USS Ebert (DE-768)

Evidence

7 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-7).

1. [1]research packet lr-packet.md (3 sources cited) [nhhc_danfs]

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED — real identity: USS Ebert (DE-768), destroyer escort, Cannon class.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Evidence ID

   uss-ebert-de768-pkt-lr-packet-md

2. [2]DANFS, Ebert (DE-768) (Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, Naval History Division; verbatim HyperWar/ibiblio transcription - live NHHC page returns 404) [nhhc_danfs]

   Locator

   DANFS entry 'Ebert (DE-768)' - namesake biography, spec block, service narrative, disposition

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   DANFS record for this hull: launched 11 May 1944 by Tampa Shipbuilding Co., Inc., Tampa, Fla.; sponsored by Mrs. Hilan Ebert, widow of Lt. Cmdr. Hilan Ebert; commissioned 12 July 1944, Lt. Cmdr. F. Gibbs, USNR, in command. Spec block: Cannon class, 1,240 t, 306 ft, 36 ft 8 in beam, 8 ft 9 in draft, 21 kt, complement 186, armament 3x3-in, 3x21-in torpedo tubes, 8 depth-charge projectors, 1 hedgehog, 2 depth-charge tracks. Service: guarded convoys carrying men and supplies to Britain and France between 6 October 1944 and 17 May 1945; returned to New York; sailed 8 June for Pearl Harbor, Eniwetok, and the Philippines; escorted convoys carrying occupation troops to Japan until 30 November 1945, then left Manila for the States; placed out of commission in reserve at Green Cove Springs, Fla., 14 June 1946; towed to Boston November 1950; transferred to Greece 1 March 1951 under the Mutual Defense Assistance Program; 'serves in the Greek navy as Ierax.' Namesake: Hilan Ebert, born 21 March 1903 in Alliance, Ohio, USNA 1926, assigned to Northampton (CL-26) 29 April 1942, killed 30 November 1942 when his ship was torpedoed in the Battle of Tassafaronga off Guadalcanal; posthumously awarded the Navy Cross.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-29

   Study period

   1943-1951 (U.S. custody); DANFS text to 1951 transfer

   Population

   Tampa Shipbuilding construction trades 1943-44; USN crew 1944-46 (design complement 186); reserve-fleet caretakers 1946-51; Hellenic Navy crew 1951-91

   Limitations

   DANFS documents construction, specifications, and service history - not materials or asbestos content. The entry states no keel-laying date and no strike date (transferred vessels are typically struck on transfer; 7 March 1951 circulates in secondary compilations - logged in gaps). Written while Ierax remained in Greek service, so post-1951 disposition is beyond its scope. Live NHHC page returns 404; verbatim mirror transcription cited.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-ebert-de768-01

3. [3]NavSource Online Destroyer Escort Photo Archive, USS Ebert (DE-768) page (volunteer archive; lead-level): building/operational data block, captioned photographs of Ierax in Greek service [other_primary]

   Locator

   NavSource DE-768 page, 'Building and Operational Data' block; photo captions 0676805, 0676813, 0676809, 0676807, 0558303

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   Photo-archive building/operational data extending DANFS at lead level: keel laid 1 April 1943 at Tampa Shipbuilding Co., Inc., Tampa, Fla.; launched and christened 11 May 1944; commissioned 12 July 1944; decommissioned 14 June 1946 at Green Cove Springs, Fla. 'after 1 year and 11 months of service'; towed to the Boston Naval Shipyard November 1950 in preparation for foreign transfer; transferred to Greece 1 March 1951 under MDAP, renamed HNS Ierax (D-31); struck from the NVR 7 March 1951; stricken from Greek service 1991, reported laid up in terminal reserve at Souda Bay, Crete as of January 1998. Captioned photographs document Ierax (D-31) at Amsterdam 1958 (Nationaal Archief image), underway circa 1960 (Jane's Fighting Ships 1961-62), at Barcelona 1979 alongside sister Panthir (D-67, ex-USS Garfield Thomas DE-193), and moored at Souda Bay 1995 awaiting disposal alongside HNS Lonchi (ex-USS Hall DD-583).

   Verification

   partial

   Role

   archival_lead

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-29

   Study period

   1943-1998 (page coverage)

   Population

   USN crew 1944-46; Hellenic Navy crew 1951-91

   Limitations

   Volunteer-maintained photo archive - lead-level documentation, not an official record; the keel-laying date (1 Apr 1943), NVR strike date (7 Mar 1951), and Greek-service endpoint (stricken 1991, Souda Bay layup) are unverified against NHHC/NVR/Hellenic Navy originals. The 2002 target sinking and wreck position circulating in other secondary compilations are not shown on this page and are logged in gaps. Nothing on materials aboard.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-ebert-de768-02

4. [4]Cannon-class DET design data (DANFS spec block; Atlas class profile cannon-class.class.json drawing on BuShips 'Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels 1945' Vol. I DE section + navypedia DET table) + Atlas shipyards.json record 'tampa-bay-shipbuilding' (tier-3 asbestos-era yard; documented products incl. pipe insulation, gaskets, valve packing, brake linings, fireproofing) [other_primary]

   Locator

   class-c/cannon-class.class.json propulsion_summary + class_notes; shipyards.json record 'tampa-bay-shipbuilding' products_documented + evidence_tier

   Finding type

   asbestos_application

   Finding

   Era/design inference for a diesel-electric escort built at Tampa Shipbuilding in 1943-44: the DET machinery plant - four General Motors 16-278A diesel-generator sets in tandem, electric drive, 2 shafts, 6,000 shp, ~21 kt - has NO propulsion boilers and no steam system, so the heavy steam-ship asbestos categories (boiler lagging, steam-line insulation) do not apply. The plausible period set for this machinery fit is diesel exhaust/muffler insulation, gaskets and packing in the engineering spaces, electrical insulation, brake linings on deck machinery, and deck coverings. Builder-yard context: Tampa Shipbuilding is a documented tier-3 asbestos-era yard in the Atlas dataset (yard-level products: asbestos insulation on steam systems, asbestos-wrapped turbines and pipes, gaskets, valve packing, brake linings, fireproof panels, pipe insulation; WWII peak employment ~16,000; EPA site FLN000410642).

   Verification

   inferred

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-29

   Study period

   1943-44 (construction); yard documentation era

   Population

   Tampa Shipbuilding construction trades 1943-44; USN engineering crew 1944-46

   Limitations

   Class/era and builder-yard inference only - NOT a ship-specific finding. The diesel-electric plant removes the largest asbestos categories of steam ships; the yard record documents asbestos use at the site, not installation aboard this hull. Does not establish asbestos presence, quantity, location, or any individual's exposure.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-ebert-de768-03

5. [5]CourtListener API v4 sweep (opinion index type=o; RECAP docket index type=r) for exact name 'USS Ebert' and hull number 'DE-768' via cl-auth-search.py (authenticated, fleet-paced) [court_record]

   Locator

   search_ledger rows sl-uss-ebert-de768-05 through -08

   Finding type

   litigation_documented

   Finding

   CourtListener sweep: exact-name query '"USS Ebert"' (type=o) returned 0 results - no opinion naming this vessel located in the opinion index. Hull-number query '"DE-768"' (type=o) returned 8 hits, all string collisions on review - criminal, immigration, habeas, Puerto Rican Spanish-language, school-district, and energy-regulatory opinions in which the string appears as a numeral fragment; none references a vessel, naval service, or asbestos. RECAP-docket query '"DE-768"' (type=r) returned 42 hits, all identifier collisions on review - criminal, prisoner-petition, patent, bankruptcy, civil-rights, and statutory dockets with no vessel or asbestos connection (docket numerals, exhibit/document strings). RECAP-docket query '"USS Ebert"' (type=r) returned 0 results. No qualifying asbestos litigation naming this hull located.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-29

   Study period

   2026-09-29

   Limitations

   All four planned queries completed: opinion index swept for both name and hull number; docket index swept for both hull number (42 collisions) and exact name (0 results). The sweep does not cover state-court records, trust claims, or non-U.S. jurisdictions.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-ebert-de768-04

6. [6]Batch-4525 search ledger (this record): NHHC DANFS + HyperWar/ibiblio transcription, NVR, NavSource, Atlas class profile and shipyard dataset, CourtListener API v4 [other_primary]

   Locator

   search_ledger rows sl-uss-ebert-de768-01 through -10

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no ACM survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, material-condition report, or litigation naming this hull was found in the public sources searched. No preservation-era documentation can exist - the hull left U.S. custody in March 1951 under MDAP, spent 40 years in Hellenic Navy service as Ierax (D-31), was stricken in 1991, and was reported sunk as a target in 2002; it was never a museum, memorial, or domestic reserve-fleet asset.

   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. The hull no longer exists in recoverable form, so no present-day survey is possible; whether era materials aboard contained asbestos is undocumented in either direction. Four decades of Greek-custody maintenance, refit, and disposal records are unavailable in the public sources searched.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-ebert-de768-05

7. [7]NARA RG 19 (BuShips contract specifications / General Information Books) and RG 24 (deck logs) for DE-768; Boston Naval Shipyard work records for the November 1950 - March 1951 transfer preparation; MDAP foreign-transfer custody records; Hellenic Navy service and disposal records for Ierax (D-31) - all undigitized or not located online [other_primary]

   Locator

   NARA RG 19/RG 24 entry series (undigitized); Boston Naval Shipyard records; MDAP transfer files; Hellenic Navy archives

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   Archival leads for hull-level material documentation not yet retrieved: (1) NARA RG 19 holds BuShips per-vessel specifications and ships-data books covering DE-768's construction at Tampa Shipbuilding, and RG 24 deck logs cover the 1944-46 commission and reserve periods; (2) Boston Naval Shipyard records may document any work performed during the November 1950 - March 1951 transfer preparation; (3) MDAP transfer files document custody terms for the 1951 handover; (4) Hellenic Navy records would cover 40 years of material custody, refits, the 1991 striking, and the reported 2002 target sinking.

   Verification

   unverified

   Role

   archival_lead

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-29

   Study period

   1943-2002 (records); 2026 (lead status)

   Limitations

   Leads only - none of these holdings were pulled or digitized; contents unknown. They establish nothing about materials aboard.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-ebert-de768-06