Evidence
11 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-11).
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[1]DANFS, 'USS Cuyahoga (WSC-157)' entry (Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, Naval History Division) - verbatim transcription via ibiblio HyperWar mirror; identical text at hazegray losthistory.net mirror. Live NHHC page not located (standing link rot, cf. BATCH-01) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry body text + spec block (ibiblio HyperWar transcription)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS records: built 1927 in Camden, N.J.; transferred from the Coast Guard 29 May 1933; commissioned 1 April 1935, Chief Boatswain J. H. Kevers in command; placed in an 'in service' status 27 July 1935 and operated as tender and escort for the Presidential yacht; designated AG-26 30 November 1937; remained in the Potomac and Chesapeake Bay until placed out of service 17 May 1941 and returned to the Coast Guard the same day. Spec block: dp 200, l. 125', b. 23'4", dr. 6'10", s. 14 k. Bracketed note: during WWII, assigned to the Caribbean Sea Frontier, stationed at Norfolk, Va.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1933-1941
- Population
- Navy crew 1933-1941 (Presidential-yacht tender/escort detail)
- Limitations
- Primary Navy historical entry - authoritative for Navy-period identity, dates, and designation chain. Contains no asbestos or materials information; supports no asbestos claim. DANFS text reaches only to WWII-era summary; the 1978 loss is covered by USCG sources.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-cuyahoga-ag26-01
-
[2]U.S. Coast Guard FORCECOM, Training Center Yorktown - official cutter history page, 'USCGC Cuyahoga WIX/WMEC/WSC-157, 1927' (live .mil URL returns 403 to automated fetch; verbatim text via Internet Archive Wayback capture 20250125215151) [other_primary]
- Locator
- TCY Cutters > USCGC Cuyahoga page, sections Class History / Ship's History / The Last Voyage (Wayback capture)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Official USCG history: built at American Brown Boveri Corporation 1926; launched 27 January 1927; commissioned 3 March 1927 at Camden; 125 ft, beam 23'6", draft 9', 276 tons displacement; steel hull, two diesel engines, twin screw, 13 knots max, 4,900-mile cruising range. Arrived Washington Navy Yard 29 May 1933 as Navy tender to Presidential yacht USS Potomac; returned to Coast Guard jurisdiction 17 May 1941 and recommissioned at Washington Navy Yard same day; stationed Baltimore from 20 May 1941, Norfolk from 17 January 1942 (Commander Defense Area Group). WWII: escort duty under Commander Eastern Sea Frontier and Commander Caribbean Sea Frontier; Oct 1942-Jun 1945 mostly Caribbean (Guantanamo Bay, Trinidad, Paramaribo); wartime armament one 3"/23 AA gun and two depth-charge racks. Post-war Norfolk; 'In Commission-Reserve' with Calypso May 1946; April 1947 to Coast Guard Yard, Curtis Bay, Md. (Field Testing and Development Unit); 1957-1959 New London, Conn. officer-candidate training; 1959 Yorktown, Va. officer-candidate training. 50 years commissioned service 3 March 1977 - oldest operational commissioned ship in the U.S. sea services; last of her class in service.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1927-1978
- Population
- USCG crew and officer candidates (1927-1978)
- Limitations
- Official service history - authoritative for USCG career and station chain. Contains no asbestos or materials information; supports no asbestos claim. Displacement figure (276 t) differs from DANFS (200) and shipscribe (200 lt/235 fl) - variance logged in gaps.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-cuyahoga-ag26-02
-
[3]Shipscribe U.S. Navy auxiliary ships data sheets, 'USS Cuyahoga (AG-26)' class page (Stephen S. Roberts compilation from Navy registers and design records) [other_primary]
- Locator
- AG-26 class page: characteristics block, construction/disposition tables, class notes, ship notes
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Ship-design compilation naming this hull: class CUYAHOGA (AG-26), design 'USCG, 125 ft'; displacement 200 t light / 235 t full; 125' oa x 23.3' e x 6.3' mn; speed 14 kts; 600 hp diesel, 2 screws; acquired 29 May 33; launched 27 Jan 27; commissioned 1 Apr 35; decommissioned/struck/disposed 17 May 41 - returned to USCG. Class notes: 33 125-ft cutters launched Nov 1926-May 1927 by American Brown Boveri Electric Corp., Camden, for Prohibition outer-line patrol; re-engined late 1930s (original 300-hp diesels replaced by 500-800 hp units, 10 to 13 kts); Navy data suggest CUYAHOGA received the engine upgrade before acquisition; originally District Unclassified with file symbol YX-21 (correspondence symbol, not an official hull number); official number AG-26 assigned 30 Nov 37; replaced as Presidential escort by CALYPSO (AG-35) May 1941; recommissioned in USCG and served longer than any sister; sunk in collision with M/V Santa Cruz II near mouth of Potomac 20 Oct 78 with loss of 11 crew.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1926-1978
- Population
- Navy crew 1933-1941
- Limitations
- Compiled secondary transcription of official Navy register and design records, not the registers themselves; consistent with DANFS/USCG. Repowering date conflicts with the USCG Marine Casualty Report ('early 40's' vs shipscribe 'before acquisition' ~1933) - logged in gaps. Contains no asbestos information; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-cuyahoga-ag26-03
-
[4]U.S. Coast Guard, Marine Board of Investigation Report and Commandant's Action, Report No. USCG 16732/92368, 'USCGC CUYAHOGA, M/V SANTA CRUZ II (Argentine); Collision in Chesapeake Bay on 20 October 1978 with Loss of Life' (31 July 1979), 66 pp.; NTSB Marine Accident Report NTSB-MAR-79-03 (26 Feb 1979, indexed at TRID). Live dco.uscg.mil PDF returns HTTP 403; full text retrieved via Wayback capture 20201101022137 and OCR'd [other_primary]
- Locator
- MCR Summary/Vessel Data (~pp. 10-12), Findings of Fact paras 15-17 (recovery/salvage), Conclusions (causes); NTSB-MAR-79-03 abstract via https://trid.trb.org/view/387946
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Official casualty investigation record: collision at ~2107 EDT 20 Oct 1978, Chesapeake Bay ~3.5 nmi NW of Smith Point; CUYAHOGA struck on starboard side, sank in ~2 minutes in 58 ft at 37 deg 56.5'N 76 deg 10.5'W; 11 dead (9 bodies recovered by divers inside the hull incl. berthing areas, engine room, and 'boiler room' compartment C-201-E), 18 rescued by SANTA CRUZ II. Vessel data block: official number WIX-157, call sign NRLH, year built 1927, 320 gross tons (displacement), 125' x 24', diesel propulsion 800 hp total/400 per shaft, homeport Yorktown Va.; one of 33 sisterships built 1926-27 by Brown, Boveri Electric Co. of Camden for the 'Rum War'; riveted steel plate with some welding, wood-planked decks; originally two 150-hp Winton diesels, repowered twin GM8-268A 400-hp diesels 'in the early 40's.' Salvage by U.S. Navy Harbor Clearance Unit Two (Little Creek); lifted by tandem heavy-lift derrick barges 30 Oct 1978; examined at USCG Support Center Portsmouth; released by the Coast Guard to the General Services Administration for disposal. Commandant's proximate cause: CO failed to properly identify SANTA CRUZ II's navigation lights and turned into her path; NTSB adds lack of emergency lighting as contributing to loss of life. Full-text OCR search finds no mention of asbestos, insulation, lagging, or gasket material anywhere in the 66-page report.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1978-1979
- Population
- 29 embarked (16 officer candidates, 9 crew, 4 augmenting crew); USCG/USN salvage divers; Portsmouth inspection/survey personnel; GSA disposal workforce
- Limitations
- Authoritative casualty and material-condition record for this hull; documents loss, salvage, and disposal chain, not construction materials. The absence of any asbestos mention in the report is a true negative for this source only - a 1978 collision investigation did not survey materials. Does not establish presence or absence of asbestos aboard. OCR of the scanned report is partially garbled (digit errors possible in transcribed figures); key values cross-verified against NTSB/TRID abstract and USCG history page.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-cuyahoga-ag26-04
-
[5]NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive - Cuyahoga (AG-26), file 09/49/49026 (with USCG Historian's Office and official USCG photo captions) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 49026.htm - header/designation chain, awards ribbon block, specifications block, photo caption set (incl. USCG Historian's Office and official USCG photos)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource timeline and spec block corroborate DANFS/USCG: radio call sign NRLK; awards American Campaign Medal and World War II Victory Medal; built 1926 American Brown Boveri Electric Corp., Camden; launched 27 Jan 1927; commissioned USCGC 3 Mar 1927; transferred to USN 29 May 1933; commissioned USS Cuyahoga 1 Apr 1935; decommissioned/in-service as YX-21 27 Jul 1935; redesignated AG-26 30 Nov 1937; out of service/struck/returned to USCG 17 May 1941; lost in collision 20 Oct 1978; hulk raised and resunk as artificial reef off the Virginia Capes. Spec block: 232 t; 125' x 23'6" x 7'6"; 10 kts (1927) / 13 kts (1945); SF-1 radar and QCO-1 sonar (1945), SPS-23 radar (1960); endurance 3,500 mi at 8 kts (1945); complement 30 (1930) / 46 (1945); armament 1942 - 1x3"/23 DP + 2 depth-charge racks, 1945 - 1x40mm/60 + 2x20mm/80 + 2 Mousetraps, 1960 - 1x40mm/60; propulsion 1927 - two 6-cyl 300-hp diesels, 1945 - two GM 800-hp diesels. Photo captions document 11 Feb 1945 departure from Coast Guard Yard Curtis Bay and 29 Oct 1978 raising by two USN floating cranes, tow to Portsmouth, 26 Nov 1978 decision to scuttle, tow 15 miles offshore, sunk upright in 100 ft.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1926-1979
- Limitations
- Specialist secondary compilation - detailed but non-official; consistent with NHHC and USCG sources. Data defects logged in gaps: call sign NRLK vs MCR's NRLH; original diesels listed as 300 hp vs MCR's 150 hp Wintons; raising date 29 Oct vs MCR's 30 Oct. Contains no asbestos information; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-cuyahoga-ag26-05
-
[6]U.S. Coast Guard, ALCOAST 364/17 (22 Dec 2017), 'Medical Documentation of Asbestos and Lead Exposures on Coast Guard Cutters,' COMDT COGARD/CG-11, COMDTNOTE 6010 - citing Technical Directive HSWLSCTD 2017-009 and the published list 'Coast Guard Cutters Constructed Prior to 1991 and In Service from 1990 to 2017'; companion ALCOAST 090/18 (update) [other_primary]
- Locator
- ALCOAST 364/17 paras 1-4; DCMS CG-112 asbestos/lead page (abstract); ALCOAST 090/18
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- The operating service's own fleet-level acknowledgment: Coast Guard military members assigned to cutters constructed prior to 1991 'may have been exposed to very low levels of asbestos and lead'; routine exposure sources aboard such cutters are described (per the associated DCMS guidance) as small exposed areas of asbestos-containing thermal insulation and torn asbestos-containing floor tiles, with exceptional exposures during maintenance that tore up asbestos floor surfaces. The published covered-cutter list is expressly limited to hulls in service from 1990 to 2017 - it postdates this cutter's 1978 loss and does not name CUYAHOGA.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 2017-2018 (documentation); covers pre-1991 construction era
- Population
- USCG cutter crews of pre-1991-constructed cutters (fleet context)
- Limitations
- Service-level documentation of asbestos materials aboard pre-1991 cutters generally - does not name this hull, and its covered list is limited to cutters in service 1990-2017, which this hull (lost 1978) never reached. Establishes fleet practice, not this vessel's materials, quantity, location, condition, exposure, or causation. The covered-cutter list PDF itself could not be retrieved (dcms.uscg.mil returns HTTP 403 to automated fetch; not found in Wayback at the indexed path) - scope description taken from the ALCOAST text and DCMS page abstract.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-cuyahoga-ag26-06
-
[7]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 covering this cutter's 1942 armament refit (3"/23 gun, depth-charge racks), wartime electronics installations, and Caribbean escort service.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- 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 does not establish that asbestos was or remains aboard this hull, nor quantity, location, condition, exposure, or causation. The hull's 1927 construction predates the documented WWII program; applicability is to wartime refit/maintenance work.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-cuyahoga-ag26-07
-
[8]Empresa Lineas Maritimas Argentinas S.A. (ELMA) v. United States, 1979 AMC 2607 (D. Md. 1979), aff'd, 730 F.2d 153 (4th Cir. 1984), 1984 AMC 1698; Makin v. Empresa Lineas Maritimas Argentinas, 630 F. Supp. 1168 (D. Mass. 1986), Civ. A. No. 78-2810-N; plus commanding officer's negligent-hazarding proceeding (UCMJ Art. 110 charge text in MCR 16732/92368; NYT 'Officer Guilty in Sinking of Cutter,' 4 Nov 1979) [court_record]
- Locator
- 730 F.2d 153 (4th Cir. 1984); 1979 AMC 2607 (D. Md.); 630 F. Supp. 1168 (D. Mass. 1986); MCR Conclusions (Art. 110 charge language); NYT 1979-11-04
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Other litigation (non-asbestos) naming this hull: (a) ELMA v. United States - freighter owner's Public Vessels Act suit; district court found the Cuyahoga solely responsible (CWO4 Donald K. Robinson's errors) and held the U.S. 100% liable; on reopening, the court denied the U.S. limitation of liability under 46 U.S.C. s 183(a) for privity/knowledge (supervisory chain's awareness of Robinson's documented respiratory illness and sleep deprivation), affirmed by the Fourth Circuit. (b) Makin v. ELMA - consolidated admiralty suits by four injured crewmen and estates of the eleven dead against the freighter owner under 28 U.S.C. s 1330(a). (c) CWO4 Robinson was charged under UCMJ Article 110 (negligent hazarding) and per press coverage convicted (Nov 1979). No asbestos claim appears in any of these proceedings.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1979-1986
- Population
- Cuyahoga crew and officer candidates at loss; ELMA/Santa Cruz II interests; U.S. Government
- Limitations
- Collision/liability litigation - relevant to the hull's loss record only; none of these actions alleges asbestos exposure or addresses vessel materials. Reporter citations verified against multiple legal databases (opinions not fetched via CourtListener - API rate-limited this session; full text not reviewed). The Makin lead plaintiff shares the surname of a Cuyahoga crew member lost in the sinking (MKCS David B. Makin).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-cuyahoga-ag26-08
-
[9]Virginia Marine Resources Commission, Virginia Artificial Reefs official list - Triangle Reef entry (webapps.mrc.virginia.gov); corroborating USCG history page ('sunk off the coast of Virginia as an artificial reef') and NavSource photo captions (scuttle decision 26 Nov 1978; towed ~15 mi offshore; upright in 100 ft) [other_primary]
- Locator
- VMRC artificial_reefs_list.php, Triangle Reef entry; USCG cutter history page (Wayback); NavSource photo captions
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Official reef record and disposal documentation: VMRC lists Triangle Reef (center 36 deg 59.80'N, 75 deg 24.50'W; 16.5 nmi at 073 deg T from Chesapeake Light Tower; depth 100 ft, profile 28-32 ft) with 'Four Liberty Ships and a Coast Guard Cutter' as the main structures; secondary dive/press sources identify that cutter as the Cuyahoga, positioned just south of the reef boundary, and date the scuttling 29 March 1979 - consistent with the USCG-documented disposal path (released to GSA, scuttle decision 26 Nov 1978).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1978-1979; reef site active
- Population
- Salvage/scuttling workforce (1978-79); recreational divers (contemporary)
- Limitations
- The VMRC list does not name the cutter (identification as Cuyahoga rests on USCG history + secondary sources); the 29 Mar 1979 scuttle date is secondary-sourced - the MCR (Jul 1979) records release to GSA but the fetched sections do not carry the reef date. No pre-sinking hazmat or materials survey for the hull was located; documents disposal pathway only, not materials content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-cuyahoga-ag26-09
-
[10]Batch-657 search ledger (this record): DANFS via ibiblio/hazegray mirrors; USCG FORCECOM cutter history via Wayback; shipscribe AG-26; NavSource 49026; USCG MCR 16732/92368 (full-text OCR); NTSB-MAR-79-03 via TRID; VMRC artificial reef list; ALCOAST 364/17; CourtListener API (blocked); indexed-web litigation sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-cuyahoga-ag26-01 through sl-uss-cuyahoga-ag26-11
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, court finding, or docketed asbestos case naming USS Cuyahoga / AG-26 / USCGC Cuyahoga / WSC-157 / WIX-157 was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). The 66-page USCG Marine Casualty Report contains no asbestos or insulation-material mention (full-text OCR verified). Indexed-web asbestos-litigation hits for 'Cuyahoga' are all Cuyahoga County, Ohio court-name collisions (e.g., In re Cuyahoga County Asbestos Cases; Bartel v. Farrell Lines; Ferguson v. Lorillard) - not this vessel. A law-firm marketing page (freeasbestostesting.com) lists 'USS Cuyahoga (AG-26)' in a generic auxiliary-ships asbestos list without any primary support - excluded per the no-law-firm-sources rule and logged in the batch report.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 2026-09-20
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1927-built cutter with wartime refits and five decades of machinery work is era-consistent with asbestos-containing materials, and the sunken wreck has had no known abatement. Does not establish presence or absence; does not establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility. CourtListener API sweeps were fully blocked (HTTP 429, 'Rate limit exceeded: 125/day', shared machine quota exhausted by prior batch work; retry-after ~9h) - the negative litigation finding rests on indexed-web checking rather than the systematic name/hull-number API sweep.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-cuyahoga-ag26-10
-
[11]NARA Guide to Federal Records: RG 26 (Records of the U.S. Coast Guard - cutter logbooks, Marine Board of Investigation records), RG 24 (Records of the Bureau of Naval Personnel - Navy deck logs); USCG Historian's Office cutter file [other_primary]
- Locator
- https://www.archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records/groups/026.html ; /groups/024.html
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads (not retrieved - requires research-room or reproduction order; no spend authorized): USCG cutter logbooks and unit records for Cuyahoga (RG 26) covering the Rum Patrol, WWII escort, Curtis Bay Field Testing and Development Unit, and Yorktown training periods; the Marine Board of Investigation case file behind MCR 16732/92368 (testimony and exhibits may carry material-condition detail absent from the published report); Navy-era records for the 1933-1941 AG-26/YX-21 period (RG 24 deck logs); the GSA disposal file for the 1978-79 release/scuttling (the most promising hazmat-preparation lead, since pre-reef pollutant stripping was standard practice per VMRC's Liberty-ship description); USCG Historian's Office cutter files and photo collection (NH 82188 et al.).
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1927-1979 records
- Limitations
- Record-group mapping only - no box-level retrieval performed; existence of asbestos-specific documents for this hull is unknown until surveyed in person. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-cuyahoga-ag26-11