Evidence
11 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-11).
-
[1]research packet gj-packet.md (2 sources cited) [nhhc_danfs]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-drexler-dd741-pkt-gj-packet-md
-
[2]DANFS, Drexler (DD-741) (namesake biography, specifications block, service narrative, loss; verbatim transcription - live NHHC page serves 404) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry, specifications block + service narrative (HyperWar/ibiblio transcription)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for this hull: Allen M. Sumner-class destroyer (dp. 2,200; l. 376'6"; s. 34 k.; cpl. 336); launched 3 September 1944 by Bath Iron Works Corp., Bath, Maine, sponsored by Mrs. L. A. Drexler; commissioned 14 November 1944, Commander R. L. Wilson in command. Sailed from Norfolk 23 January 1945 escorting Bon Homme Richard (CV-31) to Trinidad; San Diego 10 February; Pearl Harbor antiaircraft and shore-bombardment exercises; departed 23 February for Guadalcanal and Ulithi; departed Ulithi 27 March for Okinawa radar-picket duty. On 28 May at 0700 two suicide planes attacked Drexler and Lowry (DD-770); the second missed Lowry and 'stumbled into Drexler, cutting off all power and starting large gasoline fires'; at 0703 another suicider crashed into the superstructure, a tremendous explosion followed, and the destroyer rolled on her starboard side and sank stern first in 27 deg 06' N., 127 deg 38' E., 'less than a minute after the second hit.' Casualties: 168 dead and 52 wounded, including the commanding officer. One battle star for World War II service.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1944-1945
- Population
- Bath Iron Works construction trades 1944; commissioning crew at Boston Navy Yard; wartime crew Nov 1944-May 1945 (design complement 336)
- Limitations
- DANFS documents service history and specifications, not materials or asbestos content. Entry omits the laid-down date (NavSource/compilations give 24 April 1944) and carries no stricken note. Namesake's USNA class year reads '1922' in this transcription while the official Navy biography reproduced in Wilde (2003) reads June 1924 - conflict carried in gaps. Casualty figures conflict with other compilations (164, 158) - carried in gaps. Mirror transcription cited because the live NHHC page returns 404.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-drexler-dd741-01
-
[3]USS Drexler (DD-741) commissioning-day deck log remarks sheet, NAVPERS form, 14 November 1944 - reproduced in E. Andrew Wilde, Jr. (ed.), The U.S.S. Drexler (DD-741) in World War II: Documents, Photographs, Recollections (Needham, MA, privately published 2003), p. ~11 [other_primary]
- Locator
- Wilde compilation, deck-log section (commissioning-day remarks sheet); NARA naId 125714559 (original)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The hull's own deck log for Tuesday 14 November 1944: 'Destroyer with Hull Number 741 from Bath Iron Works moored portside to ... west side of Pier 2, Boston Navy Yard'; records the commissioning ceremony minute-by-minute - Rear Admiral Felix Gygax, Commandant First Naval District, read the commissioning directive at 1511; Commander R. L. Wilson, USN, reported ready, read his orders and 'accepted command of the USS DREXLER' at 1532. Establishes Bath Iron Works as builder and Boston Navy Yard as commissioning site from the ship's own record.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1944
- Population
- Commissioning crew and Bath Iron Works working crew, Boston Navy Yard, 14 Nov 1944
- Limitations
- Reproduced facsimile of a primary record in a privately compiled volume - the original deck log is held at NARA (RG 24, naId 125714559, 'Drexler (DD-741), 11/14/44-5/28/45'). OCR of the scanned page was used; the log documents construction/commissioning facts, not materials. Does not address asbestos.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-drexler-dd741-02
-
[4]USS Drexler (DD-741) Action Report 'Involving Loss of U.S.S. DREXLER (DD741),' CO to C-in-C U.S. Fleet, serial DD741/L1L, 26 June 1945; Action Reports for period 23 February-28 May 1945, Serial 0115-45, 16 July 1945; Anti-Aircraft Action Report of 4 May 1945, Serial 0109-45, 12 May 1945; with ComDesRon 63 first endorsement (Serial 097, 1 Aug 1945) and second endorsement (18 Aug 1945) - reproduced in Wilde (2003); originals at NARA RG 38 (naId 77466554 loss report; naId 101742392 Okinawa ops report) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Wilde compilation pp. ~35-76 (action reports + endorsements); NARA RG 38 naId 77466554, naId 101742392 (originals)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The commanding officer's official action reports for this hull: picket-duty history (Radar Picket Stations 3, 5, and 15; 4 May 1945 AA action with Wadsworth DD-516; Tori Shima occupation ~10-12 May; first RPS-15 tour with Gainard DD-706 under three nights of attack) and the 28 May 1945 loss narrative - first kamikaze hit starboard side between main deck and waterline at frame 114, 'steam lines in the engine rooms and after fireroom were ruptured,' all power lost; second kamikaze crashed just aft of No. 2 stack at ~0703; 'the ship turned over flat on her starboard side and then sank stern first disappearing from sight 49 seconds after the second hit.' Squadron endorsement records 'fifty-one wounded' and that 'the majority of the personnel below decks in a position to observe machinery and hull damage were lost with the ship.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1945
- Population
- Crew of USS Drexler, 23 Feb-28 May 1945; rescue crews of LCS(L) 55, 56, 114
- Limitations
- Reproduced facsimiles of official reports (Office of Naval Records and Library stamp visible); scanned pages OCR'd - the endorsement's killed/missing figure falls on a page not legibly reproduced (DANFS records 168 dead, 52 wounded; conflicts carried in gaps). Documents the high-pressure steam plant and its battle destruction - ruptured steam lines throughout the engineering spaces - but states nothing about insulation materials or asbestos content. Not an asbestos finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-drexler-dd741-03
-
[5]Recorded post-loss narrative, Film No. 410: Commander R. L. Wilson, USN, and Lt. Cmdr. R. G. Bidwell, USN (USS Drexler DD-741, 'Sunk off Okinawa - Suicide Planes'), recorded 25 July 1945 (rough transcript 13 Nov 1945, smooth transcript 17 Dec 1945) - reproduced in Wilde (2003); original at NARA RG 38 (naId 278475575) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Wilde compilation pp. ~133-147 (Film 410 transcript); NARA RG 38 naId 278475575 (original recording)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The Navy-recorded oral account of the commanding officer and executive officer: ordered to Radar Picket Station 15 (modified) at 0130 on 28 May with Lowry, relieving Boyd and Ammen ~0400, support craft LCS(L) 55 and 56, Wilson senior CO acting as OTC; first hit broke 'steam lines in the after fire room and in both engine rooms' and demolished the after main distribution board; forward plant then lost; ship 'practically dead in the water' firing in local/hand control; second hit aft of No. 2 stack, explosion, rolled to starboard and sank stern-first in 49 seconds; life rafts did not release; survivors recovered by LCS(L) 55, 56, and 114 (114 picking up most); wounded processed via Crescent City, well survivors to Lauderdale (APA-179).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1945
- Population
- USS Drexler crew; survivors in the water ~30-45 min before recovery
- Limitations
- Contemporaneous recorded narrative transcribed Nov-Dec 1945; details differ slightly from the formal action report and DANFS on sequence timing - consistent with a from-memory account. Documents engineering-plant destruction; says nothing about asbestos or insulation materials.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-drexler-dd741-04
-
[6]NavSource Naval History, Destroyer Photo Index DD-741 USS Drexler (Wayback capture 2024-12-09; live navsource.org unreachable during session) - operational/building data and class spec block citing official USN photos [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource DD-741 page, 'Operational and Building Data' + spec block + commanding-officers list
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource photographic-history record for this hull: 'Laid down by Bath Iron Works, Bath ME April 24 1944. Launched September 3 1944 and commissioned November 14 1944. Sunk by Japanese Kamikaze Aircraft off Okinawa May 28 1945. 164 of her crew were lost with the ship.' Spec block: Allen M. Sumner class as built, 3,218 tons full, 376'6" x 40'10" x 14'2", 6 x 5"/38 (3x2), 12 x 40mm, 11 x 20mm, 10 x 21" tt (2x5), 60,000 shp GE geared turbines, 2 screws, 36.5 kt, crew 336; CO CDR 'Robert Lee Wilson' Nov 14 1944-May 28 1945; call sign NHHY.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1944-1945
- Population
- Construction crew Bath 1944; ship's company 1944-45
- Limitations
- Secondary photographic-history compilation citing official USN photos - supplies the laid-down date that DANFS omits (corroborated by NavalCoverMuseum and the class profile's navypedia-derived 1944-04). Its casualty figure (164) conflicts with DANFS (168 dead) and other compilations (158); its 'Robert Lee Wilson' conflicts with the DesRon 63 endorsement's 'Ronald L. Wilson' - both carried in gaps. Not an asbestos source.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-drexler-dd741-05
-
[7]DANFS specifications block (Allen M. Sumner class; 4 B&W boilers / GE geared turbines / 60,000 shp per class design) + Atlas shipyard dataset, bath-iron-works record (yard-level asbestos documentation incl. 1942-era pipe-covering-shop industrial-hygiene study; OSHA 1987 inspection; Kaylo pipe covering / Foster Wheeler gaskets / asbestos felt / loose packing documented at yard level); NARA RG 19 General Information Books archival lead [other_primary]
- Locator
- DANFS specifications block; shipyards.json record 'bath-iron-works' (tier 2); Wilde compilation survivor recollection (Eastman, WT2c)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/yard inference: a Sumner-class destroyer built April-September 1944 at Bath Iron Works with a four-boiler, 60,000-shp high-pressure steam plant (survivor testimony in the same compilation records 600-psi/900-deg F steam in the after fireroom) would have carried period-standard asbestos boiler and steam-line insulation, turbine lagging, gaskets, packing, fireproofing, and deck coverings; builder Bath Iron Works is documented at yard level in the Atlas dataset (tier 2), including wartime pipe-covering-shop dust-risk documentation; NARA RG 19 'General Information Books' per-vessel material specifications are the archival lead for hull-level specs.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1944-1945
- Population
- Bath Iron Works construction trades Apr-Sep 1944; commissioning/detail crew at Boston Navy Yard; crew Nov 1944-May 1945
- Limitations
- Class/era and builder-yard inference only - there is NO ship-specific asbestos finding for this hull and none is expected (lost in service 1945). The action report documents ruptured steam lines but not their insulation content. NARA GIB retrieval not performed. This row adds context, not a ship-specific finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-drexler-dd741-06
-
[8]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (Oct 18, 1979) [gao]
- Locator
- GAO HRD-80-2 product page; PMID 21016030
- 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 - placing DD-741's construction (Apr-Sep 1944) and entire six-month commissioned service (Nov 1944-May 1945) wholly inside the documented asbestos era; the Fleischer/Viles/Gade/Drinker industrial-hygiene survey (J Ind Hyg Toxicol 1946;28:9-16, PMID 21016030) documents amosite as the standard ingredient of pipe covering on U.S. Navy vessels in exactly this construction era.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1940s-1970s (GAO); 1942-1946 (Fleischer survey)
- Population
- WWII naval-ship construction and crew populations (context)
- Limitations
- Program-level government survey and a peer-reviewed era industrial-hygiene study - context for the construction era, not a finding about this hull. Fleischer et al. anonymized the four surveyed yards (two government Navy yards, two contract yards); the study establishes era material standard, not conditions aboard DD-741. gao.gov returns HTTP 403 to automated fetches; product-page description used (standing limitation per BATCH-01).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-drexler-dd741-07
-
[9]Batch-3715 search ledger (this record): DANFS mirror; NavSource (Wayback); NARA catalog (RG 24 deck log naId 125714559, RG 38 action reports naId 77466554/101742392, RG 38 narrative naId 278475575); NVR; VA sources; web litigation check; CourtListener sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- This record's search_ledger (all repositories)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located for DD-741: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, materials inventory, hazmat disclosure, museum ACM documentation, or docketed asbestos finding naming USS Drexler / DD-741 was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). The absence is structural: the hull was sunk in combat on 28 May 1945 at 27 deg 06' N, 127 deg 38' E and remains at the sinking position - there is no decommissioning, lay-up, overhaul, abatement, scrapping, or museum phase in which such documentation could have been generated.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1944-1945; research 2026-09-27
- Population
- Construction trades and crew 1944-45 (population at risk by era inference only)
- Limitations
- A negative finding, not proof of absence: surviving deck logs (Nov 1944-Feb 1945), the CO's action reports, the recorded narrative, and the muster roll are reproduced in Wilde (2003) but none speaks to insulation materials; hull-level BuShips material specifications (NARA RG 19 General Information Books) were not retrieved. The completed CourtListener sweep is recorded at ev-09 and sl-12.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-drexler-dd741-08
-
[10]CourtListener API v4 authenticated sweep (cl-auth-search.py, fleet-paced): 'USS Drexler' type=o -> count 0; 'DD-741' type=o -> count 0; 'Drexler asbestos' type=o -> 26 hits, all surname name collisions; 'USS Drexler' type=r (RECAP dockets) -> count 0 [court_record]
- Locator
- CourtListener API v4 search endpoint, queries as listed in citation_value
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Litigation sweep completed 2026-09-27: no opinion or RECAP docket on CourtListener names USS Drexler or DD-741. The 'Drexler asbestos' query returned 26 opinions, all name collisions - Drexler as a party or attorney surname (Green v. Drexler / In re Feit & Drexler bankruptcy; INX International Ink [Richard W. Drexler]; Drexler International; Johns-Manville/Keene/Raymark bankruptcy proceedings listing Drexler-named counsel or parties) - none references the ship or naval service aboard it. No qualifying asbestos litigation naming this hull exists in the repository.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- litigation record through 2026-09-27
- Population
- n/a - sweep result
- Limitations
- CourtListener coverage is not the universe of filings - state-court and unreported dispositions are outside it; a clean sweep means no docketed/indexed opinion names the hull, not that no claim was ever filed. Consistent with the hull's six-month 1944-45 service and wartime loss, which compress the exposure window relative to long-service hulls.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-drexler-dd741-09
-
[11]NARA catalog entries for this hull's records: RG 24 deck-log file 'Drexler (DD-741), 11/14/44-5/28/45' (naId 125714559); RG 38 'USS DREXLER - Rep of action with enemy suicide aircraft and resulting loss Northeast of Okinawa Jima' (naId 77466554); RG 38 'Rep of opers in support of the invasion and occupation of the Okinawa Gunto' (naId 101742392); RG 38 Wilson/Bidwell recorded narrative (naId 278475575, 278499641); RG 38 'LCS(L)(3)-114 - Rep of action ... 5/28/45' (naId 101777209); RG 19 Bureau of Ships General Information Books (per-vessel material specifications) - not digitized [other_primary]
- Locator
- catalog.archives.gov search '"Drexler" DD-741' (naIds listed in citation_value)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads (catalogued, not retrieved): NARA holds this hull's deck-log file, action reports, and the CO/XO recorded narrative (the same records reproduced in Wilde 2003), plus RG 19 BuShips records that include per-vessel material specifications (General Information Books) - the likeliest primary source for hull-level insulation/material schedules. Deck logs for the final three months were lost with the ship (survivor-history note); the surviving file covers commissioning through 25 February 1945.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1944-1945 records
- Population
- n/a - archival leads
- Limitations
- Catalog entries verify existence and custody only - contents not reviewed at the record level; no retrieval/reproduction performed. Whether any RG 19 specification book for DD-741 survives and what materials it lists are unverified.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-drexler-dd741-10