Evidence
11 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-11).
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[1]DANFS, 'Ampere' entry (NHHC, published 2015-06-16), verbatim text via Internet Archive Wayback capture 2025-01-25 - live NHHC page returns 404; the hull's DANFS coverage is filed under Ampere, its only commissioned-era name [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS 'Ampere' entry, full entry text + spec parenthetical (Wayback capture 20250125124849)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for this hull: 'Drake (AM-359), an Admirable-class minesweeper, was laid down on 24 November 1943 at Portland, Oreg., by the Willamette Iron & Steel Corp. and launched on 12 August 1944. On 20 April 1945, her name was cancelled, and she was redesignated a degaussing vessel, YDG-11. The ship was placed in service on 15 August 1945, the day after Japan capitulated.' Berthed with the Pacific Reserve Fleet at San Diego on inactive in-service status until winter 1946-47, then out of service in reserve; redesignated ADG-11 on 1 November 1947; inactive until again placed in service July 1951; based at Yokosuka until sometime in 1954, then home-ported at Sasebo; named Ampere 1 February 1955; placed out of service February 1957; remained in reserve in the Far East until summer 1961; struck from the Navy list 1 July 1961; sold 21 June 1962 to Philippine President Lines, Manila. Spec block (YDG-11): dp. 625; l. 184'9"; b. 33'0"; dr. 9'0"; s. 14 k.; cpl. 68; a. 1 3".
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1943-1962
- Population
- Willamette construction trades 1943-45; YDG-11/ADG-11 crews 1945-57
- Limitations
- DANFS documents identity, status timeline, and a YDG-11 spec block - not materials or asbestos content; supports no asbestos claim. The entry is filed under 'Ampere' (the hull's only commissioned-era name) - there is no standalone DANFS 'Drake' entry; the live NHHC page is link-rotted (404 on 2026-09-22, standing Batch-01 defect), text verified against the Wayback capture. Spec figures are the completed-YDG-11 configuration, not the as-designed minesweeper.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-drake-am359-01
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[2]U.S. Navy, Bureau of Ships, Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels, Vol. II: Mine Vessels (less CM & DM), Patrol Vessels, Landing Ships and Craft, NAVSHIPS 250-011 (13 April 1945), and Vol. III (district craft incl. YDG table) - shipscribe.com scans [other_primary]
- Locator
- NAVSHIPS 250-011 Vol II (shipscribe.com PDF): machinery table + class characteristics, AM351-366 block, PDF pp. 57-58; name index 'AM359 DRAKE (now YDG11)'; note 'AM359 reclassified YDG11 on 20 Apr. 45' at end of AM table. Vol III: YDG table, book p. 507 (PDF p. 526)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Primary BuShips tabulation for this hull and class block. Vol II name index: 'AM359 DRAKE (now YDG11)'; ship index: 'Drake (ex-) YDG11, District Craft - Degaussing Vessel, p. 507'. Machinery table (minesweepers section, book pp. 38-40): the AM-351-366 block (Adjutant through Harrier) carries 'B. S. 539' Busch-Sulzer 539 diesel engines at 1,710 shp with 'F. B.' (Farrel-Birmingham) single reduction gear, and the class characteristics table lists AM351-366 as 'Diesel' drive (not diesel-electric), 2 shafts, 184'6" oa / 180'0" pp x 33'0", 945 t limiting draft, 14.8 kt design speed. AM-359 itself is footnoted out of the Vol II tables: 'Note: AM359 reclassified YDG11 on 20 Apr. 45. For data see YDG11 in volume III.' Vol III 'Degaussing Vessels (YDG)' table (book p. 507): 'YDG11 - 184'9" x 33'0" x 9'0" - Diesel - 1,800 shp - Willamette Iron & Steel Co., Portland, Oreg. - Ex-AM359; ex-Drake.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1945 (document date)
- Population
- Willamette construction trades 1943-45; crews 1945-57
- Limitations
- Contemporary BuShips data documents design/machinery and the reclassification - not materials or asbestos content. Vol III prints 1,800 shp for YDG-11 where the Vol II class block and NavSource print 1,710 shp (per-engine) - the variance is logged in gaps, not reconciled. The April 1945 publication date means the AM tables reflect pre-conversion configuration.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-drake-am359-02
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[3]NavSource Online, Mine Warfare Vessel Photo Archive, 'Ampere (ADG 11) ex-YDG-11 ex-Drake (AM 359) ex-PCE-919' - hull chronology, specifications, commanding-officer roster, photograph archive [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource archive page 11/02359: chronology, specifications, and commanding-officer blocks; photo caption for 19-N-88322
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Hull-specific record: 'Admirable Class Minesweeper'; originally planned as Patrol Craft Escort PCE-919; laid down 24 November 1943 as the minesweeper Drake (AM 359) by Willamette Iron and Steel Corp., Portland, OR; launched 12 August 1944; on 20 April 1945 her name was canceled and she was reclassified District Degaussing Vessel YDG-11; placed in service as USS YDG-11 15 August 1945; placed out of service in 1946; reclassified Degaussing Ship ADG-11 1 November 1947; laid up Pacific Reserve Fleet San Diego Group; placed in service July 1951; named Ampere 1 February 1955; placed out of service February 1957; struck 1 July 1961; sold 21 June 1962 to Philippine President Lines of Manila; fate unknown. Specifications: 625 t, 184'6" x 33' x 9'9", 14 kts, complement 68, one 3"/50 DP mount; propulsion 'Two 1,710shp Busch Sulzer 539 diesel engines, Farrel-Birmingham single reduction gear, two shafts.' Commanding-officer roster begins LT John B. Fallon, USNR (15 August 1945) through LT William Henry Hudgins, LT Leroy M. Johnston, LTJG Robert M. Snyder (to 15 January 1947) and the 1951-57 officers. Photographs include NARA 19-N-88322, builder photo of YDG-11 underway 14 August 1945 (Naval Historical Center via shipscribe.com).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1943-1962 (documented); Philippine era undocumented
- Population
- USN crew 1945-47 and 1951-57 (DANFS/NavSource complement 68); Philippine commercial crew post-1962
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer-maintained archive aggregating official data (DANFS, NVR); construction and registry dates agree with DANFS and NAVSHIPS 250-011. Its 'decommissioned in November 1947' entry conflates the 1 November 1947 ADG-11 reclassification with the completed 15 January 1947 inactivation - reconciled in ev-05. Spec block's 184'6" length and 9'9" draft differ from the DANFS YDG-11 block (184'9", 9'0") - logged in gaps. No materials or asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-drake-am359-03
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[4]Stephen S. Roberts, 'USS Lodestone (ADG-8) Class,' Shipscribe U.S. Navy Auxiliary Ships reference (compiled 2002-2006 from BuShips/CNO records) [other_primary]
- Locator
- ADG-8 class page - Construction table (ADG-11 row), Disposition table, Class Notes, Ship Notes (AMPERE row)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Class-page construction/disposition and ship-note record for AMPERE (ADG-11): reclassified 20 Apr 45; built by Willamette Iron & Steel, keel 24 Nov 43, launched 12 Aug 44, in service 15 Aug 45; decommissioned 18 Mar 57; stricken 1 Jul 61; disposed 21 Jun 62, sold. Ship notes: 'Ex DRAKE (AM-359) 20 Apr 45. Sent to Guam, immobilized there Apr 46 due to lack of personnel and ordered home to decommission. Arrived at San Pedro 30 May. Selected 19 Sep 46 to remain "In Commission, In Reserve" after inactivation. Towed from San Pedro to San Diego by ATR-66 11 Dec 46. Placed in inactive status 24 Dec 46, "In Commission, In Reserve." Placed "Out of Commission, In Reserve" 15 Jan 47 ... Reclassified ADG-11 from YDG-11 1 Nov 47. Placed in commission 28 Aug 51 and stationed in Yokosuka and, after 1 Oct 54, in Sasebo, Japan. Name assigned 1 Feb 55 ... Ordered inactivated and retained in the Far East 18 Jan 57, decommissioned ... 18 Mar 57. Replaced as ADG by SURFBIRD (MSF 383). ... Sold to Philippine President Lines 21 Jun 62 (also reported as 9 Jul 62, possibly the delivery date).' Class notes: YDG-11 was created to reuse the Bureau of Ordnance deperming equipment from YDG-3 (ex-YP-522, the 1930 tuna boat 'Chicken of the Sea,' found unseaworthy from dry rot in March 1945); on 19 Apr 45 CNO directed the gear be installed in DRAKE then building at Willamette; the gear could deperm ships up to Liberty-ship size by one technique, destroyers and LSTs by another, submarines and LSMs by a third. 'DRAKE was one of a group of ships that was built unusually slowly - the two ships on either side of her in the production sequence, DOTTEREL (AM-258) [sic] and DRIVER (AM-360), were finally cancelled incomplete on 1 Nov 45.' Sep-Oct 1947 reclassification sequence: CNO proposed AGD 1-4; BuShips counter-proposed ADG 8-11; SecNav approved ADG 13 Oct 47.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1943-1962
- Population
- USN crew 1945-57; Willamette workforce 1943-45
- Limitations
- Compiled secondary reference assembled from official BuShips/CNO records, not a scan of underlying documents; log-level detail is as published by the compiler. The class-note text prints the neighbor hull as 'DOTTEREL (AM-258)' - a misprint; the cancelled Willamette neighbor was Dotterel (AM-358), yard hull 44, per the Colton production list (ev-06). The AM design figures cited for the type (945 t limiting draft, 14.8 kt, accommodations for 104) are design data, not this hull's as-completed YDG configuration. No asbestos or materials information; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-drake-am359-04
-
[5]NavSource 11/02359 chronology vs. Shipscribe ADG-8 ship notes vs. DANFS 'Ampere' entry - status-date reconciliation [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 11/02359 chronology + spec block; Shipscribe ADG-8 ship notes (AMPERE row); DANFS 'Ampere' entry
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Timeline discrepancies resolved: (a) NavSource lists 'placed out of service in 1946' and 'decommissioned in November 1947,' but the Shipscribe log-level record shows the first inactivation completed 15 Jan 47 ('Out of Commission, In Reserve') and November 1947 was the YDG-11-to-ADG-11 reclassification date, not a decommissioning - NavSource's 'decommissioned November 1947' conflates the two events. (b) DANFS 'placed in service July 1951' vs. Shipscribe 'placed in commission 28 Aug 51' - distinct status events retained as stated by each source. (c) DANFS 'placed out of service February 1957' vs. Shipscribe 'ordered inactivated 18 Jan 57; decommissioned to Out of Commission, In Reserve 18 Mar 57' - the Shipscribe status-change date is adopted as controlling for decommission. (d) Complement: DANFS and NavSource spec blocks read 68; Shipscribe class design data gives 99 (PCE design) and notes AM-type accommodations for 104 - DANFS/NavSource carried, variance logged in gaps.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1945-1962
- Limitations
- Resolves publication-level inconsistencies between a photo-archive timeline and a compiled status record; the underlying BuShips/deck-log documents were not retrieved. Does not affect identity or disposal dates materially. No asbestos content in any of these sources.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-drake-am359-05
-
[6]Tim Colton, Shipbuilding History - Willamette Iron & Steel (WISCO) yard list, Portland OR (updated 2020-10-06) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Willamette Iron & Steel hull list, rows 42-46
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Yard production list entry no. 45: 'Drake (PCE 919/AM 359),' U.S. Navy, minesweeper, 650d tons, 185 ft, delivered 15-Aug-45; disposition column reads 'Reclassified YDG 11 1945, ADG 11 1947, named Ampere 1955, sold 1962 to Philippine owners' - corroborating builder identity, yard hull sequence, and the DANFS/Shipscribe timeline from the yard side. Neighboring rows document the slow-build context: hull 44 Dotterel (PCE 918/AM 358) 'Cancelled'; hull 46 Driver (PCE 920/AM 360) 'Cancelled'; hulls 42 Creddock and 43 Dipper not delivered until December 1945. Yard history note: Willamette Iron Works founded 1865 as a general foundry, renamed Willamette Iron & Steel 1904, continued as a repair yard after WWII, closed 1990; yard located at the foot of N.W. 17th Avenue, Portland.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1943-1962
- Population
- Willamette construction trades 1943-45
- Limitations
- Compiled yard-reference table (not a contract document); '650d' is the yard's delivered-tonnage convention and '185' is rounded length. No asbestos or materials information; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-drake-am359-06
-
[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); design/machinery context from NAVSHIPS 250-011 Vols II-III (documented plant for this hull) [other_primary]
- Locator
- AJIM 11(3):359-373 (abstract and article); NAVSHIPS 250-011 Vol II AM351-366 machinery line; Vol III YDG-11 row
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- The hull was built in 1943-45 at a wartime Oregon contract yard to a U.S. Navy Bureau of Ships design - the era and program in which peer-reviewed scholarship documents extensive asbestos use in U.S. shipbuilding (thermal insulation, fireproofing, gaskets, packing). As a diesel direct-drive vessel (documented plant: two Busch-Sulzer 539 diesels, Farrel-Birmingham reduction gear, two shafts - no boilers or steam plant), era-typical asbestos applications for this type would center on exhaust-uptake/muffler insulation, piping gaskets and valve packing, electrical insulation - including the 1945 BuOrd deperming gear inherited from YDG-3 - deck coverings and accommodation insulation, and brake linings on deck machinery.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1943-1945 construction; 1945-1957 service
- Population
- Construction trades (Willamette, Portland, 1943-45); crew and yard workers (1945-57); post-1962 commercial crew undocumented
- Limitations
- Program/era-level scholarship plus design-type inference; neither source names this hull or documents any material aboard it. The application list is era-typical for the type, not ship-proven; does not establish presence, quantity, location, condition, exposure, or causation. NARA RG 19 General Information Books are the archival path for hull-level material specs - not retrieved.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-drake-am359-07
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[8]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (Oct 18, 1979) [gao]
- Locator
- GAO product page HRD-80-2 + indexed report text (gao.gov/assets/hrd-80-2.pdf blocked, HTTP 403)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- GAO's program review of Navy asbestos exposure records the Navy's position that 'all ships contain some asbestos in such components as clutches and electric cables' and that thermal insulation was 'the Navy's major use of asbestos aboard ships.' Era-level confirmation that WWII-built Navy hulls carried asbestos-containing components; for this diesel direct-drive auxiliary the thermal-insulation pathway is largely absent by design, leaving the small-component uses (cable insulation, gaskets, clutch/brake linings, exhaust lagging) as the era-consistent candidates.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1979 (report); WWII-era construction program
- Population
- Navy shipyard workers and ship crews, WWII-1970s (program scope)
- Limitations
- Program-level finding, not hull documentation - the GAO report does not name this vessel or class. gao.gov full-text PDF returns HTTP 403 to automated fetches (standing Batch-01 defect); product page and indexed report text used. Does not establish what was installed aboard AM-359.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-drake-am359-08
-
[9]Lineaweaver v. Plant Insulation Co., 31 Cal. App. 4th 1409, 37 Cal. Rptr. 2d 902 (1995) - published California appellate opinion in asbestos personal-injury litigation; Atlas shipyard dataset carries Willamette Iron & Steel at evidence_tier 3 on this opinion [court_record]
- Locator
- Opinion, 31 Cal. App. 4th 1409 (1995); Atlas shipyards.json record 'willamette-iron-steel' (ev-willamette-01); OSHRC Docket 12516 decision
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Published appellate record documents asbestos-containing product use at 'Willamette Shipyard': the opinion states 'Pabco was used only as fill-in at Willamette in the 1960s and 1970s' - i.e., Pabco (Fibreboard) insulation products were present at the builder's yard in the postwar repair era. The Atlas shipyards dataset maps this opinion to the willamette-iron-steel yard record (tier 3), flagging that the opinion names only 'Willamette Shipyard' and the identification with Willamette Iron & Steel Corp., Portland, is an inference.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1960s-1970s (yard exposure documented); opinion 1995
- Population
- Willamette yard workforce, 1960s-70s (documented window)
- Limitations
- Yard-level litigation context, not hull-specific: the documented window (1960s-70s repair work) postdates this hull's 1943-45 construction by two decades and involves unidentified vessels. Does not establish asbestos aboard this hull, does not identify any product installed on it, and does not address crew exposure. The yard-identification inference is the dataset's own flagged caveat. OSHRC decisions (1972-75 housekeeping citations at the yard's Swan Island dry dock, e.g., repair work on USS Point Defiance) document the yard's postwar repair operations but contain no asbestos findings.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-drake-am359-09
-
[10]Batch-1302 search ledger (this record): NHHC/DANFS (live + Wayback), NAVSHIPS 250-011 Vols II-III, NavSource, Shipscribe, Shipbuilding History yard list, Atlas shipyards.json, CourtListener API v4, CourtListener/Justia-indexed litigation, general web, ToxicDocs, OSHRC decisions, Oregon Historical Society ArchivesSpace [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-drake-am359-01 through sl-uss-drake-am359-10
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or docketed case naming this hull under any identity (Drake AM-359, YDG-11, ADG-11, Ampere) was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). CourtListener API v4 could not be queried (HTTP 429 - authenticated 2,800/day quota exhausted before this batch ran); web-index searches returned only law-firm listicle pages naming the ship in boilerplate minesweeper/auxiliary lists (mesothelioma.com lists 'USS Drake AM-359 Admirable 8/15/1945 Sold, 1962'; mesotheliomahelp.org, freeasbestostesting.com, mesothelioma.net similar - all excluded as sources under batch rules) and name collisions (Drake v. A C & S, 1:89-cv-00594 - asbestos PI suit by a plaintiff surnamed Drake; W.R. Grace bankruptcy claimant 'DRAKE, WILLIAM HOWARD'; Navy asbestos opinions naming other hulls - USS Bluefish, USS Sam Houston, USS Point Defiance, USS Tolovana). No qualifying result.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 2026-09-22
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - the ship's 1943-45 Navy-contract construction is consistent with era-standard asbestos use. The CourtListener quota block means the docket/opinion index check is incomplete; re-run when quota resets. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-drake-am359-10
-
[11]NARA guidance: U.S. Navy Ship Deck Logs, RG 24 Entry 118 (NAID 581208), logs 1941+ held at Archives II College Park; NARA still-picture holdings (NavSource cites NARA photo 19-N-88322 ex-Naval Historical Center); Oregon Historical Society, 'Willamette Iron and Steel Company records' collection (ArchivesSpace repository 2, resource 913), business documents and plans c. 1902-1944 [other_primary]
- Locator
- archives.gov/research/military/logbooks/navy; RG 24 Entry 118; RG 19; ohs.libraryhost.com/repositories/2/resources/913
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads (not retrieved - reproduction order or research-room visit required; no spend authorized): deck logs for YDG-11/ADG-11, 1945-1957, in NARA RG 24 at Archives II, College Park; BuShips records (RG 19) may hold the AM-359-to-YDG-11 conversion documentation and the YDG-3 deperming-equipment transfer order; NARA still pictures include at least one cataloged image of this vessel (19-N-88322, builder photo underway 14 August 1945). The Oregon Historical Society holds the Willamette Iron and Steel Company records collection (business documents and plans, c. 1902-1944) - the construction-era window for this hull. Deck logs and yard records would document operations, yard periods, and any recorded material-handling events.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1943-1962 records
- Limitations
- Record-group and catalog mapping only - no box-level retrieval performed; whether any asbestos-relevant entry exists in these files is unknown until surveyed. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-drake-am359-11