Evidence
11 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-11).
-
[1]research packet crew-b-packet.md (5 sources cited) [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: MISMATCH
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-gemini-ap75-pkt-crew-b-packet-md
-
[2]Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (NHHC), 'Gemini' entry (AP-75) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- NHHC DANFS 'Gemini' entry, full text; canonical URL https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/g/gemini.html returned 404 on 2026-09-25 - Wayback capture 2025-04-01 cited (NHHC link-rot pattern noted in BATCH-01 report)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS (NHHC): Gemini (AP-75), a lake-type freighter, was built as Coperas by Manitowoc Shipbuilding Co., Manitowoc, Wis.; renamed Aetna then Saginaw around 1937 in merchant service; acquired by the Navy 27 September 1941; originally designated Matinicus (AG-38); reclassified AK-52 on 7 January 1942 while undergoing conversion at Bethlehem Steel Company, Boston, Mass.; commissioned as Matinicus (AK-52) 4 August 1942, Lt. Comdr. W. L. Cain in command; renamed and redesignated Gemini (AP-75) 15 August 1942. Sailed 16 August 1942 to New York, sortied 24 October with convoy SC-107 (15 ships lost to wolfpacks 1-4 November), arrived Reykjavik and ran 10 months between Icelandic ports; Boston overhaul September 1943; via Panama to Honolulu (arrived 11 December 1943) for inter-island transport; Marshalls-Gilberts runs from July 1944 (Kwajalein, Apamama, Tarawa, Makin, Majuro, Roi, Eniwetok) to 1 June 1945; drydock San Francisco through war's end; resumed Marshalls-Gilberts runs 28 August 1945; decommissioned Oakland 8 April 1946; turned over to the Maritime Commission 10 September 1946; sold to O/Y Fenno S.S. Co. Ltd. and operated under Finnish papers as Ramsdal out of Abo. DANFS characteristics: dp. 3555 (lim.); l. 261'; b. 43'6"; dr. 15'9" lim.; s. 8.5 k.; cpl. 365; trp. 265; a. 2 3"; cl. Gemini.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1918-1948
- Limitations
- Authoritative for identity, conversion chain, wartime operations, and disposal outline. DANFS compresses the merchant renames ('around 1937' - registry shows Aetna 1925); says nothing about asbestos, insulation, or materials; does not give strike date. 'USS Matinicus (AP-75)' never existed - Matinicus applied only to AG-38/AK-52.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-gemini-ap75-01
-
[3]NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive, USS Gemini (AP-75) page 09/22/22075 (compiled from official ship data; photos credited to NARA RG-19-LCM and NPS Charlestown Navy Yard collections) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Page header chronology, specifications block, commanding-officer table, photo captions (incl. NPS 14314, NARA 19-N-35410, 19-N-90234/236)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NavSource Service Ship Photo Archive record for USS Gemini (AP-75) ex-USS Matinicus (AK-52): completed 1919 as lake-type freighter SS Coperas at Manitowoc Shipbuilding; acquired 27 September 1941; Matinicus (AG-38); reclassified AK-52 7 January 1942 during conversion at Bethlehem Steel, Boston; commissioned 4 August 1942 (LCDR Woody L. Cain); renamed Gemini (AP-75) 15 August 1942; decommissioned 8 April 1946 Oakland; struck from the Naval Register 17 April 1946; transferred 30 June 1946 to the Maritime Commission for lay-up in the NDRF, Suisun Bay; purchased 21 November 1947 by Saginaw Dock & Terminal Co. for resale to O/Y Fenno S.S. Co. Ltd. 2 December 1947, renamed Ramsdal, reflagged Finland; resold 1959 to O/Y Ridal A/B; stranded 27 May 1964 off Dunbar, refloated; resold 1965 and renamed Transdal; resold 1967 to Tramppilaiva O/Y; arrived Helsinki 26 September 1967 for demolition. Characteristics block: complement 43 officers + 328 enlisted; troops 30 officers + 235 enlisted; armament two single 3"/50 DP; propulsion one Manitowoc vertical triple-expansion engine, two Scotch boilers 190 psi sat., single propeller 1,000 shp. Commanding-officer and campaign-ribbon lists included.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1919-1967
- Limitations
- Volunteer-compiled naval archive transcribing official characteristics and chronology - strike date (17 Apr 1946) and NDRF transfer date (30 Jun 1946) appear here but not in DANFS (DANFS/BGSU give MC turnover 10 Sep 1946 - conflict logged). No asbestos, insulation, or materials content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-gemini-ap75-02
-
[4]U.S. Maritime Administration, ShipHistory database - GEMINI (AP-75), Ship History Detail 1798 (incl. digitized status cards) [marad_nrc]
- Locator
- ShipHistory Detail 1798 - vessel-data block, milestone table, status-card scans
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- MARAD ShipHistory database record for GEMINI (AP-75): Official No. 217585; year built 1919; shipyard Manitowoc Shipbuilding Corp; type Naval Auxiliary / AP Transport; length 261 ft, beam 43.5 ft, lightweight displacement 3,555 tons. Milestones: Entry/Acquisition 21 November 1947 'ex-SAGINAW'; Disposition 21 November 1947 'RET TO FORMER OWNER'; Withdrawal same date. Name-history link to MANTICUS [sic] (AG-38/AK-52) record. Two digitized vessel status-card images posted (1798_3327AF, 1798_3327AB), contents not transcribed here.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1941-1948
- Limitations
- Authoritative for government custody milestones and registry identity; milestones begin only at the 1947 return-to-owner transaction - Navy custody transfer per DANFS/NavSource precedes this record's milestone entries. Status-card images posted but not transcribed (no OCR performed). Contains no asbestos, materials, or condition-survey information; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-gemini-ap75-03
-
[5]Bowling Green State University Libraries, Historical Collections of the Great Lakes - COPERAS vessel record (item 434568) [other_primary]
- Locator
- HCGL item 434568 - Registry and Rig, Dimensions and Tonnage, Vessel History, Build Information, Vessel Names and Vessel Owners tables
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Historical Collections of the Great Lakes (Bowling Green State University) registry record for COPERAS, Official No. 217585: steel hull, Manitowoc hull no. 99, built 1919 at Manitowoc, WI; 250.42 ft x 43.58 ft x 20.00 ft, 2,153 gross / 1,280 net tons. Name registry: COPERAS; AETNA 1925-1937; SAGINAW 1937-1941; MATINICUS (AG-38) 1941-1942; MATINICUS (AK-52) 1942; GEMINI (AP-75) 1942-1946; SAGINAW 1946-1948 (U.S. Maritime Commission custody); RAMSDAL 1948-1965 (Finland); TRANSDAL 1965-1967 (Finland). Owner registry: U.S. Shipping Board 1919-1925; Aetna Portland Cement Co. 1925-1928; Mid-West Transportation Co. 1928-1937; Saginaw Dock & Terminal Co. 1937-1941; U.S. Navy 1941-1946; U.S. Maritime Commission 1946-1948; Saginaw Dock & Terminal Co. 1948; Fenno Steamship Ltd. O/Y 1948-1964; O/Y Ridal A/B 1964-1966; Tramppilaiva O/Y 1966-1967. Rebuilds/tonnage changes 1948 and c.1963. Disposition: 'Sold to Finnish shipbreakers; arrived at Helsinki for scrapping on August 26, 1967.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1919-1967
- Limitations
- University maritime archival collection compiling official registry and ownership records - authoritative for merchant names/owners/dates. WWII narrative section repeats DANFS with minor compression ('Departed NY August 16 1942 in Convoy SC-107' merges the Aug 16 repositioning and the Oct 24 convoy sortie). Helsinki arrival date (26 Aug 1967) conflicts with NavSource (26 Sep 1967) - logged, unresolved. No asbestos or materials content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-gemini-ap75-04
-
[6]Wisconsin Maritime Museum online collections - COPERAS photographs P82-37-4-106A (winter 1918 construction) and P75-39-10 (29 April 1919, completed) [museum_official]
- Locator
- PastPerfect records for COPERAS construction and completion photographs; companion record https://wisconsinmaritime.pastperfectonline.com/photo/9C33E3CE-8D65-4150-8358-753131864280
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Wisconsin Maritime Museum photo archive records for COPERAS (Official No. 217585): starboard-quarter view of the Laker under construction at Manitowoc Shipbuilding on the Manitowoc River, winter 1918 (Carus Collection P82-37-4-106A); starboard bow view of the completed vessel dated 29 April 1919, 'built by Manitowoc Shipbuilding Company during WWI for U.S.S.B. Emergency Fleet Corporation' (P75-39-10). Museum metadata confirms the name/ownership chain used in the BGSU registry.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1918-1919
- Limitations
- Primary photographic evidence bracketing the build period (under construction winter 1918; completed by 29 Apr 1919) and confirming USSB/EFC contract identity. No asbestos or materials statement in the catalog records.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-gemini-ap75-05
-
[7]U.S. Naval Historical Center (NHHC) Online Library of Selected Images - USS Aries (AK-51) page (HyperWar mirror of NHHC content) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NHHC Online Library USS Aries (AK-51) narrative, acquisition-program paragraph naming AG-38/Matinicus/Gemini
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NHHC Online Library (Naval Historical Center) page for sister conversion USS Aries (AK-51) documents the acquisition program for this hull: five World War I 'Laker'-type cargo ships were acquired in September 1941 for intended Coast Guard weather-patrol duty; in December 1941 the Auxiliary Vessels Board found only three were needed, and AG-37 and AG-38 (USS Matinicus - this hull) were ordered converted to cargo ships (AK-51, AK-52) for the Naval Transportation Service; Gemini was further converted to a transport and redesignated AP-75 in August 1942.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1941-1942
- Limitations
- Official Navy historical content naming this hull's acquisition pathway; narrative compresses the rename sequence ('renamed Aries and Gemini' - the hull in fact commissioned as Matinicus and became Gemini only at the AP-75 redesignation). Program-level context; no asbestos or materials content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-gemini-ap75-06
-
[8]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
- AJIM 11(3):359-373 - program/era documentation of asbestos use in WWII U.S. shipbuilding
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/class inference only - no hull record: this hull carries a WWI-era U.S. Shipping Board Emergency Fleet Corporation steam plant (two Scotch boilers feeding a vertical triple-expansion engine), a type on which period marine practice used asbestos-containing magnesia-block insulation, pipe lagging, gaskets, and packing; and she was converted to a naval cargo ship then transport at Bethlehem Steel Company's Boston yard in late 1941-mid-1942, within the documented wartime period when peer-reviewed scholarship records extensive asbestos use in U.S. shipbuilding and asbestos supply was reserved for naval/maritime construction.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1918-1919 (construction); 1941-1946 (Navy)
- Population
- Conversion-yard trades (Bethlehem Steel, Boston, 1941-42); naval engine-room crew and embarked troops (1942-46)
- Limitations
- Era- and plant-type inference, not a hull record - no document located names this vessel's insulation or states asbestos content. Covers the 1941-42 conversion and WWII service window; the 1918-19 original-construction materials are inferred from plant type, not documented. Does not establish quantity, location, present-day presence (hull scrapped 1967), individual exposure, or causation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-gemini-ap75-07
-
[9]Cross-source reconciliation: BGSU HCGL registry vs DANFS (NHHC) vs NavSource vs MARAD vs HyperWar AP table vs Wikipedia [other_primary]
- Locator
- Per-item locators in the cited rows ev-01 through ev-05; HyperWar table https://ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/ships/ships-ap.html (AP-75 row)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Source discrepancies resolved or logged: (a) merchant renames - DANFS 'renamed Aetna and then Saginaw around 1937' compresses the registry record; BGSU registry dates adopted (Aetna 1925-1937 on sale to Aetna Portland Cement; Saginaw 1937-1941); (b) Maritime Commission turnover - NavSource 'transferred 30 June 1946 for NDRF lay-up' vs DANFS/BGSU 'turned over/transferred 10 September 1946' - both carried, instrument-level date unresolved; (c) Helsinki demolition arrival - BGSU 26 August 1967 vs NavSource 26 September 1967 - unresolved; (d) complement - DANFS cpl. 365 vs NavSource itemization 43+328=371 - DANFS adopted, discrepancy logged; (e) Finnish resale sequence - NavSource (Fenno 1948, Ridal 1959, Fenno-Konkola 1965) vs BGSU owner table (Fenno 1948-1964, Ridal 1964-1966) - unresolved; (f) HyperWar 'Ships of the U.S. Navy 1940-1945' AP table lists AP-75 with 'Lend-Lease to Brazil' and 1,745 t displacement - contradicted by DANFS, MARAD, BGSU, and NavSource (all document Finnish disposal), excluded as table error; (g) Wikipedia infobox 'steam turbine' propulsion - contradicted by NavSource characteristics and the Great Lakes vessel registry (triple-expansion, Scotch boilers), excluded.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1919-1967
- Limitations
- Registry-date reconciliations adopted; unresolved items (MC turnover date, Helsinki arrival day, complement, Finnish owner dates, 'Lend-Lease to Brazil' note) logged in gaps rather than asserted. No item in this row is an asbestos finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-gemini-ap75-08
-
[10]Batch-2147 search ledger (this record): DANFS/NHHC; MARAD ShipHistory 1798; NavSource 09/22/22075; BGSU HCGL 434568; Wisconsin Maritime Museum; CourtListener name/hull searches; NARA record-group guides [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-gemini-ap75-01 through sl-uss-gemini-ap75-16
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or docketed case naming this hull (under any of its names - Coperas, Aetna, Saginaw, Matinicus, Gemini, Ramsdal, Transdal) was found in the public sources searched - DANFS, MARAD ShipHistory, NavSource, BGSU HCGL registry, Wisconsin Maritime Museum records, and CourtListener opinion search ('USS Gemini' = 0 results) contain none (see search_ledger).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 2026-09-25
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a WWI-era steam ship converted for WWII service is era-consistent with asbestos-containing insulation. Hull was scrapped at Helsinki in 1967, so no present-day ACM question survives; historical exposure cannot be established or excluded from the located record. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility. CourtListener: 'USS Gemini' 0 opinions; 'Matinicus' 18 hits all name collisions; 'AP-75' 1,853 hits all Texas docket-prefix collisions; 'Coperas' 4 hits all name collisions - no qualifying asbestos litigation located.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-gemini-ap75-09
-
[11]NARA Guide to Federal Records: RG 32 (U.S. Shipping Board, 1914-38); NARA deck-log guidance; Lloyd's Register Foundation HEC archive catalog; MARAD ShipHistory status-card scans [other_primary]
- Locator
- RG 32 guide sections 32.4 (Construction Organization); https://hec.lrfoundation.org.uk/archive-library/documents/lrf-pun-007688-007697-0085-p ; MARAD Detail 1798 status-card tab
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads (not retrieved - no spend authorized): (a) NARA RG 32, Records of the U.S. Shipping Board - Emergency Fleet Corporation Construction Organization records (32.4, incl. Ship Construction Division) cover contract/construction files for EFC hulls such as Manitowoc no. 99; (b) WWII deck logs for USS Matinicus/Gemini are in NARA custody (NARA II, College Park) under the Bureau of Naval Personnel deck-log series; (c) NARA RG 19 Bureau of Ships records cover the 1941-42 conversion; the RG-19-LCM photo series for this hull is already identified (NARA photo nos. 19-N-35410, 19-N-90234, 19-N-90236 via NavSource/Shipscribe captions); (d) Lloyd's Register Foundation Heritage & Education Centre archive holds a cataloged midship section plan for Coperas dated 5 April 1918 (LRF-PUN-007688-007697-0085) - located, unexamined for materials annotations; (e) two digitized MARAD vessel status-card images for this hull are posted (1798_3327AF/AB) but not transcribed.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1918-1946 records
- Limitations
- Record-group and catalog mapping only - no box-level retrieval performed; whether any of these files contain asbestos-specific or insulation-specification documents is unknown until surveyed. The LRF plan is located and retrievable but its content was not examined. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-gemini-ap75-10