Evidence
14 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-14).
-
[1]research packet bl-packet.md (5 sources cited) [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-extractor-ars15-pkt-bl-packet-md
-
[2]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 vessel was constructed (ordered 3 Jan 1942, keel 16 May 1942, Colberg Boat Works).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- 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 this class and does not establish that asbestos was aboard this hull, nor quantity, location, condition, exposure, or causation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-extractor-ars15-01
-
[3]Shipscribe, USS Anchor (ARS-13) class page (Stephen S. Roberts) - class design notes (BARS-5 wooden-hulled design; diesel-electric, 2 screws, 1,200 HP) and NavSource ARS-15 specification block (four H.O.R. 685A diesel-electric engines, three 40 kW 240 V DC generators) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Shipscribe class design notes and machinery line; NavSource ARS-15 specifications block
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Design-level documentation: the Anchor class (ARS-13 series incl. ARS-15) was built to the Navy BARS-5 design, a wooden-hulled diesel-electric salvage vessel type originally drawn for British Lend-Lease; machinery was diesel-electric (1,200 shp), so there was no boiler or steam-plant lagging aboard. Era-consistent asbestos applications for this vessel type would be concentrated in machinery spaces: diesel exhaust and muffler lagging, machinery insulation, gaskets and packing, electrical insulation, and towing-winch/windlass brake linings.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1942-1944
- Population
- Construction trades (Colberg Boat Works, 1942-43); engineering crew
- Limitations
- Design/class documentation establishes hull material (wooden) and machinery type (diesel-electric) for the class - it does not name asbestos anywhere. The application list is era inference from vessel type, not a ship finding; it does not establish presence, quantity, condition, exposure, or causation aboard ARS-15.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-extractor-ars15-02
-
[4]Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, 'Extractor (ARS-15)' - live NHHC DANFS page returned 404 on 2026-09-26 (standing NHHC link rot); text verified via hazegray.org DANFS transcription mirror [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS 'Extractor' entry, full text
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS entry for Extractor (ARS-15): launched by Colberg Boat Works, Stockton, Calif., 15 June 1943; sponsored by Mrs. Lowden Jessup; commissioned 3 March 1944, LTjg L. C. Oaks in command. Sailed San Francisco 8 May 1944 for Eniwetok; reported to Commander, Service Squadron 2 for salvage and rescue duty; executed repairs, diving, towing, and salvage operations Pearl Harbor-Eniwetok-Ulithi through summer 1944; fought the fire aboard Mississinewa (AO-59) at Ulithi 20 November 1944 (oiler capsized and sank); steamed to Guam 3 December 1944 reporting to Commander, Service Squadron 12; departed Guam unescorted 21 January 1945 for the Philippine area; torpedoed in error by Guardfish (SS-217) on 24 January 1945, struck starboard side, capsized and sank within 5 minutes at 15 deg 44'N 135 deg 29'E; six lives lost, remainder of crew rescued by Guardfish.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1943-1945
- Population
- Ship's company, 1944-1945
- Limitations
- Ship-specific official history; establishes identity, construction, service, and loss narrative. The mirror omits a laid-down date and a strike date (both supplied from Shipscribe class records). Sinking longitude given as 135 deg 29'E conflicts with 133 deg 29'E in the U.S. Naval Chronology for WWII and uboat.net - see correction row. Contains no asbestos or materials information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-extractor-ars15-03
-
[5]Navy Department Communiqué No. 582, 1 March 1945 (official wartime release, compiled in 'Navy Department Communiqués' series, ibiblio.org Pearl Harbor Archive transcription) [other_primary]
- Locator
- N.D. Communiqué No. 582, items 1 and 4 (page 359 of the compiled volume)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Navy Department Communiqué No. 582 (1 March 1945), item 1: 'The USS Extractor, a small salvage vessel, was sunk in the Central Pacific Area by a United States submarine. The sinking, which occurred in the early morning just prior to sunrise, was the result of incorrect identification by the submarine. The survivors were rescued by the attacking submarine, which made a thorough search of the area upon discovering the error made. There were six men reported missing.' Item 4 notes next of kin had been informed.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1945
- Limitations
- Contemporaneous official announcement; the communiqué does not name the attacking submarine (Guardfish) and gives no position - consistent with wartime security practice. Primary source for the loss event and the six-missing figure. No asbestos or materials information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-extractor-ars15-04
-
[6]United States Navy Memorial, Navy Log - 'Extractor' ship tribute page (prepared by CAPT R.O. Strange USN Ret.) [museum_official]
- Locator
- Ship tribute page, Lost At Sea Log table
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- U.S. Navy Memorial Navy Log 'Lost Ship's Tribute' page for Extractor (ARS-15): date lost Wednesday, January 24, 1945; describes the friendly-fire sinking by USS Guardfish (SS-217), capsize within 5 minutes, six lives lost with the remainder rescued by Guardfish; Lost At Sea Log names six sailors: Sea 2c Walter Bahrey, RM 3c Bob Burgess, EM 3c Tommie Frazier, SC 3c Alvin Orgeron, Sea 1c William Taylor, Sea 2c Raymond Thompson (all USN).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1945
- Population
- Ship's company at loss (6 fatalities named)
- Limitations
- Official U.S. Navy Memorial record; corroborates loss date, manner, and the six casualties by name. Does not give position or strike date. No asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-extractor-ars15-05
-
[7]Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, 'Guardfish (SS-217)' entry - NHHC live page unreachable (link rot); text verified via historycentral.com DANFS transcription mirror [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS 'Guardfish' entry, tenth-patrol paragraph
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS entry for Guardfish (SS-217) records the attacking submarine's account: on her tenth war patrol, 'nearing Guam in the early morning darkness of 24 January she mistook Extractor, an American salvage ship, for an I class submarine and torpedoed her. Guardfish succeeded in rescuing all but 6 of her crew of 79 from the sea.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1945
- Population
- Ship's company at loss
- Limitations
- Submarine-side corroboration naming this hull. Two caveats: (a) the mirror's transcription contains OCR-type date errors elsewhere in the entry ('1946'/'1915' where 1945 is correct) - the Extractor sentence itself is corroborated by a second transcription; (b) 'her crew of 79' conflicts with the class complement of 65 (NavSource/Shipscribe) - carried as an unresolved discrepancy. No asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-extractor-ars15-06
-
[8]Shipscribe (shipscribe.com), 'USS Anchor (ARS-13) Class' - U.S. Navy auxiliary data compiled from BuShips/OpNav/NVR records by Stephen S. Roberts [other_primary]
- Locator
- Class data block; construction table row ARS-15; disposition table row ARS-15; class notes; ship note EXTRACTOR
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Shipscribe ANCHOR (ARS-13) class data (Stephen S. Roberts compilation of official Navy records): design 'Navy BARS-5' - a wooden salvage vessel type originally requested by the British Government; ARS-15 ordered 3 Jan 1942, keel laid 16 May 1942 at Colberg Boat Works, launched 15 Jun 1943, commissioned 3 Mar 1944; never decommissioned; struck 10 Mar 1945; fate 'Lost' 24 Jan 1945. Class data: 1,089 t light / 1,615 t limiting; 183.25' oa x 37.0' x 14.7'; complement 65 (1944); 12 knots; machinery 2 screws, diesel-electric, 1,200 HP; original armament 1-3"/50, 4-20mm. Class notes: VCNO letter 28 Jul 1942 originally assigned ARS 13-17 and ARS 28-29 to the contract-operated Navy Salvage Service (Merritt-Chapman & Scott, BuShips contract NObs-36); OpNav cancelled contract operation of ARS-15 on 2 Nov 1943 and ordered her commissioned and Navy-manned.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1941-1945
- Limitations
- Independent compilation of official Navy register/program records; supplies the laid-down and strike dates absent from DANFS and NavSource. Hull material and machinery characterizations are class/design-level applied to this hull. '2 screws' conflicts with NavSource's 'single propeller' - unresolved (see correction row). No asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-extractor-ars15-07
-
[9]NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive - USS Extractor (ARS-15), navsource.org/archives/09/37/3715.htm [other_primary]
- Locator
- ARS-15 archive page: chronology block, specifications block, DANFS extract, commanding officers, awards line
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NavSource Service Ship Photo Archive, USS Extractor (ARS-15): Anchor Class Rescue and Salvage Ship; laid down date unknown at Colberg Boat Works, Stockton CA; launched 15 Jun 1943; commissioned 3 Mar 1944, LTjg. Leslie C. Oaks in command; assigned Asiatic-Pacific Theater; sunk accidentally by USS Guardfish (SS-217) 24 Jan 1945; struck from the Naval Register, date unknown. Specifications: 1,615 t (fl); 183'3" x 37' x 14'8"; 12 kts; complement 6 officers + 59 enlisted; armament 1x3"/50 + 4x20mm; propulsion four Hoover, Owens, Rentschler Co. 685A diesel-electric engines, three diesel-drive 40 kW 240 V DC ship's-service generators, single propeller 1,200 shp. Call sign NQUM. Awards: American Campaign Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, WWII Victory Medal. Commanding officers listed: LTjg Leslie C. Oaks (3 Mar 1944-), LTjg H. M. Babcock (WWII).
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1942-1945
- Limitations
- Standard ship-archive compilation; specification block provenance is not stated per-hull (shared pattern across Colberg-built class sisters). 'Single propeller' conflicts with Shipscribe '2 screws'; 'struck date unknown' is superseded by Shipscribe 10 Mar 1945. No asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-extractor-ars15-08
-
[10]U.S. EPA, Superfund Site Profile - Colberg Boat Works, EPA ID CAN000906010 [other_primary]
- Locator
- EPA cumulis site profile, CAN000906010
- Finding type
- environmental_record
- Finding
- EPA Superfund Enterprise Management System site profile for COLBERG BOAT WORKS, 848 W. Fremont Street / 401 N. Stockton Street, Stockton, CA 95203 (EPA ID CAN000906010): not on the NPL; non-NPL status 'Other Cleanup Activity: State-Lead Cleanup' (EPA Region 9). The builder's site is under documented hazardous-substance cleanup oversight - a contaminated former shipyard, not a vessel record.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- site status as of access date 2026-09-26
- Limitations
- Builder-site soil/contamination cleanup record only. The EPA profile does not list contaminants at summary level and says nothing about asbestos aboard vessels built there, worker exposure, or the ship itself. Included only as documented context for the builder yard (which is not in shipyards.json).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-extractor-ars15-09
-
[11]Cross-source comparison: DANFS (hazegray mirror); NavSource Naval Chronology WWII 1945 (navsource.org/Naval/1945.htm); uboat.net Allied Warships ARS-15 page; NavSource ARS-15 page; Shipscribe ARS-13 class page; NavalCoverMuseum ARS-15 page; DANFS Guardfish (historycentral mirror) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Chronology 1945 extract (133 deg 29'E); uboat.net ship/8233 (133 deg 29'E); hazegray DANFS ars15 (135 deg 29'E)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Source discrepancies documented: (a) Sinking position - DANFS gives 15 deg 44'N 135 deg 29'E; the U.S. Naval Chronology of WWII 1945 volume and uboat.net give 15 deg 44'N 133 deg 29'E (a two-degree longitude disagreement, unresolved; DANFS value carried in lat/lon). (b) Complement - class figure 65 (6 officers + 59 enlisted, NavSource/Shipscribe 1944) vs 'her crew of 79' in the DANFS Guardfish account (79 may reflect wartime augmentation or passengers being carried to the Philippines; unresolved). (c) Propulsion - NavSource 'single propeller, 1,200 shp' vs Shipscribe '2 screws, diesel-electric, 1,200 HP' (power agrees; screw count conflicts). (d) Strike date - NavSource 'unknown' vs Shipscribe/NavalCoverMuseum 10 Mar 1945 (adopted).
- Verification
- disputed
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1945
- Limitations
- Records disagreement among otherwise reliable secondary/official sources; none resolved to a primary document (the Guardfish patrol report position would be controlling - flagged as archival lead). None of the discrepant fields affects the asbestos record, which is null either way.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-extractor-ars15-10
-
[12]CourtListener API v4 opinion (type=o) and RECAP docket (type=r) search indexes, queries executed via fleet-paced authenticated helper cl-auth-search.py [court_record]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-extractor-ars15-09 and sl-uss-extractor-ars15-10
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- CourtListener sweep (authenticated API v4, 2026-09-26) by vessel name and hull number located NO qualifying asbestos litigation naming USS Extractor / ARS-15. Queries and classifications: 'USS Extractor' opinion search - 0 results; '"Extractor" asbestos' opinion search - 11 hits, all name collisions or unrelated litigation (laundry/industrial 'extractor' machine cases incl. Hydro-Centrifugals v. Crawford Laundry and Miller v. Bock Laundry; Vargo v. Koppers asbestos appeal matched the word 'extractor' in text without naming any vessel; tax, patent, and dependency cases); '"ARS-15"' opinion search - 7 hits, all collisions (A.R.S. section-15 Arizona statute citations, ARS National Services, part numbers); 'Extractor' + salvage/asbestos/ship docket search - 1,297 hits, top-screened all collisions (Extractor Corporation, Heat Extractor Corp., equipment forfeitures; IN RE Asbestos Products Liability Litigation MDL-875 matched the bare word 'extractor' in docket text with no vessel named in the caption); '"USS Extractor" OR "ARS-15"' docket search - 83 hits, all collisions (ARS National Services debt-collection cases, A.R.S. statute citations).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 2026-09-26
- Limitations
- No qualifying asbestos litigation found; every hit classified as name collision or other litigation - 'extractor' is a high-collision term (laundry/industrial machines, debt collector 'ARS', Arizona statute cites). A keyword hit inside the MDL-875 docket does not establish that any plaintiff named the vessel. CourtListener does not index all state-court or trial-level pleadings, so absence from its indexes is not proof that no claim was ever filed. Nothing here establishes or defeats exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-extractor-ars15-11
-
[13]Batch-2651 search ledger (this record): DANFS/hazegray, NavSource ARS-15 + Naval Chronology, ibiblio Navy Department communiqués, U.S. Navy Memorial navylog, Shipscribe class records, shipbuildinghistory.com Colberg yard table, uboat.net, EPA SEMS profile, CourtListener name/hull sweeps [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-extractor-ars15-01 through -12
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, museum disclosure, or docketed asbestos case naming USS Extractor / ARS-15 was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). Consistent with her loss in service after eleven months of commission, no post-loss record trail exists: no postwar refit, reserve-fleet, disposal, or wreck-survey/recovery record was located for the hull.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 2026-09-26
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove asbestos was absent aboard - a 1942-43 wartime Navy auxiliary is era-consistent with asbestos-containing materials in machinery spaces. Does not establish presence or absence; does not establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility. The unsurveyed wreck in the Philippine Sea forecloses present-day condition documentation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-extractor-ars15-12
-
[14]NARA Guide to Federal Records: RG 24 (Naval Personnel), RG 38 (Office of the Chief of Naval Operations), RG 19 (Bureau of Ships) record-group mappings [other_primary]
- Locator
- RG 24/38/19 record-group guide pages; WWII deck-log and patrol-report finding aids
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads (not retrieved - requires research-room or reproduction order; no spend authorized): NARA RG 24 (Bureau of Naval Personnel deck logs - monthly submissions would cover March-December 1944 service before loss); RG 38 (CNO/operational records - USS Guardfish tenth war patrol report and any court/board of inquiry into the mistaken-identification sinking, plus ComServRon 2/12 operational reports); RG 19 (Bureau of Ships plans and specifications - the BARS-5 design and ARS-15 outfitting/materials specifications are the likeliest primary source for any insulation/materials list).
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1942-1945 records
- Limitations
- Record-group mapping only - no box-level retrieval performed; whether asbestos-specific documents exist for ARS-15 is unknown until surveyed. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-extractor-ars15-13