Evidence
8 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-8).
-
[1]research packet 1023-packet.md [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-dewees-yfb37-pkt-1023-packet-md
-
[2]DANFS, Dewees (YFB-37) 1942-1945 - Naval History and Heritage Command (live page) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry body, single paragraph (published 2024-08-15)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS entry (live NHHC page verified 2026-10-04): Dewees (YFB-37), named for an island off the coast of South Carolina, formerly Manatee, was acquired by the Navy in 1942 and assigned to the 6th Naval District; on 11 October 1945 she was stricken from the Navy List.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1942-1945
- Limitations
- Authoritative for identity, namesake, acquisition year, district assignment, and striking date. Contains no construction, propulsion, materials, or asbestos information; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-dewees-yfb37-01
-
[3]NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive, Dewees (YFB-37) - construction/ownership timeline, Navy acquisition and disposal, specifications [other_primary]
- Locator
- Yard Ferryboat timeline and Specifications blocks (page last updated 2020-09-18)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource Service Ship Photo Archive timeline (verified live 2026-10-04): built by Howard Shipyard Co., Jeffersonville IN; completed 1891 as harbor passenger ferry Josie (ON 76974); operated as relief ferry at New Orleans; owned by Algiers Public Service Co., New Orleans, circa 1925; sold to Tampa Bay Ferry & Transportation Co., Tampa FL, rebuilt into a single-ended vehicle ferry and renamed Manatee, 1931; restyled as Bee Line Ferry, 1938; acquired by the Navy 28 July 1942; placed in service as Dewees (YFB-37), 1942; allocated to the Sixth Naval District; placed out of service, date unknown; struck from the Naval Register 11 October 1945; registered to St. Petersburg Port Authority, St. Petersburg FL, 1946; sold and reflagged Cuban, 1955; final disposition unknown. Specifications: 229 gross tons / 180 net tons; 137'0" x 25'5" x 9'0"; two Atlas Imperial 6-cylinder diesels, twin propellers, 400 bhp; no armament; complement unknown.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1891-1955
- Limitations
- Volunteer-compiled archival record, not an official Navy publication; the ownership/registration chain (New Orleans, Tampa, St. Petersburg, Cuba) and exact acquisition date (28 July 1942) rest on NavSource's compilation and are not independently corroborated here - DANFS corroborates only acquisition year, district, and striking. Internal inconsistency: timeline says 'Allocated to the Sixth Naval District, 1942 - 1946' although striking was 11 October 1945 (carried in gaps). Contains no asbestos or materials information; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-dewees-yfb37-02
-
[4]Era inference built on: GAO HRD-80-2 (Navy-wide asbestos insulation use; see ev-uss-dewees-yfb37-04) + NavSource propulsion specifications (diesel plant, no steam) for this hull [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource Specifications block; GAO HRD-80-2 product description
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era inference: the U.S. Navy used asbestos-containing thermal insulation, gaskets, packing, and related products fleet-wide during this hull's 1942-1945 service period (GAO HRD-80-2, program-level). For a diesel-powered harbor ferry with no steam plant (two Atlas Imperial diesels per NavSource specifications), plausible era-standard asbestos-relevant applications would be limited to engine exhaust lagging, machinery gaskets and valve packing, and electrical insulation.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1942-1945 (naval service); era documented 1940s-1970s
- Population
- Ferry crew and passengers, Sixth Naval District (1942-1945); shipyard/ferry-maintenance trades (civilian career 1891-1942)
- Limitations
- Inference from era practice and documented propulsion type, not a hull record - no source states that any asbestos product was installed aboard this hull. The diesel plant makes boiler/turbine lagging (the dominant shipboard asbestos application) inapplicable at Navy acquisition, but does not rule out exhaust, gasket, packing, or electrical applications. Does not establish quantity, location, condition, individual exposure, or causation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-dewees-yfb37-03
-
[5]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (Oct 18, 1979) [gao]
- Locator
- GAO product page HRD-80-2
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- GAO program-level report documents that the Navy used asbestos insulation aboard its ships and that Navy efforts to protect workers from asbestos exposure were a recognized problem by the late 1970s - the program context for any WWII-era naval vessel, including district craft of this hull's period.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- report 1979; practices described span WWII era onward
- Population
- Navy shipyard workers and ship crews (program context)
- Limitations
- gao.gov returned HTTP 403 to automated fetch on 2026-10-04 (standing access limitation since Batch 01); the product-page description was used, full text not pulled. Program-level document: does not name this hull, does not establish asbestos aboard any specific vessel, and says nothing about district ferry craft specifically.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-dewees-yfb37-04
-
[6]Batch-8747 CourtListener sweeps via cl-auth-search.py (authenticated, fleet-paced): exact-name opinion, exact-name docket, hull-number opinion, hull-number docket [court_record]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-dewees-yfb37-08 through sl-uss-dewees-yfb37-11
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- PENDING-COURTLISTENER
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 2026-10-04
- Limitations
- PENDING-COURTLISTENER
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-dewees-yfb37-05
-
[7]Batch-8747 search ledger (this record): DANFS live page; NavSource; shipbuildinghistory.com YFB and Howard yard tables (corroboration); HyperWar DANFS mirror attempt; NVR attempt; NARA catalog attempt; GAO product page; web asbestos sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-dewees-yfb37-01 through sl-uss-dewees-yfb37-12
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or primary materials document naming this hull was found in the public sources searched (DANFS, NavSource, NARA catalog attempt, GAO, secondary web sweep). The only asbestos content surfaced by name/hull web searches is law-firm marketing listicles (mesothelioma-claim sites) asserting Navy-ship asbestos exposure generically without primary sourcing - excluded by source policy.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 2026-10-04
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 51-year-old hull acquired for wartime district service received no documented materials survey in any located source. 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-dewees-yfb37-06
-
[8]NARA Catalog search attempt for "YFB-37" (blocked - SPA shell); series-level leads RG 24 ship logs and RG 181 Sixth Naval District records [other_primary]
- Locator
- catalog.archives.gov API v2 records/search?q=YFB-37 - returned application shell, no records payload
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival lead: NARA holds records of naval district craft and vessel logs (RG 24, Records of the Bureau of Naval Personnel - logs of U.S. Navy ships and stations; RG 19/RG 181 district and yard records for the Sixth Naval District). The NARA Catalog API route (catalog.archives.gov/api/v2) returned only the JavaScript application shell to automated fetch on 2026-10-04, so no hull-specific catalog entry could be confirmed or excluded this session.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 2026-10-04
- Limitations
- Access gap, not a missing source: the catalog could not be queried this session, so the presence or absence of digitized YFB-37 logs or Sixth Naval District ferry records is undetermined. District-craft logs for small yard ferries are frequently fragmentary even when series survive. No asbestos content confirmed or excluded.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-dewees-yfb37-07