USS Escalante (AO-70)

Name: USS Escalante
Hull designation: AO-70
Vessel class: Chiwawa
Evidence tier: Tier 2
Evidence entries: 13
Record ID: uss-escalante-ao70
Dataset version: 2026.10.12-rc.1
Canonical URL: https://asbestosatlas.org/ships/uss-escalante-ao70

Evidence

13 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-13).

[1]DANFS / NHHC, 'Escalante (AO-70)' ship history page (canonical URL 404 on 2026-09-24; text retrieved from Wayback capture of the official NHHC page dated 2024-05-26) [nhhc_danfs]

Locator
Wayback capture 20240526053553 of history.navy.mil DANFS page; full entry text

Finding type
vessel_history

Finding
DANFS entry for Escalante (AO-70): Chiwawa-class fleet oiler; dp. 5,782; l. 501'8"; b. 68'; dr. 30'8"; s. 15 k.; cpl. 244; a. 1 5", 4 3". Formerly Shabone, constructed for the Maritime Commission by Bethlehem Sparrow's Point Shipyard, Inc., Sparrow's Point, Md., in 1942, sponsored by Mrs. Walter E. Than; acquired by the Navy and commissioned 30 January 1943, Lt. Cmdr. C. L. Bolton, USNR, in command. Atlantic Fleet TF 60/61 service May 1943-October 30, 1944: six voyages to North Africa, two to UK ports fueling Normandy-invasion shipping. Norfolk Navy Yard overhaul, then Pacific: fuel loaded at Aruba 4 December 1944, Pearl Harbor 26 December, Service Squadron 10 at Ulithi refueling 3d/5th Fleet units at sea through Luzon, Iwo Jima, Okinawa, and home-island operations; fueled ships in Tokyo Bay 26 September-20 October 1945; San Francisco 31 October. Decommissioned 12 December 1945 and transferred to the Maritime Commission for disposal. DANFS credits four battle stars.

Verification
verified

Role
supporting

Documentation level
ship_specific

Accessed
2026-09-24

Study period
1942-1946

Population
Ship's company, 1943-1945 (cpl. 244 per DANFS)

Limitations
Authoritative Navy history for identity, construction, service narrative, and decommissioning; the live NHHC URL returns 404 (standing link-rot issue, same as Batch-01), text verified via Wayback capture of the official page. DANFS is silent on strike date and gives four battle stars - NavSource/Naval Cover Museum carry five (discrepancy logged). Contains no asbestos or materials information; supports no asbestos claim.

Atlas source
true

Evidence ID
ev-uss-escalante-ao70-01
[2]U.S. Maritime Administration, ShipHistory database - ESCALANTE (AO-70), Detail 1471 [marad_nrc]

Locator
ShipHistory Detail 1471, vessel particulars, name history, milestones, status-card scans 1471_2714AF/AB

Finding type
vessel_history

Finding
MARAD ShipHistory database record for ESCALANTE (AO-70), Detail 1471: year built 1943; shipyard Bethlehem Steel Shipbuilding Division; MARAD type T3-S-A1; length 501.80 ft, beam 68.00 ft; name history ESCALANTE (AO-70) / SHABONEE; custody milestones Entry and Acquisition both 6/27/1946; fate 'Sunk - No Further Info'; imagery includes a USCG photo of Escalante at New York, September 5, 1943, and two digitized NDRF vessel status cards.

Verification
verified

Role
supporting

Documentation level
ship_specific

Accessed
2026-09-24

Study period
1943-1946

Limitations
Authoritative for federal custody milestones and confirms MARAD type T3-S-A1 (correcting NavSource's T2-SE-A1 line). 'Sunk - No Further Info' fate field is superseded in detail by the NOAA RULET record (ev-04). Contains no asbestos, materials, or condition-survey information; supports no asbestos claim.

Atlas source
true

Evidence ID
ev-uss-escalante-ao70-02
[3]MARAD ShipHistory, NDRF Reserve Fleet Division - Vessel Data card scan for Escalante AO-70 (image files 1471_2714AF.jpg front, 1471_2714AB.jpg reverse fragment) [marad_nrc]

Locator
Status-card front image 1471_2714AF.jpg, fields 1-22; reverse fragment 1471_2714AB.jpg (partially legible)

Finding type
historical_record

Finding
MARAD NDRF Reserve Fleet vessel data card (digitized scan) for ESCALANTE AO 70: type T3-S-A1; fleet J.R. (James River); built 'Beth-Sparrows' 1943; hull no. 518; date entered fleet 6-27-46; handwritten entries record ship's papers final allocation August 29, 1946 and 'DATE WITHDRAWN FROM FLEET 9-3-46 / DELIVERED TO SINCLAIR REFINING CO.'; fleet custodian notation Dichman, Wright & Pugh.

Verification
verified

Role
supporting

Documentation level
ship_specific

Accessed
2026-09-24

Study period
1946

Limitations
Primary custody record. The handwritten '9-3-46' withdrawal/delivery date conflicts with NavSource's reported sale to Sinclair on 9 December 1946 for $1,465,015 - unreconciled and logged as a gap; card handwriting partially legible. Contains no asbestos or materials information; supports no asbestos claim.

Atlas source
true

Evidence ID
ev-uss-escalante-ao70-03
[4]NOAA, RULET Potentially Polluting Wrecks screening-level risk assessment: SS George MacDonald (ex-Escalante AO-70), incl. quoted USCG Marine Board casualty narrative [other_primary]

Locator
NOAA RULET report, Section 1 Vessel Background Information (particulars + casualty narrative); 43 pp.

Finding type
environmental_record

Finding
NOAA RULET (Remediation of Underwater Legacy Environmental Threats) potentially-polluting-wreck screening report for the tanker George MacDonald: Official No. 244028; class T3-S-A1 type tanker; former names Shabonee and Escalante (AO-70); built 1943 by Bethlehem Steel Company, Sparrows Point, MD, builder hull 4380; welded steel hull; powered by oil-fired steam; 134,000 bbl liquid cargo capacity; owner at loss Sinclair Refining Co., New York. Casualty narrative (quoting the USCG Marine Board report): at about 1900 on 27 June 1960, approximately 165 miles east of Savannah, Georgia, a ruptured water box on the main condenser flooded the after spaces; all crew removed; foundered en route Houston-Brooklyn with ~102,000 bbl Bunker C cargo plus ~3,360 bbl bunkers. Date lost June 30, 1960; wreck position 32.4167 N, -78.8333 W (~47 nmi offshore, ~450 ft); wreck not located; screened as a pollution threat.

Verification
verified

Role
supporting

Documentation level
ship_specific

Accessed
2026-09-24

Study period
1960; report era

Population
Crew aboard at casualty (all removed before sinking); potential future salvage/wreck-survey personnel

Limitations
Federal wreck-risk assessment explicitly tying George MacDonald = Escalante (AO-70) = Shabonee. Documents the vessel's loss and pollution screening; the casualty cause is quoted from a USCG Marine Board report that itself returned HTTP 403 to automated fetch (unretrieved). No asbestos, materials, or hazmat-inventory content; supports no asbestos claim. Note the report's 'Date Lost: June 30' vs secondary accounts dating the sinking June 29 - logged as a minor discrepancy.

Atlas source
true

Evidence ID
ev-uss-escalante-ao70-04
[5]NavSource Online, Service Ship Photo Archive - USS Escalante (AO-70) page (archives/09/19/19070; retrieved via Wayback capture 2025-04-26) [other_primary]

Locator
NavSource AO-70 page, chronology + specifications blocks

Finding type
vessel_history

Finding
NavSource Service Ship Photo Archive compiled record for USS Escalante (AO-70): laid down 20 May 1942 as SS Shabone under MC contract (MC hull 518) at Bethlehem Sparrow's Point; launched 29 September 1942; commissioned 30 January 1943, LCDR C. L. Bolton USNR; campaign list (Convoy UGS-36 April 1944; Luzon - Formosa attacks 9 and 21 January and China Coast 16 January and Nansei Shoto 22 January 1945; Iwo Jima 23 February-3 March 1945; Okinawa Gunto 24 March-30 June 1945 incl. 5th/3d Fleet raids; 3rd Fleet operations against Japan 17 July-3 August 1945); decommissioned 12 December 1945 San Francisco; struck 3 January 1946; five battle stars; returned to Maritime Commission 27 June 1946, NDRF James River Group, Lee Hall, VA; sold to Sinclair Refining Co. 9 December 1946 ($1,465,015), renamed SS George MacDonald; foundered 30 June 1960 ~165 miles east of Savannah GA. Compiled specs: 22 officers + 192 enlisted; one Bethlehem geared turbine; two Foster-Wheeler D-type boilers, 450 psi 730 F; double Falk main reduction gears; single propeller 7,000 shp.

Verification
partial

Role
supporting

Documentation level
ship_specific

Accessed
2026-09-24

Study period
1942-1960

Limitations
Volunteer-compiled secondary archive - used for dates/specs not present in DANFS or MARAD (laying-down date, strike date, propulsion detail, sale price). Conflicts with primary sources on three points logged as gaps: five battle stars vs DANFS four; 9 December 1946 sale vs MARAD card delivery 9-3-46; its own 'T2-SE-A1' type line vs MARAD-documented T3-S-A1. No asbestos content.

Atlas source
true

Evidence ID
ev-uss-escalante-ao70-05
[6]HyperWar (ibiblio), 'USS Escalante (AO-70) - Fueling list for 1945' transcription [other_primary]

Locator
Fueling-list page, full table of vessels fueled with dates

Finding type
historical_record

Finding
HyperWar transcription of Escalante's 1945 underway fueling list: scores of named combatants fueled January-September 1945 (e.g., Baltimore CA-68 on 23 January; Borie DD-704 in February-May; multiple destroyers/cruisers/battleships/carriers through August-September including consolidation with Cache AO-67 and Caliente AO-53), corroborating DANFS's account of ServRon 10 Ulithi-based refueling of 3d/5th Fleet units and Tokyo Bay operations.

Verification
partial

Role
supporting

Documentation level
ship_specific

Accessed
2026-09-24

Study period
1945

Limitations
Transcription of an operational record hosted on a volunteer mirror; underlying document not independently examined. Operational detail only - no asbestos or materials content.

Atlas source
true

Evidence ID
ev-uss-escalante-ao70-06
[7]Cross-source reconciliation: DANFS (NHHC Wayback); MARAD ShipHistory 1471 + card scan; NOAA RULET; NavSource; Naval Cover Museum; HyperWar; aukevisser/Miramar index data [other_primary]

Locator
All sources as cited in rows ev-01 through ev-06

Finding type
historical_record

Finding
Source discrepancies resolved or logged: (a) MARAD type - MARAD ShipHistory, the NDRF custody card, NOAA RULET, and HyperWar all give T3-S-A1 (Chiwawa class); NavSource's narrative line calling her a T2-SE-A1 hull is inconsistent with the class it assigns and is treated as a compilation error (T3-S-A1 controls). (b) Battle stars - DANFS (official) credits four; NavSource and Naval Cover Museum credit five; DANFS controls and the conflict is logged. (c) Stricken date 3 January 1946 appears only in secondary compilations (NavSource, Naval Cover Museum); DANFS is silent - carried as secondary-sourced. (d) Sinclair transaction - MARAD custody card records withdrawal/delivery 9-3-46; NavSource reports sale 9 December 1946 for $1,465,015; unreconciled. (e) Merchant name spelling - DANFS/NavSource 'Shabone' vs MARAD name-history/NOAA 'Shabonee' - both spellings retained in aliases. (f) Complement - DANFS 244 vs NavSource 214 vs aukevisser 213; DANFS controls.

Verification
verified

Role
correction

Documentation level
ship_specific

Accessed
2026-09-24

Study period
1942-1960

Limitations
Resolves or explicitly flags publication-level discrepancies among sources; primary/official records preferred over compilations in each case. None of the reconciling sources contains asbestos information.

Atlas source
true

Evidence ID
ev-uss-escalante-ao70-07
[8]Consolidated era/design inference - MARAD-documented T3-S-A1 type and oil-fired steam plant (NOAA RULET particulars), 1942-43 wartime construction date, and WWII-era shipbuilding materials practice [other_primary]

Locator
Synthesis from ev-01, ev-02, ev-04, ev-05 + era scholarship (ev-09)

Finding type
asbestos_application

Finding
Era/design inference: Escalante was built in 1942-43 under wartime Maritime Commission contract as a T3-S-A1 oil-fired steam tanker with a geared-turbine plant. Steam auxiliaries of this era and type carried asbestos-containing boiler and steam-line lagging, turbine insulation, gaskets, packing, and accommodation insulation; maintenance and overhaul periods (including her 1944 Norfolk Navy Yard refit) disturbed machinery insulation. This is class/era inference - no document naming this hull was located.

Verification
inferred

Role
supporting

Documentation level
class_or_era

Accessed
2026-09-24

Study period
1942-1960

Population
Construction trades at Bethlehem Sparrows Point (1942-43); Navy engine-room and ship's company 1943-45; Norfolk Navy Yard overhaul workers 1944; NDRF lay-up/withdrawal workers 1946; Sinclair merchant crews 1946-1960

Limitations
Class/era inference only - no ship-specific asbestos record exists. Establishes no quantity, no location of material aboard, no present-day presence (the hull sank with all contents in 1960), and no individual exposure or causation.

Atlas source
true

Evidence ID
ev-uss-escalante-ao70-08
[9]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
historical_record

Finding
Peer-reviewed historical study documents that asbestos was used extensively as a fireproofing and insulating material in U.S. shipbuilding during WWII - the program and era under which this Maritime Commission tanker was built - and that wartime demand drove unprecedented asbestos utilization aboard merchant-type hulls.

Verification
verified

Role
context

Documentation level
class_or_era

Accessed
2026-09-24

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 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-escalante-ao70-09
[10]Selikoff et al., CA Cancer J Clin 1978 (PMID 417776); AJIM 1980 (PMID 7342758); shipyard-exposure-map shipyards.json entry 'bethlehem-shipbuilding' (aliases incl. Sparrows Point) [other_primary]

Locator
PubMed records 417776 and 7342758; shipyards.json yard_id bethlehem-shipbuilding

Finding type
historical_record

Finding
Builder-yard asbestos context: peer-reviewed shipyard-disease studies document asbestos-associated disease in U.S. shipyards including Bethlehem's Baltimore operations - Selikoff et al., 'Asbestos-associated disease in United States shipyards' (CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians, 1978, PMID 417776), and 'Radiological evidence of asbestos disease among ship repair workers' (American Journal of Industrial Medicine, 1980, PMID 7342758), which the project yard dataset associates with Bethlehem Steel's Baltimore shipyard workforce. The builder yard (Bethlehem Sparrows Point) is a documented asbestos environment in the project's shipyard dataset (documented products incl. 85% magnesia block, Marinite, Unibestos, lagging, gaskets/packing).

Verification
verified

Role
context

Documentation level
context_only

Accessed
2026-09-24

Study period
1940s-1970s studies

Population
Bethlehem Baltimore/Sparrows Point shipyard workers (yard-level context)

Limitations
Yard-level documentation only - establishes an asbestos environment at the builder's operations generally, not that specific asbestos products were installed in this hull or that any individual aboard was exposed. Yard-dataset rows carry their own citations; nothing here is a hull finding.

Atlas source
true

Evidence ID
ev-uss-escalante-ao70-10
[11]Batch-1918 search ledger (this record): DANFS/NHHC; MARAD ShipHistory 1471 + card scans; NOAA RULET; NavSource; HyperWar; CourtListener name/hull searches; NVR; NARA catalog [other_primary]

Locator
search_ledger rows sl-uss-escalante-ao70-01 through sl-uss-escalante-ao70-14

Finding type
historical_record

Finding
No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or docketed case naming the Escalante/AO-70/Shabone(e)/George MacDonald hull was found in the public sources searched - DANFS contains no materials statement; MARAD record and custody card contain none; NOAA RULET contains none; CourtListener opinion and docket sweeps returned no hull-specific case (see search_ledger).

Verification
verified

Role
negative_finding

Documentation level
ship_specific

Accessed
2026-09-24

Study period
2026-09-24

Limitations
Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1942-43 steam tanker is era-consistent with asbestos-containing materials. The hull sank intact in 1960, so no later-life survey or abatement record could ever have been generated. Does not establish presence or absence; does not establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility.

Atlas source
true

Evidence ID
ev-uss-escalante-ao70-11
[12]Torrejon v. Mobil Oil Co., 876 So. 2d 877 (La. App. 4th Cir. 2004), CourtListener opinion 1656743; Topor-Taparek v. Socony Mobil Oil Co., 339 F.2d 792 (2d Cir. 1964), CourtListener opinions 266375/8884065 [court_record]

Locator
Torrejon stipulated vessel list (eight Mobil vessels incl. SHABONEE); Topor-Taparek facts section

Finding type
litigation_documented

Finding
Documented name collision - NOT this hull: Torrejon v. Mobil Oil Co., 876 So. 2d 877 (La. App. 4th Cir. 2004), a maritime wrongful-death mesothelioma case affirmed on appeal, stipulated that plaintiff's decedent sailed eight Mobil/Socony-owned tankers 1941-1949 and 1956, including a vessel named SHABONEE. That SHABONEE was a Socony/Mobil fleet tanker; this hull (MC 518) was never Mobil-owned - she was USS Escalante 1943-45 and Sinclair's George MacDonald 1946-60. Similarly, Topor-Taparek v. Socony Mobil Oil Co., 339 F.2d 792 (2d Cir. 1964) is a non-asbestos admiralty collision case involving the same commercial Socony Shabonee (sank a sailboat off the Florida Keys, 1956). Both are classified name collisions, not qualifying litigation for this hull.

Verification
verified

Role
context

Documentation level
context_only

Accessed
2026-09-24

Study period
1941-1956 exposure; 2004 opinion

Population
Merchant mariners on Socony/Mobil tanker fleets (context only)

Limitations
Classified DOWN as name collision: the SHABONEE in Torrejon is a different hull under a different owner; recording it prevents future misattribution. Torrejon does document that era commercial-tanker asbestos litigation exists (Jones Act vs. operator), but names no party to this hull and establishes nothing about Escalante.

Atlas source
true

Evidence ID
ev-uss-escalante-ao70-12
[13]NARA Guide to Federal Records: RG 24 (Bureau of Naval Personnel deck logs) and RG 178 (U.S. Maritime Commission); USCG Marine Board report referenced within NOAA RULET document [other_primary]

Locator
archives.gov RG 24 / RG 178 group pages; NOAA RULET citation to uscg.mil board report

Finding type
historical_record

Finding
Archival leads (not retrieved - no spend authorized): (a) NARA RG 24 WWII deck logs for AO-70 (1943-45) - operational detail including yard availabilities; (b) NARA RG 178 Maritime Commission construction/contract records for MC hull 518 at Bethlehem Sparrows Point - may hold outfitting/material specifications; (c) USCG Marine Board casualty report for the George MacDonald foundering (uscg.mil/hq/cg5/docs/boards/geomcdonald.pdf, cited in the NOAA RULET report) - exists but returned HTTP 403 to automated fetch; (d) MARAD status-card reverse (1471_2714AB.jpg) is a fragmentary handwritten note of limited legibility.

Verification
unverified

Role
archival_lead

Documentation level
context_only

Accessed
2026-09-24

Study period
1942-1960 records

Limitations
Record-group mapping and document-existence only - no box-level retrieval performed; whether any asbestos-specific documents exist for this hull is unknown until surveyed in person. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.

Atlas source
true

Evidence ID
ev-uss-escalante-ao70-13

Attribution

Compiled by: Paul Danziger; Rod de Llano
Publisher: Danziger & De Llano, LLP
License: CC-BY-4.0
Citation: Danziger, P., and De Llano, R. (2026). AsbestosAtlas Navy Vessel Asbestos Exposure Dataset. Danziger & De Llano, LLP. DOI: not yet assigned
Dataset version: asbestosatlas-ships-2026.10.12-rc.1
DOI: not yet assigned