class.json) + shipyard-exposure-map product list for electric-boat-groton [other_primary]
    Locator
    SDB1945v1 submarine tables; class-f/balao-class.class.json; shipyards.json electric-boat-groton
    Finding type
    asbestos_application
    Finding
    Balao-class diesel-electric boats carried NO boilers or steam plant (BuShips 1945: DERD drive, four main diesel-generator engines, 5,400 hp, two shafts). Era-typical asbestos-relevant applications on the type: diesel exhaust lagging, engine gaskets and packing, acoustic and thermal hull insulation, insulation around galley and refrigeration equipment, and battery/electrical materials. The Electric Boat/Groton yard's asbestos product use in submarine construction of this era is independently documented at the yard level.
    Verification
    inferred
    Role
    supporting
    Documentation level
    class_or_era
    Accessed
    2026-09-18
    Study period
    1943-1975 (era)
    Population
    EB construction trades (1943-45); era yard and crew trades
    Limitations
    Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey or material list located for SS-341. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials; establishes no quantities and no exposure for any individual.
    Atlas source
    true
    Evidence ID
    ev-uss-chivo-ss341-04
  5. [5]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, HTTP 403)
    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 - spanning this hull's service and yard periods (1945-1971).
    Verification
    verified
    Role
    context
    Documentation level
    class_or_era
    Accessed
    2026-09-18
    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 text not retrieved (gao.gov blocks automated fetch, HTTP 403) - content via product-page description.
    Atlas source
    true
    Evidence ID
    ev-uss-chivo-ss341-05
  6. [6]CourtListener searches for "USS Chivo" / "SS-341" (API v4 throttled; completed via search-engine index sweep of courtlistener.com) [court_record]
    Locator
    search_ledger rows sl-uss-chivo-ss341-03 and sl-uss-chivo-ss341-04
    Finding type
    historical_record
    Finding
    No qualifying asbestos litigation naming USS Chivo / SS-341 located: the indexed CourtListener corpus returned no pleading, opinion, or docket naming this hull; surfaced items were unrelated asbestos and maritime matters (name-string collisions only).
    Verification
    partial
    Role
    negative_finding
    Documentation level
    ship_specific
    Accessed
    2026-09-18
    Study period
    2026-09-18
    Limitations
    CourtListener API v4 and HTML search returned HTTP 429/403 to automated fetches during this window; the sweep was completed via a search-engine index of the courtlistener.com domain, which has weaker recall than the native index - a residual unverifiable margin exists. Absence of a located public docket does not prove absence of exposure or of filings; state-court and non-digitized records are not covered.
    Atlas source
    true
    Evidence ID
    ev-uss-chivo-ss341-06
  7. [7]Batch-25 search ledger (this record): DANFS transcription; NavSource data block; CourtListener index sweep; BuShips Ships' Data 1945; GAO HRD-80-2; NVR coverage notice; hull-specific official sources as logged [other_primary]
    Locator
    search_ledger rows sl-uss-chivo-ss341-01 through end
    Finding type
    historical_record
    Finding
    No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located for CHIVO (no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, HAER documentation, museum disclosure, or adjudicated case naming this hull was found in the public sources searched; see search_ledger).
    Verification
    verified
    Role
    negative_finding
    Documentation level
    ship_specific
    Accessed
    2026-09-18
    Study period
    2026-09-18
    Limitations
    Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - era materials may have been installed and later removed or retained undocumented. Does not establish that asbestos is or is not present; does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
    Atlas source
    true
    Evidence ID
    ev-uss-chivo-ss341-07

Attribution

Compiled by
Paul Danziger; Rod de Llano
Publisher
Danziger & De Llano, LLP
License
CC-BY-4.0
Citation
Danziger, P., and De Llano, R. (2026). AsbestosAtlas Navy Vessel Asbestos Exposure Dataset. Danziger & De Llano, LLP. DOI: not yet assigned
Dataset version
asbestosatlas-ships-2026.10.12-rc.1
DOI
not yet assigned