Evidence
13 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-13).
-
[1]research packet kc-packet.md (3 sources cited) [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED — real identity: USS Finch
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-finch-de328-pkt-kc-packet-md
-
[2]DANFS, Finch (DE-328), Vol. 2 (1969) pp.405-406 + Bauer & Roberts Register of Ships bracketed disposition note - verbatim transcription via hazegray/losthistory.net mirror; live NHHC page serves 404 [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry, namesake biography + specifications block + service narrative + bracketed Bauer & Roberts disposition note
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for this hull: second Finch; namesake Lt.(j.g.) Joseph Warren Finch, Jr., USNR (born Chicago 8 March 1920; ensign 28 May 1941; KIA Naval Battle of Guadalcanal 13 November 1942 aboard USS Laffey DD-459, sharing posthumously in that ship's Presidential Unit Citation). Launched 28 August 1943 by Consolidated Steel Corp., Orange, Tex.; sponsored by Miss Grace Cushing, fiancee of Lt.(j.g.) Finch; commissioned 13 December 1943, Lt. Comdr. A. H. Nienau, USNR. Atlantic tanker convoys Curacao-Casablanca/Algiers March-May 1944; Norfolk-Naples screening July-August 1944 (Southern France assault); five New York/Boston-UK convoys 29 September 1944 - 8 May 1945; Pearl Harbor 12 July 1945; Guam 13 August, carrier task force to Leyte 17 August; Far East occupation duty to 1 April 1946 incl. POW evacuation in Korea and four months based at Hong Kong; round-the-world return to Charleston, S.C. 29 May 1946; decommissioned and placed in reserve 4 October 1946. Loaned to the Coast Guard, in commission as USCGC Finch (WDE-428) 24 August 1951 - 23 April 1954 on west-coast and Far East weather-station duty during the Korean War; converted to a radar picket escort; reclassified DER-328 17 August 1956 and recommissioned the same day; Seattle home port 17 December 1956 - 10 September 1958; Pearl Harbor from 16 September 1958 to 16 May 1960; San Francisco home port for barrier operations through 1962. Bracketed Bauer & Roberts note: stricken from the Navy Register 1 February 1974, sold 16 August 1974. Spec block: 1,200 t; 306 ft; beam 36 ft 7 in; draft 8 ft 7 in; 21 kt; complement 186; three 3-in guns; three 21-in torpedo tubes; 2 depth-charge tracks; 8 depth-charge projectors; 1 hedgehog.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1943-1974
- Population
- Consolidated Steel construction trades 1943; wartime USN crew (design complement 186); USCG crew 1951-54; DER-era USN crew 1956-69
- Limitations
- DANFS documents service history and specifications, not materials or asbestos content. The 1969 edition text ends at the 1962 barrier-operations period and cannot cover the final decommissioning; the bracketed disposition note is a later editorial addition. 'Reclassified DER-328 on 17 August 1956' conflicts with NavalCoverMuseum/Wikipedia's 21 October 1955 reclassification date - carried in gaps. Live NHHC DANFS page returns 404; verbatim mirror transcription cited.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-finch-de328-01
-
[3]Bureau of Ships, Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels, Vol. I (1945), Destroyer-Escort Vessels roster row 114 for FINCH, DE-328 (shipscribe.com scan; OCR of book p. 245) [other_primary]
- Locator
- SDB1945v1 roster row 114, FINCH DE-328 (book p. 245; shipscribe scan PDF p. 132)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Contemporaneous official BuShips roster row for this hull: FINCH, official number DE-328, design group FMR; builder Consolidated Steel Corp., Orange, Tex.; contract price $1,539,000 (cost-plus-fixed-fee per the table's footnote marker); contract signed 7 August 1942; keel laid 29 June 1943; launched 28 August 1943; preliminary-completion date column reads 8 November 1943; acceptance and first commission both 13 December 1943. Dates corroborate DANFS and NavSource exactly.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1942-1943
- Population
- Consolidated Steel Corp. construction trades, Orange, Tex., 1943
- Limitations
- Official contemporaneous build roster - documents identity, builder, contract, and dates; contains no insulation or materials information and says nothing about asbestos. Page is an image scan read by OCR; the keel/launch/commission dates corroborate DANFS and NavSource exactly, which fixes the OCR readings.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-finch-de328-02
-
[4]Bureau of Ships, Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels, Vol. I (1945), Destroyer-Escort Vessels design-group table, group 4 / FMR (shipscribe.com scan; OCR of book pp. 234-235) [other_primary]
- Locator
- SDB1945v1 DE design-group table, group-4 row (book pp. 234-235; shipscribe scan PDF p. 127)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Official BuShips design-group table for the hull's design: group 4 (symbol FMR - Fairbanks-Morse diesel reverse-gear drive) - 306 ft oa, 300 ft wl, beam 36 ft 7 in; 1,200 t standard / 1,590 t full load; 21 kt; machinery 4 Fairbanks-Morse model 38D8-1/8 geared diesel engines, 6,000 shp, 2 shafts; boilers 'None'; diesel ship's-service generators; armament 3 x 3 in/50 cal. D.P. Documents that the FMR design carried a diesel plant with no boilers or steam system.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1945 (publication)
- Population
- FMR-design crews
- Limitations
- Class/design documentation for the whole FMR group, not a per-hull material schedule - establishes plant type, not insulation content or asbestos. Table OCR'd from a scanned page; individual cell values may be partially garbled.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-finch-de328-03
-
[5]NavSource Destroyer Escort Photo Archive, USS Finch (DE 328) page (specs, building/operational data, awards, commanding-officer roster, photo captions) [other_primary]
- Locator
- navsource.org/archives/06/328.htm building-and-operational-data block + commanding-officer table + photo captions + awards display
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource compiled record for this hull: keel laid 29 June 1943 at Consolidated Steel Corp., Orange, Tex.; launched and christened 28 August 1943; commissioned 13 December 1943, Lcdr. Albert H. Nienau, USNR; decommissioned 4 October 1946 at Green Cove Springs, Fla. after 2 years 10 months; loaned to USCG and recommissioned WDE 428 on 21 August 1951 at Pier 4, U.S. Naval Station Green Cove Springs (Cdr G. R. Boyce, Jr., USCG); decommissioned and returned to Navy custody at Mare Island Naval Shipyard 23 April 1954 after 2 years 8 months; DER conversion commenced at Mare Island 1 October 1955; reclassified DER 328 and recommissioned 17 August 1956 (Lcdr. James K. Athow), Escort Squadron 5 at Seattle; homeports Pearl Harbor (16 September 1958), Treasure Island/San Francisco (22 May 1960), Guam (29 June 1965, Escort Squadron 7), Pearl Harbor (15 January 1969); 7 March 1969 played USS Ward in 'Tora! Tora! Tora!' filming; decommissioned at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton, Wash., 3 October 1969 after 13 years 2 months of DER service; struck from the NVR 1 February 1974; sold for scrapping 27 September 1974 to Levin Metals Corp., San Jose, Cal. Photo caption documents WDE-428 in overhaul at Mare Island 7 January - 16 April 1954 (USN photo DE-328 20362-3-54) and a 14 July 1944 NHHC photo (NH 91574) off the Boston Navy Yard. Awards display includes Combat Action Ribbon, Vietnam Service Medal with 6 stars, RVN Gallantry Cross Unit Citation, RVN Campaign Medal. Complement listed as 8 officers/201 enlisted. CO roster ends with Lcdr. Ronald Lloyd Johnson, 14 July - 3 October 1969.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1943-1974
- Population
- Wartime USN crew 1943-46; USCG crew 1951-54; DER-era USN crew 1956-69
- Limitations
- Compiled secondary archive, not a contemporaneous record. Conflicts carried in gaps: USCG recommission 21 Aug vs DANFS/USCG-history 24 Aug 1951; final decommission 3 Oct 1969 vs NARA/NavalCoverMuseum/Wikipedia October 1973; scrap-sale date 27 Sep 1974 vs Bauer & Roberts 16 Aug 1974. No asbestos or materials information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-finch-de328-04
-
[6]USCG Historian's Office cutter history, USCGC Finch (WDE 428) - transcription mirror at docslib.org (history.uscg.mil serves 403 to automated fetches) [other_primary]
- Locator
- docslib.org/doc/9074052 'USCGC Finch (WDE 428)' transcription, commissioning narrative
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Coast Guard cutter history for this hull: 12 Edsall-class destroyer escorts were recalled for Coast Guard service at the start of the Korean War, and USS Finch (DE 328) was among them; re-activation commenced July 1951; re-commissioned as USCGC Finch (WDE 428) on 24 August 1951 at 0815 hours at Pier 4, Naval Station Green Cove Springs, Florida, under Headquarters letter (OFU) dated 6 August 1951, with Cmdr. G. R. Boyce, Jr., USCG, commanding; the ship's Personnel Diary reflects 109 crew aboard on the inaugural date.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1951-1954
- Population
- USCG crew, 1951-1954 (109 aboard at commissioning)
- Limitations
- Read via a third-party transcription mirror - the underlying document is the USCG Historian's Office cutter history but the mirror is unofficial and unverified against the original (history.uscg.mil returns HTTP 403). 24 August 1951 agrees with DANFS but conflicts with NavSource's 21 August 1951 - carried in gaps. No asbestos or materials information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-finch-de328-05
-
[7]Consolidated era/design inference - BuShips SDB 1945 design-group-4 machinery row (no boilers; F.M. diesel) + documented 1955-56 DER conversion and 1954 WDE overhaul yard periods at Mare Island NSY + GAO HRD-80-2 era context + Atlas class-pattern precedent for diesel-powered escorts [other_primary]
- Locator
- SDB1945v1 pp. 234-235 group-4 row (machinery, 'None' in boiler columns); cf. Edsall-class sibling records (ev-uss-sellstrom-de255-06) for the same diesel-DE application set
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/design inference: an Edsall-class (FMR) destroyer escort built 1943 would have carried era-standard asbestos applications appropriate to a diesel-powered escort - exhaust-system insulation and lagging, gaskets and packing, electrical insulation, brake linings on winches and windlass, fireproofing, and deck coverings. Because the FMR plant has no boilers or steam lines (SDB 1945 design-group-4 machinery row), the largest asbestos categories of steam ships (boiler and steam-line insulation) do not apply to this design. The 1954 WDE overhaul and 1955-56 DER conversion at Mare Island Naval Shipyard (documented by NavSource and DANFS) are second and third asbestos-use-era construction/repair periods for this hull; their materials scope is not public.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1943-1969
- Population
- Consolidated Steel construction trades 1943; wartime USN crew 1943-46; reserve-fleet custody 1946-51; USCG crew 1951-54; Mare Island NSY workforce 1954 and 1955-56; DER-era USN crew 1956-69
- Limitations
- Class/era and design inference only - NOT a hull-specific finding. No insulation schedule or material list for DE-328 or its DER conversion was located; this establishes era-consistent expectation for the type, not that any specific material went aboard this hull. Does not quantify material or establish any individual's exposure. Builder yard (Consolidated Steel Corp., Orange, Tex.) is not in the Atlas shipyards dataset - no yard-level asbestos documentation is attached.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-finch-de328-06
-
[8]Keri Heath, 'World War II-era vessels in Galveston to undergo asbestos abatement', Galveston Daily News, 27 July 2020 (citation verified in batches 4037 and 4176, accessed 2026-09-28) [reputable_press]
- Locator
- galvnews.com article_c2c77857, 27 Jul 2020
- Finding type
- abatement_record
- Finding
- Documented asbestos aboard a preserved Edsall-class sister hull: the Galveston Daily News reported asbestos in public areas of USS Stewart (DE-238) and USS Cavalla (SS-244) at Seawolf Park, with contractor Separation Systems Consultants approved to proceed with abatement and the Galveston Park Board citing U.S. Navy inspection recommendations that an asbestos survey be conducted. USS Stewart is an Edsall-class hull (DE-238, Brown Shipbuilding-built) - same class as DE-328, different builder - class-level corroboration that Edsall-class construction carried asbestos-containing material.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 2020
- Population
- Museum staff/volunteers and Seawolf Park visitors; abatement crews
- Limitations
- Evidence about a sister hull (DE-238), NOT this hull: same class but a different builder and a museum-hull lifecycle DE-328 never had (DE-328 was scrapped 1974). Documents asbestos aboard one Edsall-class ship as preserved; establishes nothing about DE-328's materials, quantity, or any individual exposure.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-finch-de328-07
-
[9]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 the Navy's extensive shipboard asbestos insulation use with substitution not beginning until the early 1970s - DE-328 (built 1943, Mare Island WDE overhaul 1954, Mare Island DER conversion 1955-56) falls inside the documented asbestos-use era for Navy ship construction and conversion.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1979
- Population
- Navy shipyard workers
- Limitations
- Program-level era context only. Full text not retrieved (gao.gov returns HTTP 403 to automated fetches); content via product-page description. Says nothing about this specific hull, Mare Island's work on it, or any diesel-escort application specifically.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-finch-de328-08
-
[10]NARA National Archives Catalog - digitized Navy deck logs for 'Finch (DE/DER-328)' [other_primary]
- Locator
- archives.gov/research/military/logbooks/navy-online, 'F' list, Finch (DE/DER-328) entry; monthly catalog ids e.g. 217527818 (Aug 1956), 174180781 (Jan 1969), 174181371 (Oct 1969)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Deck logs for the hull's entire DER commission are digitized in the National Archives Catalog: August 1956 through October 1969 (e.g., August 1956 = catalog id 217527818, October 1969 = id 174181371). The October-1969 end of the digitized run is consistent with NavSource's 3 October 1969 decommissioning and conflicts with the index header's own 'Decommission: October 1973' - carried in gaps. The August 1956 logs could document the post-conversion Mare Island departure; the 1954 WDE overhaul and the whole 1943-46 and 1951-54 logs are NOT in the digitized list.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1956-1969
- Population
- DER-328 crew 1956-1969 (deck-log subjects)
- Limitations
- Existence of the digitized logs is verified from the NARA deck-log index page; log CONTENT is unsurveyed - this is a retrieval lead, not a finding. Deck logs record operational events, not insulation schedules - asbestos mentions are possible but unverified. The index header's commission/decommission block (recommission September 1956; decommission October 1973) conflicts with NavSource on both months/days - gaps.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-finch-de328-09
-
[11]Jacob v. Plastics Engineering Company (PLENCO), No. 1:19-cv-00108 (D. Guam), Complaint for Personal Injury (filed 2019-06-20; case terminated 2020-02-26) [court_record]
- Locator
- CourtListener docket 15808518, ECF No. 1 complaint (13 pp.), snippet match on 'USS Finch'
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Asbestos personal-injury docket in which 'USS Finch' appears in indexed CourtListener complaint text: Jacob v. Plastics Engineering Co. (PLENCO), D. Guam 1:19-cv-00108, cause 28:1332 Diversity-Asbestos Litigation, nature of suit 368 P.I.: Asbestos, plaintiffs Eusebio V. and Marta A. Jacob, filed 2019-06-20, terminated 2020-02-26. Finch homeported at Guam 1965-1969 (NavSource), so a Guam-filed asbestos complaint naming the ship is consistent in venue; whether the complaint names Finch as an exposure vessel or in another role is unresolved pending RECAP full-text review.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 2019-2020 (litigation)
- Population
- Unverified from index (plaintiff Eusebio V. Jacob)
- Limitations
- Docket-index reference only; unadjudicated. Even if the complaint alleges exposure aboard, a pleading allegation is not a finding: it would not adjudicate exposure, causation, asbestos presence, product identity, quantities, or legal eligibility. The complaint PDF is available in RECAP (gov.uscourts.gud.14512.1.0.pdf) but fleet CourtListener pacing blocked full-text retrieval this session - logged in the search ledger as pending.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-finch-de328-10
-
[12]CourtListener API v4 opinion and docket sweeps for 'USS Finch' / 'DER-328' / 'DE-328' (via fleet-paced authenticated helper cl-auth-search.py) [court_record]
- Locator
- CourtListener API v4 search results 2026-09-28: 'USS Finch' type=o count=0, type=r count=1 (Jacob v. PLENCO); 'DER-328' type=o count=0; 'DE-328' and supplemental sweeps blocked
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- No adjudicated asbestos litigation names this hull. Opinion sweep '"USS Finch"' (type=o): 0 hits. Designation sweep '"DER-328"' (type=o): 0 hits. Docket sweep '"USS Finch"' (type=r): 1 hit - Jacob v. PLENCO (D. Guam), unresolved role, carried as archival_lead ev-10. Remaining sweeps ('"DE-328"' type=o and type=r, '"USCGC Finch"', '"Finch" asbestos', RECAP full-text of the Jacob complaint) were blocked by fleet CourtListener pacing this session - logged as pending in the search ledger rather than retried into a ban.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 2026-09-28
- Limitations
- Sweep coverage is the CourtListener opinion + RECAP docket indexes only; state-court dockets not mirrored, PACER-only filings, and settled/undocketed claims are outside it. 'No result' does not prove no claim was ever filed - it proves no indexed opinion or docket names the hull. Blocked sweeps are disclosed, not folded into the negative finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-finch-de328-11
-
[13]Batch-4230 search ledger (this record): DANFS transcription (hazegray/losthistory mirror; NHHC 404); NavSource archive page; BuShips Ships' Data 1945 Vol. 1 (local OCR of the shipscribe scan); USCG cutter-history transcription (docslib mirror; uscg.mil 403); GAO product page; NARA digitized deck-log inventory; VA/BVA web search; general web sweep; CourtListener sweeps (see sl-05 through sl-09) [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-finch-de328-01 through sl-uss-finch-de328-13
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located for DE-328/WDE-428/DER-328: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, material schedule, or museum documentation exists for this hull - it was scrapped in 1974, pre-dating the museum-donation and hazmat-disclosure era that produced records for sister hull Stewart (DE-238). The only 'asbestos' hits naming USS Finch (DE-328) in general web search are law-firm marketing listicles that enumerate every WWII hull (asbestos-ships.com, freeasbestostesting.com) - non-authoritative and excluded by batch rules. BVA decision sweep returned no decision naming this hull (the single initial hit, Citation 1021218, concerns USS Coral Sea - a name collision, excluded).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 2026-09-28
- Limitations
- Absence of a located record is not proof of absence aboard - 1943 escort construction, the 1954 Mare Island overhaul, and the 1955-56 DER conversion all fall inside the documented Navy asbestos-use era, and sister-hull DE-238 carried documented asbestos. Digitized DER-era deck logs (NARA, ev-09), WWII and USCG-era logs (RG 24/RG 26, Archives II), and BuShips construction records (RG 19) are unsurveyed leads. Does not establish that asbestos was or was not present aboard; does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-finch-de328-12