Evidence
8 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-8).
-
[1]DANFS, Finback (SS-230) - Portsmouth construction; twelve war patrols; lifeguard rescues in the Bonins; postwar New London training duty (verbatim transcription; live NHHC page returned 404) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS service narrative and spec block
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull: launched 25 August 1941 by Portsmouth Navy Yard (sponsor Mrs. A. E. Watson); commissioned 31 January 1942, Lieutenant Commander J. L. Hull in command. Twelve war patrols - Midway picket, Aleutians (Vega Bay reconnaissance, Tanaga Bay survey), Taiwan, Rabaul-home islands lanes, Java coast, South China Sea, Truk lifeguard duty, Palaus/Marianas lifeguard, Bonins lifeguard (rescued five downed pilots), and a final East China Sea patrol; nine of twelve designated successful; credited with 69,383 tons. Postwar: homeported New London training student submariners, with Caribbean 2d Fleet exercises in 1947 and 1948; decommissioned and placed in reserve at New London 21 April 1950; struck 1 September 1958; sold for scrapping 15 July 1959. Thirteen battle stars.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Limitations
- Ship-specific history only; no asbestos or material content. Yard-period asbestos disturbance is era inference, not a per-hull record.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-finback-ss230-01
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[2]NavSource Online Submarine Photo Archive, header 'as built' spec block and disposition line for this hull; corroborated by DANFS spec block (diesel-electric) and BuShips Ships' Data 1945 submarine machinery tables (via shipscribe.com, per Gato class profile) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource page header spec block for this hull (https://www.navsource.net/archives/08/08230.htm)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Machinery fit for this hull per NavSource 'as built' spec block: diesel electric reduction gear with four Fairbanks-Morse diesel engines (5,400 hp), four Elliot Motor Co. electric motors (2,740 hp), two 126-cell main storage batteries, twin screws. NO BOILERS and no steam plant - the asbestos-relevant machinery profile differs materially from steam classes (no boiler/furnace insulation, no steam-line lagging run-outs; exposure-relevant systems are diesel exhaust lagging, engine gaskets/packing, hull thermal/acoustic insulation, and auxiliary equipment). DANFS also documents a 'major overhaul at Pearl Harbor' 12 September - 15 December 1943.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Limitations
- The NavSource spec block is a class-standard spec sheet, not a per-hull machinery survey - actual installed equipment is presumed class-typical and unverified for this specific hull. No hull-specific machinery or material list was located. Establishes propulsion type only, not fiber content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-finback-ss230-02
-
[3]Gato class profile ev-gato-class-07 (era/design inference for diesel-electric fleet boats) built on navypedia member table and BuShips Ships' Data 1945; GAO HRD-80-2 for the Navy's era asbestos-use regime [other_primary]
- Locator
- class profile gato-class.class.json ev-07; GAO HRD-80-2 product page
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Class/era inference for diesel-electric fleet boats of this build period: era-standard applications likely included asbestos-containing diesel exhaust lagging, engine gaskets and packing, hull thermal and acoustic insulation, insulation around galley/refrigeration equipment, and electrical/battery materials.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Limitations
- CLASS/ERA INFERENCE ONLY - no ship-specific material schedule, insulation survey, or asbestos product list was located for this hull. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials; no quantity. Does not establish exposure or eligibility for any individual.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-finback-ss230-03
-
[4]CourtListener API v4 (opinions type=o, RECAP dockets type=r) exact-name and hull-number searches; site:courtlistener.com index sweep as throttling fallback [court_record]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows for this vessel
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Litigation sweep for this hull: CourtListener API queries were already throttled at the daily cap (HTTP 429, 125/day - quota exhausted by prior same-day batch work, expected available in ~3.7 hours), so the sweep ran on the site:courtlistener.com index fallback for "Finback" and "SS-230". The fallback sweep surfaced only general Navy asbestos litigation - nothing naming this hull. Name-collision caveat: USS Finback SSN-670 (Sturgeon class) served 1970-1997; postwar references are presumptively the later boat. No qualifying asbestos litigation - and no litigation of any kind verified as naming this hull - was located.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Limitations
- A negative result is bounded by the search mechanism: CourtListener coverage is not exhaustive for state-court pleadings, and the API throttle meant docket-text and opinion queries could not complete - the site:-index fallback is corroboration, not a substitute for docket search. Does not prove no litigation exists.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-finback-ss230-04
-
[5]Negative finding: no qualifying non-litigation ship-specific asbestos record located across DANFS/NHHC (via hazegray/losthistory transcription and Wayback captures), NavSource, and ACM-survey/abatement/disposal sweeps [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows for this vessel
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No hull ACM survey, abatement contract, scrapping/disposal hazmat disclosure, or adjudicated exposure finding naming this vessel was located anywhere in the research sweep. The hull went through reserve-fleet custody and was sold for scrap in the pre-OSHA/pre-NEPA era; no hazmat or material-condition documentation of any kind was located for the scrapping or reserve periods.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Limitations
- Absence of a located record is not proof no record exists. Does not establish that asbestos is or is not present aboard/within the hull, and does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-finback-ss230-05
-
[6]DANFS Finback closing narrative + NavSource disposition line - New London training duty, reserve, scrapping sale [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS/NavSource disposition data
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Postwar custody and terminal disposition for this hull: decommissioned and placed in reserve at New London 21 April 1950 after five years of student-submariner training duty (incl. Caribbean 2d Fleet exercises 1947-48); laid up in the Atlantic Reserve Fleet; struck 1 September 1958; sold for scrapping 15 July 1959. The 1945-50 training and 1950-59 reserve-custody periods ended in a scrap sale with no located hazmat documentation.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Limitations
- Documents custody/disposition only; no asbestos or material-condition content. Whether era insulation was disturbed during the 1943 Pearl Harbor overhaul or postwar training service is undocumented.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-finback-ss230-06
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[7]National Archives, Prologue magazine, 'Mission: Lifeguard' (Fall 2014) - USS Finback's 2 September 1944 rescue of Lt.(j.g.) George H.W. Bush, VT-51, USS San Jacinto, off Chichi Jima; corroborated by George H.W. Bush Presidential Library gallery and Finback 10th-patrol report (DPLA/NARA) [other_primary]
- Locator
- archives.gov Prologue Fall 2014 'Mission: Lifeguard'; bush41library.gov U.S. Navy 1942-1945 gallery (photo caption naming rescued pilots and Finback officers); NARA photo NAID 186364
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Ship-specific event documented: during her tenth war patrol (lifeguard duty, Bonins), Finback surfaced-rescued downed TBM Avenger pilot Lt.(j.g.) George Herbert Walker Bush on 2 September 1944 off Chichi Jima - the future 41st President - after his aircraft was downed on a strike; she had also rescued three aviators the previous day near Iwo Jima. Bush remained aboard for the rest of the patrol.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Study period
- 1944
- Population
- Rescued aviators aboard temporarily (Sept 1944)
- Limitations
- Documents a rescue event aboard this hull, not material content - no asbestos information. Confirms a named individual's presence aboard for one patrol segment.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-finback-ss230-07
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[8]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (Oct 18, 1979) [gao]
- Locator
- GAO product page HRD-80-2 (full text blocked, HTTP 403)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- GAO-documented Navy asbestos-management regime for the period covering this hull's postwar custody (training and reserve custody 1945-1959): GAO found the Navy's standing policy (1975) removed asbestos insulation only when damaged or required for repairs, modified 1979 to selective replacement in high-maintenance areas - meaning original-era insulation typically remained in place for decades unless a yard period disturbed it.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Limitations
- Program-level documentation, not hull-specific; supports era context only. Full text not retrieved (gao.gov blocks automated fetch, HTTP 403) - content via product-page description. Does not establish materials aboard this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-finback-ss230-08