Evidence
10 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-10).
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[1]research packet 755-packet.md (3 sources cited) [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-earheart-de603-pkt-755-packet-md
-
[2]DANFS, 'Earheart (APD-113) 1945-1963' entry, Naval History and Heritage Command (online entry published 2022-02-23, updated Robert J. Cressman; live URL serves 404 to automated fetches - verbatim NHHC text via Internet Archive Wayback capture 20240524214748) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- NHHC DANFS 'Earheart (APD-113)' entry body + spec block (Wayback capture 20240524214748)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NHHC records for this hull: namesake Pfc. James Edward Earheart Jr., USMC (born 25 April 1913, Cincinnati, Ohio; enlisted 7 January 1942), killed 8 November 1942 during Operation Torch when, as a member of a naval antisabotage party embarked in a damaged British warship entering Oran, Algeria, he volunteered under continuous shelling to swim to a harbor tug endangering men abandoning ship - posthumous Silver Star. Spec block (APD-113): displacement 1,390; length 306'; beam 37'; draft 12'7"; speed 24 knots; complement 204; troops 162; armament 1 5-inch, 6 40mm, 6 20mm, 2 depth charge tracks; class Crosley. 'Earheart (DE-603) was laid down on 20 March 1945 at Hingham, Mass., by the Bethlehem-Hingham Shipyard, Inc.; launched on 12 May 1945; sponsored by Mrs. James Earheart, mother of Pfc. Earheart, and commissioned on 26 July 1945, Lt.Cmdr. Nathaniel M. Goodhue (D) USNR in command.' Shakedown at Guantanamo Bay; sailed to Providence, R.I., for Navy Day, 27 October 1945; 'placed out of commission in reserve, up the St. Johns River, Florida, on 29 April 1946.' Stricken from the Naval Vessel Register 12 December 1963; transferred to the government of Mexico the same day; in service as H-4; reclassified an escort vessel and renamed Papaloapan (B-4) in 1964; damaged in a grounding in 1976 and scrapped later the same year. Commanding officers: Goodhue (to 15 December 1945); Lt.(j.g.) James S. Wise Jr. (to 2 April 1946); Lt.(j.g.) Franklin J. Vaughn.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 1945-1976
- Population
- Bethlehem-Hingham construction trades (1945); wartime crew (DANFS complement 204) and embarked troops (capacity 162)
- Limitations
- Primary Navy historical entry - authoritative for identity, namesake, service history, and disposal. Contains no asbestos or materials information; supports no asbestos claim. Gives no reclassification date (DE-603 to APD-113) and no operational movements beyond shakedown and Navy Day. Live NHHC page 404s to automated fetches (standing link rot, cf. BATCH-01); Wayback capture is verbatim NHHC text.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-earheart-de603-01
-
[3]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive - USS Earheart (APD-113), file 10/04/04113 [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 04113.htm - chronology block, APD specifications, CO table, photo captions
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource chronology for this hull: laid down 20 March 1945 as Earheart (DE-603), Rudderow-class destroyer escort, Bethlehem-Hingham Shipyard Co., Hingham MA; 'redesignated Crosley Class High-speed Transport APD-113 while under construction'; launched 12 May 1945; commissioned USS Earheart (APD-113) 26 July 1945, LCDR Nathaniel M. Goodhue USNR; decommissioned 29 April 1946; laid up in the Atlantic Reserve Fleet, Florida Group, St. Johns River; struck from the Naval Register 12 December 1963 and transferred to Mexico the same day; commissioned into the Mexican Navy as ARM H-4; reclassified a destroyer escort in 1964 and renamed ARM Papaloapan (B-4); ran aground 1976; discarded by the Mexican Navy and scrapped 1976. APD specification: 1,630 t light / 2,130 t full; two 'Babcox and Wilcox' [Babcock & Wilcox] 'D' Express boilers 435 psi 750 F; GE turbo-electric drive; 12,000 shp; two shafts; 23.6 kt trial; four LCVPs; armament 1 5"/38, 3 twin 40mm, 6 20mm, 2 depth charge tracks; ship's company 12 officers + 192 enlisted; troops 12 officers + 150 enlisted. Awards listed: American Campaign Medal; WWII Victory Medal. Photo record documents the hull laid up at Green Cove Springs with Kline (APD-120), Burke (APD-65), and Hubbard (APD-53), September 1960.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 1945-1976
- Population
- Crew 1945-46; reserve-fleet caretakers Green Cove Springs 1946-1963; Mexican Navy crews 1963-1976; breakers 1976
- Limitations
- Specialist secondary compilation - detailed and consistent with DANFS where they overlap, but non-official; adds the under-construction redesignation, CO table, awards, photo-documented Green Cove Springs berth, and Mexican-service pennant detail absent from DANFS. Light/full-load displacement figures (1,630/2,130 t) sit on a different baseline than DANFS (1,390) and the BuShips DE design (1,450/1,810) - variance carried in gaps. 'Babcox' is the site's spelling for Babcock. Contains no asbestos information; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-earheart-de603-02
-
[4]Bureau of Ships, Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels, 1945, Vol. I (SHIPS 8(A) I / NAVSHIPS 250-010, promulgated 15 April 1945), destroyer-escort design-group table, group 3 'TEV', pp. 234-235; scan hosted by ShipScribe [other_primary]
- Locator
- Ships' Data 1945 Vol. I, pp. 234-235, DE design-group table (group 3 TEV) + symbol key; DE roster pp. 236-265 (alphabetical roster; Earheart not located in the reviewed E-block pages - the 15 April 1945 edition postdates her 20 March 1945 keel laying by only weeks)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/design context: DE-603 was ordered as a Rudderow-class destroyer escort - BuShips design group 3 'TEV' ('turbine electric drive, 5-inch guns'), which the official table lists at 306 ft overall, 1,450 t standard / 1,810 t full load, two 'D' express boilers at 435 psi / 750 F superheat, turbo-electric drive of 12,000 shp on two propellers (GE or Westinghouse units, interchangeable), 23.6 knots, armament two 5"/38 DP, accommodations 15 officers + 206 enlisted. In a 1945 superheated-steam naval construction context, boiler and turbine insulation, steam-line lagging, valve/flange gaskets, machinery packing, fireproofing, and deck coverings are the asbestos-era applications to investigate; the mid-build APD conversion added troop-accommodation space on the same plant and hull.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 1945-1946
- Population
- Bethlehem-Hingham construction trades, 1945; crew, 1945-46
- Limitations
- Class/era design context only, not a ship-specific materials finding. The group table names no insulation material; no DE-603/APD-113 insulation plan, material schedule, asbestos survey, product identification, quantity, or crew exposure record was located. The listed applications are research priorities, not documented installations aboard this hull. (The APD type is not tabulated in Ships' Data Vol. II - the DE-hull group table is the applicable design record.)
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-earheart-de603-03
-
[5]Fleischer, W.E., Viles, F.J. Jr., Gade, R.L., and Drinker, P., 'A health survey of pipe covering operations in constructing naval vessels,' J Ind Hyg Toxicol 28(1):9-16 (Jan 1946), PMID 21016030 [other_primary]
- Locator
- PubMed record PMID 21016030; article pp. 9-16 (pipe covering material section)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- The U.S. Maritime Commission-commissioned industrial-hygiene survey of WWII pipe-covering operations at two Navy yards and two Navy contract yards documented that 'an important ingredient of pipe covering material used on U.S. Navy vessels is amosite' - i.e., asbestos insulation was standard material in wartime naval-vessel construction of exactly this hull's era and type.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- survey ~1944-45; published 1946
- Population
- WWII pipe coverers and insulators at Navy and contract yards (era context)
- Limitations
- Era-level documentation of asbestos use in naval construction generally; does not name this vessel, class, or builder yard (whether Bethlehem-Hingham was among the surveyed yards is unverified and unlikely - the survey covered four specific yards) and establishes nothing about this hull's materials, condition, or any individual exposure. (The study's exculpatory 'not a dangerous occupation' conclusion has since been heavily criticized - see the 2026 critique at DOI 10.1177/10482911261446696.)
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-earheart-de603-04
-
[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 Rudderow-class hull was built and converted at a Bethlehem Steel emergency yard - and that wartime demand drove unprecedented asbestos utilization in shipbuilding.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- 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 or class 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-earheart-de603-05
-
[7]Will Buckley (Hingham Historical Commission), 'The Bethlehem-Hingham Shipyard in World War II,' U.S. Naval Institute Naval History Magazine 35(3), June 2021 [reputable_press]
- Locator
- Naval History Magazine June 2021 article body (Wayback capture 20250308170305)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Builder-yard context: the Bethlehem-Hingham Shipyard was a purpose-built Bethlehem Steel emergency yard on the Weymouth Back River, erected after the Navy's destroyer-escort design when existing Bethlehem yards ran at capacity; ~150 acres cleared, a steel mill over a third of a mile long, peak workforce about 23,500 (exceeding the town's population); 227 ships produced in roughly three and a half years of operation; set a record building a destroyer escort in 23 days; received the Army-Navy 'E' award. This hull's March-July 1945 build window sits at the yard's peak wartime operation.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 1941-1945
- Population
- Bethlehem-Hingham workforce (~23,500 peak), 1941-1945
- Limitations
- Yard-level historical context only - the article contains no asbestos, materials, or industrial-hygiene information and does not name this hull. Live USNI page 403s to automated fetches; Internet Archive capture cited. Builder yard is absent from the Atlas shipyards.json dataset (no yard record to link - see gaps).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-earheart-de603-06
-
[8]NARA Ship Plan Index entry for EARHART (APD-113): RG 19 'Microfilm' series, NAID 175669014; deck-log series 'Logbooks of U.S. Navy Ships and Stations' NAID 594258 (1941-1992); Crosley-class Booklet of General Plans APD-117/-119 (1945) publicly mirrored at archive.org/details/apdcrosleybogp1945 [other_primary]
- Locator
- archives.gov Ship Plan Index (EARHART APD-113 row); catalog.archives.gov/id/175669014; logbook series NAID 594258
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads (not retrieved - requires research-room or reproduction order; no spend authorized): RG 19 microfilmed plan set for EARHART (APD-113), NAID 175669014 - a hull-specific drawing set that would carry the DE-603 construction and APD-113 conversion arrangement and any insulation schedules; Navy deck logs for the nine-month commission 1945-07-26 to 1946-04-29 (Logbooks series NAID 594258 - digitization status for this hull unverified); class-level analog, the Crosley-class Booklet of General Plans for APD-117/-119 (archive.org, 295 MB scan not inspected page-level); BuShips APD-conversion correspondence (RG 19); the 1963 transfer-to-Mexico file - the most promising disposal-era lead.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 1945-1976 records
- Limitations
- Record-group/NAID mapping only - no box-level retrieval performed; existence of asbestos-specific documents for this hull is unknown until surveyed in person. The NARA index spells the ship 'EARHART' (the common misspelling - same hull, APD-113 confirmed by designation). Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-earheart-de603-07
-
[9]CourtListener API v4 sweeps (authenticated, fleet-paced via cl-auth-search.py): '"USS Earheart"' type=o - count 0; '"USS Earheart" OR "Earheart (APD-113)" OR "Earheart (DE-603)"' type=r - count 0, document_count 0 [court_record]
- Locator
- cl-auth-search.py results, 2026-09-29 (type=o '"USS Earheart"' count 0; type=r combined name/hull query count 0, document_count 0; variant queries - pacing blocked)
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- CourtListener returns no opinion and no docket naming USS Earheart / APD-113 / DE-603: exact-phrase opinion search '"USS Earheart"' = 0 results (clean HTTP 200); combined docket/RECAP search '"USS Earheart" OR "Earheart (APD-113)" OR "Earheart (DE-603)"' = 0 dockets, 0 documents (clean HTTP 200). No qualifying asbestos litigation naming this hull is located in the opinion or docket indexes searched.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 2026-09-29 (index state)
- Limitations
- Coverage is search-index level, not a PACER-level docket inspection: a pleading could name the hull inside a document that index text does not expose. Variant sweeps (bare '"Earheart" asbestos' opinions and dockets; '"APD-113" asbestos' opinions) remained blocked at the fleet-wide pacing stage across repeated retries this session - not executed, so bare-name collisions (Earheart is a surname) are unclassified rather than confirmed absent. Exact-name and hull-number sweeps are the ones that completed clean. Absence of a located case does not prove no claim was ever filed or settled.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-earheart-de603-08
-
[10]Batch-4418 search ledger (this record): NHHC/DANFS via Wayback; NavSource 04113; BuShips Ships' Data 1945 Vols. I-II (ShipScribe scans); NARA Ship Plan Index and logbook series; NVR; USNI Naval History; CourtListener API (paced sweeps); indexed-web checks [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-earheart-de603-01 through sl-uss-earheart-de603-12
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, museum document (the hull was scrapped - no preservation phase exists), court finding, or docketed asbestos case naming USS Earheart / DE-603 / APD-113 was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-29
- Study period
- 2026-09-29
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1945 steam turbo-electric escort/transport built and converted at a peak-wartime emergency yard is era-consistent with asbestos-containing materials, and the inactivation, 17-year mothball custody, foreign transfer, grounding, and breaking are undocumented disturbance phases. Does not establish presence or absence; does not establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility. CourtListener variant sweeps are pacing-limited as noted in ev-08.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-earheart-de603-09