Evidence
10 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-10).
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[1]DANFS, 'Flicker' (AM-70) entry, Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (verbatim transcription - live NHHC page https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/f/flicker.html serves 404; legacy URL http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/f3/flicker-i.htm also 404) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS 'Flicker' entry - spec block + full service narrative (mirror losthistory.net/hazegray/danfs/mine/am70.htm)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for this hull: 'The first Flicker (AM-70) was built in 1937 by Bath Iron Works, Bath, Maine, as Delaware; acquired by the Navy 9 August 1940; and commissioned 26 October 1940, Lieutenant H. K. Hall in command. She was reclassified IX-165 on 11 April 1944.' Service narrative: after training off Norfolk, sweeping operations off Bermuda May-December 1941, then minesweeping in the Virginia Capes; arrived Recife, Brazil 19 September 1942, harbor entrance guard ship and minesweeping until 7 January 1943; base at Bahia, Brazil until 11 July, operations at Rio de Janeiro, returned to Bahia 21 November to serve until 8 February 1944; Norfolk 6 March 1944 for repairs; Argentia, Newfoundland 1 June 1944; carried cargo to ports in Labrador, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland, once south to reload at Boston, patrolled off Argentia until returning to Boston 11 November 1944; decommissioned 3 January 1945; transferred to the Maritime Commission 31 March 1945. Spec block: dp. 510; l. 147'5"; b. 25'; dr. 12'; s. 13 k.; a. 1 3".
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1937-1945
- Population
- BIW construction trades (1936-37); Bethlehem Steel East Boston conversion workforce (1940-41); wartime crew; Norfolk repair workforce (1944); Maritime Commission disposal workforce (1945)
- Limitations
- DANFS documents service history, dates, and specifications - not materials or asbestos content. The Bethlehem Steel East Boston conversion, the 1944 Norfolk repairs, and the IX-165 cargo/patrol phase are events whose materials scope the source does not describe. No striking date, no complement figure, no launch/laid-down dates in the entry. Live NHHC page returns 404 (standing link rot); verbatim mirror cited.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-flicker-am70-01
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[2]NavSource Online: Mine Warfare Vessel Photo Archive - Flicker (IX 165) ex-AM 70, file 11/02070 [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 02070.htm - chronology block, specifications block, commanding-officer table, photo credits
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource file for this hull corroborates DANFS and adds detail: labeled 'Flicker Class Minesweeper'; laid down 27 October 1936 as the fishing trawler M/V Delaware by Bath Iron Works, Bath, ME, for Booth Fisheries Co. of Boston, MA; launched 25 February 1937; delivered 20 March 1937; acquired by the Navy 9 August 1940; conversion to a minesweeper began 9 August 1940 at the Bethlehem Steel Co., East Boston, MA; renamed Flicker 14 August 1940; commissioned USS Flicker (AM-70) 26 October 1940; conversion completed 26 March 1941; reclassified Unclassified Miscellaneous Auxiliary IX-165 11 April 1944; decommissioned 3 January 1945; struck from the Navy Register 19 January 1945; transferred to the Maritime Commission 31 March 1945; 'Naval Vessel Register of 1 January 1949 lists plan for transfer to the War Shipping Administration as January 1945'; 'Fate unknown.' Spec block: 510 t., 147'5" x 25' x 12', 13 kts, one 3"/23 gun mount; propulsion one 735-shp Fairbanks-Morse diesel engine, one shaft - diesel, no boilers or steam plant. Call sign Nan-Easy-Fox-Mike. NHHC photo NH 81360 (1940-41). CO table: LT Harrell Willoughby Hall USN, USNA 1924 (26 Oct 1940-Aug 1941); LT Richard Lagreze USNR (Aug 1941-Oct 1942); LTJG Edward P. Gough USNR (Oct 1942-May 1944); LT Dayton O. Newton USNR (May 1944-3 Jan 1945).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1936-1949
- Population
- Bethlehem Steel East Boston conversion workforce 1940-41; wartime crew
- Limitations
- Volunteer-compiled archive quoting official records (DANFS, Navy photos, NVR editions) - corroborating source, not the official record itself; acquisition date agrees with DANFS here. Documents machinery, chronology, and command - not materials or asbestos content. 'Fate unknown' conflicts with Colton's compiled 1945 reversion/1969 scrapping and Toppan's 'Discarded 1945' - carried in gaps. The 735-shp engine figure is NavSource-compiled (HyperWar group table confirms only 'diesel engine').
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-flicker-am70-02
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[3]HyperWar 'US Navy Unclassified Vessels (IX), 1940-1945' table, IX-165 row; and HyperWar 'US Navy Minecraft, 1940-1945' Converted Fishing Trawlers table, AM-70 row (Patrick Clancey compilations of official-derived data) [other_primary]
- Locator
- ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/ships/ships-ix.html - IX-165 row; ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/ships/ships-dm.html - Converted Fishing Trawlers table, AM-70 row
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- HyperWar IX-table corroborates the reclassification chain: 'IX-165 | Flicker | 1944 | 491 | Converted from Minesweeper AM-70.' The HyperWar minecraft 'Converted Fishing Trawlers' table places this hull in the group: 'AM-70 | Flicker | 1940 | 1944 | ex- Delaware (1937) Converted to Unclassified Vessel IX-165' - one of the 1940-41 fishing-trawler acquisitions (AM-66 through AM-81 and later hulls), group specs displacement 314-585 t, 122'6"-150', 9-13 kts, one 3"/23 or 3"/50 mount, diesel engine, complement 36 (group-level figure).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1940-1944
- Population
- IX-165 cargo/patrol crew 1944
- Limitations
- Compiled tables of official-derived data, not the primary record. The IX table's 491-ton figure conflicts with the DANFS/NavSource 510-ton displacement (different tonnage bases likely - unreconciled, in gaps). The group 'complement 36' is a compiled group-level figure, not hull-verified - not carried as complement (in gaps). No materials or asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-flicker-am70-03
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[4]Shipbuilding History (Tim Colton), Bath Iron Works yard table, hull no. 169 row; and Toppan, 'Bath Iron Works Production Record, Part 2 (Hull 117-276, 1927-1946)' (hazegray mirror), hull 169 row [other_primary]
- Locator
- shipbuildinghistory.com/shipyards/large/bath.htm - row 169 (Delaware); losthistory.net/hazegray/shipbuilding/biw2.htm - hull 169 row
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Two independent compilations of BIW production corroborate the build: yard hull no. 169, trawler Delaware, Booth Fisheries Co., 303 GT (Colton), delivered 20 March 1937 (both). Disposition trails differ: Colton reads 'Later Flicker 1940 and Delaware 1945, scrapped 1969' - i.e., the hull reverted to Delaware on leaving Navy custody and was reportedly scrapped in 1969; Toppan's BIW production record reads 'Discarded 1945'; NavSource reads 'fate unknown.' Neighboring trawler rows confirm the Boston-trawler build program at BIW (Surf/Swell for Bay State Fishing, Arlington for Arlington Trawler Co., all 1936).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1936-1969
- Population
- BIW construction trades 1936-37; merchant disposal/scrapping workforce (compiled 1945-1969)
- Limitations
- Compiled yard/production tables - corroborating secondary sources, not registry or Navy records. The three post-Navy disposition statements conflict (Colton 1969 scrapping; Toppan 'Discarded 1945'; NavSource 'fate unknown') - none registry-verified; carried in gaps as leads, not established fact. 'Discarded 1945' (registry discard) and 'scrapped 1969' are not necessarily contradictory but cannot be merged without a registry source. No materials or asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-flicker-am70-04
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[5]Consolidated era/design inference - NavSource machinery line for this hull (one 735-shp Fairbanks-Morse diesel, one shaft) + DANFS-documented 1937 commercial build and 1940-41 Navy conversion + GAO HRD-80-2 policy context [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource spec block (machinery line, conversion entry); DANFS service narrative; GAO product page HRD-80-2 (full text historically blocked to automated fetch, HTTP 403 - product-page description relied on)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/design inference for a diesel-driven converted trawler built commercially at Bath Iron Works in 1937 and converted to a minesweeper at Bethlehem Steel Co., East Boston, in 1940-41: NO boilers or steam plant - the steam-ship boiler/turbine lagging pathway does not apply to this hull. Plausible period asbestos applications on this type concentrate in diesel-engine and exhaust-system insulation, gaskets and packing throughout the engineering spaces, electrical insulation and cable, deck coverings, accommodation-space insulation, and brake/friction linings on winches and sweep-gear handling machinery. GAO HRD-80-2 documents that the Navy did not begin systematic asbestos substitution until the early 1970s - decades after this hull's disposal. Documented disturbance events for this hull: 1937 commercial construction at Bath, the August 1940-March 1941 East Boston minesweeper conversion (armament and sweep gear added), the March 1944 Norfolk repair period, decommissioning January 1945, Maritime Commission transfer March 1945, and a compiled merchant afterlife to scrapping in 1969 (unverified).
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1937-1969
- Population
- BIW construction trades 1936-37; Bethlehem East Boston conversion trades 1940-41; Norfolk repair workforce 1944; wartime crew; disposal/scrapping workforce (compiled 1945-1969)
- Limitations
- Class/era and design inference only - no hull-level material schedule, insulation spec, or survey exists in the located public record for this ship. Establishes no asbestos content, quantity, location, individual exposure, or causation. Inference is weakened twice over: by the diesel (non-steam) plant, and by commercial pre-war construction whose material standards differed from wartime naval builds. Whether era materials persisted through the compiled merchant afterlife to a 1969 scrapping is undocumented.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-flicker-am70-05
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[6]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 under which this hull was converted (1940-41) and operated (1940-45) as a naval vessel, and shortly after the 1937 commercial build.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1940s era documented; article 1987
- Population
- WWII shipyard workers and ship crews (era context)
- Limitations
- Program/era-level scholarly documentation of asbestos use in WWII shipbuilding generally; does not name this vessel or type, and this hull's commercial pre-war construction predates the wartime program the paper covers - applicability is strongest to the 1940-41 conversion and service era. 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-flicker-am70-06
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[7]Fleischer, W.E., Viles, F.J. Jr., Gade, R.L., and Drinker, P., 'A health survey of pipe covering operations in constructing naval vessels,' J Ind Hyg Toxicol 28(1):9-16 (Jan 1946), PMID 21016030 [other_primary]
- Locator
- PubMed record PMID 21016030; article pp. 9-16 (pipe covering material section)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- The U.S. Maritime Commission-commissioned industrial-hygiene survey of WWII pipe-covering operations at two Navy yards and two Navy contract yards documented that 'an important ingredient of pipe covering material used on U.S. Navy vessels is amosite' - i.e., asbestos insulation was standard material in wartime naval-vessel construction and conversion work of this hull's operating era, including at contract yards of the type that converted her.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- survey ~1944-45; published 1946
- Population
- WWII pipe coverers and insulators at Navy and contract yards (era context)
- Limitations
- Era-level documentation of asbestos use in naval construction generally; does not name this vessel or type, and whether Bethlehem Steel's East Boston yard was among the surveyed contract yards is unverified - establishes nothing about this hull's materials, condition, or any individual exposure. Applicability is further bounded by this hull's small diesel plant: the pipe-covering load on a converted trawler is materially lighter than on the steam combatants at the center of the survey.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-flicker-am70-07
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[8]NARA Special List #44, 'Logbooks of U.S. Navy Ships and Stations' ship-number index (archives.gov) - checked AM and IX blocks for this hull; plus RG 19 / RG 178 / RG 26 record-group and Maine Maritime Museum leads [other_primary]
- Locator
- SL-44 ship-number index, AM block (AM-66 through AM-81 rows; AM-70 absent) and IX block (IX-151 to IX-170; IX-165 absent); archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records RG 19/178/26 guide pages; mainemaritimemuseum.org manuscript guide
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival-lead mapping for this hull (no box-level retrieval performed; no spend authorized): (1) NARA Special List #44 ship-number index does NOT list digitized deck logs for AM-70 or IX-165 - the AM block lists converted-trawler sisters AM-66 Bullfinch, AM-67 Cardinal, AM-68 Catbird, AM-69 Curlew, AM-71 Albatross, AM-72 Bluebird, AM-73 Grackle, AM-77 Goldfinch, AM-80 Goldcrest, AM-81 Chaffinch, and the IX block skips from IX-151 to IX-170; paper logs for this hull, if extant, are outside the digitized listing and would require in-person survey at NARA. (2) BuShips conversion and contract records for the Bethlehem Steel East Boston work (RG 19). (3) Maritime Commission / War Shipping Administration transfer and disposal file for the March 1945 custody change (RG 178) - the document class that would resolve the Colton-vs-Toppan-vs-NavSource fate conflict. (4) Merchant-registry documentation for the trawler Delaware (RG 26 vessel documentation; no Official Number located in any source). (5) Bath Iron Works corporate archive at Maine Maritime Museum, Bath (BIW hull 169 construction file; MMM's manuscript guide lists Bath Iron Works as a held corporate-body entry).
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1936-1969 records
- Limitations
- Index- and record-group-level mapping only - the SL-44 absence confirms no digitized deck logs for this hull, not that no paper logs exist; whether any listed repository holds asbestos-relevant documents (insulation specs, conversion material schedules) is unknown until surveyed in person. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-flicker-am70-08
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[9]DANFS 'Flicker' (AM-416) entry (name-assignment only) + NavSource Flicker MSC(O)-9 file 11/19219 (ex-AMS-9, ex-YMS-219) + Wikipedia USS Flicker disambiguation page [other_primary]
- Locator
- losthistory.net/hazegray/danfs/mine/am416.htm; navsource.org/archives/11/19219.htm; en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Flicker
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Name-collision map for litigation and identity discipline - the U.S. Navy carried the name Flicker on three administrative records: (1) AM-70, this hull, the converted trawler ex-Delaware; (2) AMS-9, a different hull - the YMS-1-class motor minesweeper commissioned as YMS-219 7 July 1943 (J. N. Martinac, Tacoma WA), named Flicker and reclassified AMS-9 on 17 February 1947, reclassified MSC(O)-9 7 February 1955, decommissioned September/October 1953 at Astoria OR, struck 1 January 1960, sold 1962 to Aleutian Marine Transport as barge Bethel No. 1; (3) AM-416, a name assignment only - DANFS reads 'contracts for construction were canceled on 12 August 1946' (Wikipedia's disambiguation page reads 1945 - DANFS adopted). 'Flicker' is also a common English word and a surname - litigation and alias searches collide with non-ship usage.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1940-1960
- Limitations
- Identity context only - the AMS-9 and AM-416 records establish that a bare 'Flicker' or 'USS Flicker' hit in any index is NOT automatically this hull; any litigation or document naming Flicker must be keyed to AM-70/IX-165 (this hull), AMS-9/YMS-219/MSC(O)-9 (motor minesweeper), or the never-built AM-416 assignment. No asbestos content in any of these sources.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-flicker-am70-09
-
[10]Batch-1421 search ledger (this record): NHHC/DANFS via losthistory/hazegray mirror; NavSource 02070 and 19219; HyperWar IX and minecraft tables; Colton BIW yard table; Toppan BIW production record; NARA Special List #44; CourtListener API v4 (blocked); indexed-web litigation checks; VA BVA index; NVR; MARAD ShipHistory; NavalCoverMuseum [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-flicker-am70-01 through sl-uss-flicker-am70-13
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or docketed case naming USS Flicker, AM-70, or IX-165 was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). CourtListener API v4 queries were rate-limit blocked on 2026-09-22 (HTTP 429; authenticated 2,800/day quota exhausted by prior batch work on this machine - backed off per batch instruction rather than retrying); residual litigation surface was assessed via indexed-web checking, which surfaced only law-firm marketing ship lists that name the hull in generic minesweeper rosters without primary support (mesothelioma.com minesweeper page lists 'USS Flicker | AM-70'; mesotheliomahelp.org and freeasbestostesting.com rosters) - an excluded source class - and no qualifying case or opinion; 'Flicker' surname and common-word collisions dominate remaining hits. The VA BVA index returned no decision naming the ship. MARAD ShipHistory name-search returned an endpoint error shell; no indexed Detail page for this Delaware/Flicker hull. The NVR carries no per-hull record (pre-1987 disposal exclusion).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 2026-09-22
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1937 hull compiled as reverting to merchant service and scrapped in 1969 is consistent with era materials removed at unknown points or retained; nothing here establishes presence, absence, quantity, exposure, or legal eligibility. The litigation negative is partial: direct CourtListener API search was blocked, so unindexed or very recent filings naming the hull cannot be ruled out.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-flicker-am70-10