USS Chiwawa (AO-68)

Evidence

11 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-11).

1. [1]Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, Vol. II, 'Chiwawa (AO-68)' (Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, Naval History Division) - HyperWar transcription by Patrick Clancey [nhhc_danfs]

   Locator

   ibiblio.org HyperWar DANFS mirror, AO-68 entry (canonical NHHC history.navy.mil DANFS URL returned 404 on 2026-09-24; mirror carries verbatim public-domain DANFS text incl. spec line)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   DANFS entry for Chiwawa (AO-68): launched 25 June 1942 by Bethlehem Steel Co., Sparrows Point, Md., under Maritime Commission contract as Samoset; sponsored by Mrs. H. G. Smith; acquired by the Navy 24 December 1942 and commissioned the same day (Commander H. Fultz), reporting to the Atlantic Fleet. Atlantic oil shuttle and convoy service 1943-44: Aruba/Port Arthur loadings; March 1943 Casablanca convoy attacked by a wolf-pack east of the Azores (four ships lost; remainder arrived 21 March); crossings to Scotland, Wales, Casablanca, North Africa; July 1944 to Mers el Kebir and Naples, fueling Operation Dragoon shipping until retiring to Oran 2 September 1944. Norfolk Navy Yard overhaul 31 May-1 July 1945; Pearl Harbor 1 August; station tanker at Ulithi and Okinawa 30 August-29 November 1945 with one September voyage fueling the 7th Fleet at sea; homeward via San Francisco and Balboa to New York 7 January 1946; final Melville-Europe run returning 18 March 1946; decommissioned 6 May 1946; transferred to the Maritime Commission 23 August 1946. Spec line: dp. 5,782; l. 501'8"; b. 68'; dr. 30'8"; s. 15 k.; cpl. 214; a. 1 5", 4 3"; cl. Chiwawa. Two battle stars.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-24

   Study period

   1942-1946

   Population

   Crew of AO-68 (complement 214 per DANFS)

   Limitations

   Authoritative on identity, construction, operations, and Navy custody dates. Contains no asbestos or insulation-material statement. Does not give a laid-down date and does not document the post-1946 merchant chain (a bracketed note on the mirror page about the Lee A. Tregurtha career is the transcriber's addition, not DANFS text).

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-chiwawa-ao68-01

2. [2]The Interlake Steamship Company (corporate contributor: U.S. DOT Maritime Administration), 'Operation of Marine Exhaust Gas Scrubbing Equipment aboard the Great Lakes Self-Unloading Motor Vessel Lee A. Tregurtha' (October 2018), National Transportation Library/RoSAP dot/49124 [marad_nrc]

   Locator

   RoSAP dot/49124, PDF dot_49124_DS1.pdf - 'Vessel's Storied History' section pp. 7-9 and Table 1

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   DOT-published report (The Interlake Steamship Company, corporate contributor U.S. DOT Maritime Administration, October 2018) documents this specific hull's complete chain under a MARAD cooperative agreement for exhaust-scrubber installation: designed as an oil tanker for Mobil Oil, keel laid at Bethlehem Shipbuilding and Drydock Co., Sparrows Point, MD; Maritime Commission assumed construction, launched as Samoset June 1942; transferred to the Navy December 1942 as USS Chiwawa (AO-68), 'a T3-S-A1 Kennebec-class oiler'; convoy operations, two battle stars, Navy Occupation Service Medal-Asia; decommissioned May 1946 to the reserve fleet; sold 1947 and operated thirteen years as a tanker on the east coast, Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico; purchased 1960 by Cleveland-Cliffs Steamship Co. and converted at American Shipbuilding, Lorain, Ohio (lengthened 228 ft, beam increased 7 ft), christened Str. Walter A. Sterling May 1961; lengthened +96 ft in 1976 (>30,000 tons, largest steam-powered vessel on the Great Lakes); converted to self-unloader 1978; sold 1984 to Rouge Steel Co. (Ford subsidiary), renamed William Clay Ford 1985; Rouge fleet to Lakes Shipping Co. May 1989, rechristened Lee A. Tregurtha; Lakes Shipping merged into Interlake Steamship 2015. Documents the 2005-06 repower (first of Interlake's steam-to-diesel conversions; two Rolls-Royce Bergen B32-40L6P diesels, 4,020 hp each) and the 2015-16 winter-layup closed-loop BELCO scrubber installation at Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding, Sturgeon Bay WI. Official No. 251505; 29,360 gross tons.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-24

   Study period

   1942-2018

   Limitations

   A MARAD-cooperative-agreement project report about this specific hull, but its purpose is emissions equipment, not materials documentation: full-text search finds no mention of asbestos, insulation, or abatement - it establishes custody/identity/conversion events only. Labels the class 'Kennebec' where DANFS uses 'cl. Chiwawa' (naming variance logged). Does not document what materials were removed in the 1961 conversion or 2006 repower.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-chiwawa-ao68-02

3. [3]The Interlake Steamship Company, official fleet page 'M/V Lee A. Tregurtha' [other_primary]

   Locator

   interlake-steamship.com fleet page - Statistics and vessel history sections

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Operator's official fleet page for M/V Lee A. Tregurtha: the vessel remains in active Interlake Steamship service on the Great Lakes; confirms WWII-tanker origin as USS Chiwawa, two battle stars, service on both Atlantic and Pacific oceans, presence in Tokyo Bay during the 2 September 1945 surrender ceremony, decommissioning 6 May 1946 and transfer to the Maritime Commission. Cleveland-Cliffs Iron Co. purchased the idle ship during winter 1959-60; the 1961 conversion lengthened her with a midbody insertion, widened the hull 7 ft and deepened 2 ft - christened Walter A. Sterling (largest and longest in the Cliffs fleet, 22,500-ton capacity, 730' x 75'); lengthened again 1976 (+96 ft midbody, 826 ft overall, +7,000 gross tons); self-unloader conversion 1978; bow thruster 1966, stern thruster 1982; sold with the remaining Cliffs fleet 1985 to Ford Motor (later Rouge Steel) as William Clay Ford (2); 1989 to Lakes Shipping Co. as Lee A. Tregurtha; largest steam-powered ship on the Great Lakes through the 2005 season; steam plant replaced 2006 with a modern 8,040-hp diesel plant and controllable-pitch propeller; exhaust-gas scrubbers fitted 2016.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-24

   Study period

   1942-present

   Limitations

   First-party operator record - authoritative for current status and ownership chain; contains no asbestos, insulation, or abatement statement. 'Present in Tokyo Bay during the September 2, 1945 surrender ceremony' is operator-reported and consistent with DANFS's Okinawa station-tanker assignment plus September 7th-Fleet fueling voyage, but is not itself stated in DANFS.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-chiwawa-ao68-03

4. [4]Great Lakes Vessel History (greatlakesvesselhistory.com), entry 'Sterling, Walter A.' [reputable_press]

   Locator

   greatlakesvesselhistory.com - Sterling, Walter A. history page (construction, conversion, ownership sections)

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   Specialist vessel-history registry records the hull's construction and 1960-61 conversion mechanics: built at Sparrows Point MD by Bethlehem Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Co., yard hull 4378; launched 25 June 1942 as T3-S-A1 tanker (reported pre-launch name Mobiloil for Socony-Mobil Oil Co., renamed Samoset); wartime registration 10,278 GT / 6,270 NT. On 12 February 1960 the Chiwawa was purchased by Cleveland-Cliffs Steamship Co. - the final T3 tanker-to-laker conversion to join the U.S. fleet. At American Ship Building's Lorain yard (with work at Toledo) her bow and stern were removed and her original midbody scrapped; a new 510-ft midbody built by Schlieker-Werft of Hamburg, West Germany (their hull 554, launched 21 September 1960, towed across the Atlantic, arrived Lorain 7 November 1960) was joined to the retained bow and stern in drydock - making 730' x 75' x 39', ~25,600-ton capacity. Renamed Walter A. Sterling; entered service 15 July 1961 under U.S. official no. 251505; fleet sold 1989 to Lakes Shipping Co. and renamed Lee A. Tregurtha.

   Verification

   partial

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-24

   Study period

   1942-1961; 1989

   Population

   Conversion-yard workforce (American Ship Building, Lorain OH/Toledo OH, 1960-61; Schlieker-Werft, Hamburg, 1960)

   Limitations

   Secondary compiled registry - consistent with the MARAD-report and operator chains but adds fine detail (midbody scrapped, bow/stern retained, Schlieker-Werft hull 554, exact dates) not independently verified against primary documents. Materially relevant as the structural-survival record: it indicates the 1942-built stern section containing the original machinery spaces remains in the present hull while the original midbody was scrapped in 1960. Contains no asbestos statement; does not establish surviving material, exposure, or causation.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-chiwawa-ao68-04

5. [5]Parsons (for Great Lakes Maritime Research Institute), 'Conceptual Designs for Steam Ship LNG Conversions - Final Report' (2012) [other_primary]

   Locator

   glmri.org Parsons 2012 report - conversion scope discussion

   Finding type

   asbestos_application

   Finding

   A Great Lakes Maritime Research Institute / Parsons final engineering report (2012) on converting the remaining U.S.-flag Great Lakes steamships to LNG or diesel propulsion states that conversion 'would begin with the complete removal of the steam plant, which would be made more costly by the need to deal with asbestos removal and disposal' - documenting asbestos presence in the steam plants of Great Lakes steamships of this era as an accepted engineering premise.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-24

   Study period

   2012 (report); mid-20th-century steam plants discussed

   Population

   Shipyard crews performing steam-plant removals on Great Lakes steamships (type-level)

   Limitations

   The report's subject vessels are the AAA-class steamers (Arthur M. Anderson, Cason J. Callaway, Philip R. Clarke - 1952-53 hulls); the Lee A. Tregurtha was already diesel-powered by 2012 and is not named. Establishes that asbestos removal is a standard cost element of laker steam-plant removals - era/type context only. Does not establish that asbestos was found aboard this hull in its 2006 repower, nor location, quantity, exposure, or causation.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-chiwawa-ao68-05

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 and program under which this T3-S-A1 tanker was built at Bethlehem Sparrows Point in 1942 - and that wartime demand drove unprecedented asbestos utilization aboard merchant-type hulls.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-24

   Study period

   1940s era documented; article 1987

   Population

   WWII shipyard workers and ship crews (class context)

   Limitations

   Program/era-level scholarly documentation of asbestos use in WWII shipbuilding generally; does not name this vessel and 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-chiwawa-ao68-06

7. [7]CourtListener API v4 authenticated searches, 2026-09-24 (opinion type=o: Chiwawa 47, AO-68 5, Tregurtha 35, Samoset+ship/tanker/vessel 128; docket type=r: Chiwawa 39) [court_record]

   Locator

   search_ledger rows sl-uss-chiwawa-ao68-05 through -08

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   No qualifying litigation located: CourtListener opinion searches for "Chiwawa" (47 hits), "AO-68" (5 hits), "Tregurtha" (35 hits) and "Samoset" ship/tanker/vessel (128 hits, first page reviewed), plus a RECAP docket search for "Chiwawa" (39 hits), returned only name collisions - e.g., Wilkinson v. Chiwawa Communities Ass'n and related Washington State HOA/property litigation concerning the Chiwawa River Pines community (the vessel's namesake river region); Murray & Tregurtha Corp. marine-engine disputes; Samoset resort, cotton-mill and shellfish-company matters; and document/exhibit numbers matching 'AO-68'. No asbestos case and no case naming the vessel was located.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   negative_finding

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-24

   Study period

   2026-09-24

   Limitations

   CourtListener coverage is not exhaustive of U.S. filings - PACER-only district complaints, settled/unreported matters, and state trial-court dockets outside the index could contain claims naming the vessel; absence of located litigation does not prove no exposure claim was ever filed. The 'Chiwawa' name is high-collision (Washington river/HOA litigation dominates results).

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-chiwawa-ao68-07

8. [8]National Archives and Records Administration, National Archives Catalog - search 'Chiwawa' (663 results) [other_primary]

   Locator

   catalog.archives.gov search results - War Diary NAID 719290; RG 26 merchant logbook file units

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   National Archives Catalog returns hull-relevant holdings: 'War Diary for U.S.S. Chiwawa (AO 68)' NAID 719290 (RG 181, War Diaries series); a merchant-ship file for Chiwawa in the Fifth Naval District records; and U.S. Coast Guard Official Logbooks of Merchant Vessels entries under 'Chiwawa' (RG 26, Fifth Coast Guard District, boxes 50/134/144). Digitized WWII deck logs for this hull were not confirmed in the catalog.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   archival_lead

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-24

   Study period

   cataloged records, ca. 1942-2003

   Limitations

   Catalog-level hits only - record contents not reviewed; the RG 26 merchant logbooks may relate to the post-1947 merchant vessel or an unrelated same-name craft; digitization status not confirmed; no paid retrieval authorized. Contents could include machinery, repair, or material detail relevant to insulation.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-chiwawa-ao68-08

9. [9]Maritime Reporter and Engineering News, 'American Ship Receives $20 Million In Contracts For Conversion' (15 March 1977) [reputable_press]

   Locator

   Maritime Reporter 1977-03-15 issue, contract announcement

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Contemporaneous trade press: Maritime Reporter (15 March 1977) reports American Ship Building Company received contracts totaling approximately $20 million, the first being Cleveland-Cliffs Steamship Company's conversion of its 826-foot bulk carrier Walter A. Sterling - fifth-largest vessel on the Great Lakes - to a self-unloader at AmShip's Lorain, Ohio yard, with major cargo-hold modifications to two other lake carriers.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-24

   Study period

   1977

   Population

   AmShip Lorain conversion workforce (1977-78)

   Limitations

   Contemporaneous trade-press announcement corroborating the 1978 self-unloader conversion at Lorain in the operator/registry chains; contract-scope announcement only - contains no material or hazmat content.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-chiwawa-ao68-09

10. [10]NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive, USS Chiwawa (AO-68) page [other_primary]

    Locator

    navsource.org/archives/09/19/19068.htm - chronology and merchant-service sections (page text retrieved via search-engine cache; direct fetch failed on DNS resolution 2026-09-24)

    Finding type

    vessel_history

    Finding

    Volunteer-compiled naval photo archive (NavSource) records: laid down 26 February 1942 as SS Samoset, MC type T3-S-A1 tanker hull (MC hull 516), at Bethlehem Steel Shipbuilding, Sparrows Point MD; launched 25 June 1942; acquired by the Navy and commissioned USS Chiwawa (AO-68) 24 December 1942, CDR Harold F. Fultz in command; campaign listing includes Convoy UGS 6 (12-18 March 1943) and the invasion of southern France (15 August-25 September 1944); occupation service in the Far East 2 September-30 November 1945; decommissioned 6 May 1946; transferred to the Maritime Commission 23 August 1946 for NDRF lay-up; stricken 25 September 1946; two battle stars. Merchant-service chain as printed: sold by the Maritime Commission to Cities Service Oil Co., renamed Samoset; resold to American Ship Building Corp., Lorain, renamed SS Chiwawa; resold to Cleveland Cliffs Iron Co., renamed Walter A. Sterling; to Ford Motor Co. 1985 (William Clay Ford II); to Lakes Shipping Co. 1989 (Lee A. Tregurtha).

    Verification

    partial

    Role

    supporting

    Documentation level

    ship_specific

    Accessed

    2026-09-24

    Study period

    1942-1989

    Limitations

    Volunteer-compiled archive - construction dates, commanding officer, and campaign details corroborate DANFS, but its merchant chain conflicts with the DOT/MARAD report and operator/registry sources (its '23 June 1946' Cities Service sale predates the 23 August 1946 MC custody transfer and its 1947 American Ship Building purchase/'SS Chiwawa' rename contradict the documented 1947-1960 tanker career; resolved in favor of the DOT report - see gaps). No asbestos or insulation content.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-chiwawa-ao68-10

11. [11]Boatnerd (Great Lakes & Seaway Shipping Online), 'Lee A. Tregurtha' fleet page [reputable_press]

    Locator

    boatnerd.com Lee A. Tregurtha page - technical description and 2006 repower chronology

    Finding type

    vessel_history

    Finding

    Specialist Great Lakes shipping archive (boatnerd.com) records the wartime plant and 2006 repower specifics: original plant was a single-shaft, yard-built impulse-reaction cross-compound steam turbine of 7,700 shp with two Foster-Wheeler heavy-fuel-oil-fired water-tube boilers (rated service speed 15.3 knots); on 9 January 2006 the Lee A. Tregurtha arrived at Bay Shipbuilding, Sturgeon Bay WI for removal and replacement of the original steam plant with two Rolls-Royce Bergen B32:40-L6P medium-speed diesels (4,020 bhp each) through a Renk twin-input/single-output gearbox to a KaMeWa controllable-pitch propeller; returned to service 29 September 2006, ending her run as the largest steam-powered ship on the Great Lakes.

    Verification

    partial

    Role

    supporting

    Documentation level

    ship_specific

    Accessed

    2026-09-24

    Study period

    1942; 2006

    Population

    Bay Shipbuilding repower workforce (Jan-Sep 2006)

    Limitations

    Volunteer specialist archive - repower dates/yard and machinery specs are consistent with the DOT/MARAD report's engine data but are secondary-compiled and not primary documents. Removal of a 1942 steam plant is an asbestos-relevant event by era/type (see ev-05), but this source contains no asbestos statement - it does not establish that asbestos was present, removed, or handled aboard this hull.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-chiwawa-ao68-11