USS General Hugh J Gaffey (IX-507)

Evidence

14 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-14).

1. [1]research packet 373-packet.md (2 sources cited) [other_primary]

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Identity packet verdict: Queue: USS General Hugh J Gaffey IX-507 → VERIFIED — real identity: General Hugh J. Gaffey (IX-507); queue spelling "Hugh J Gaffey" matches (periods only).

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Evidence ID

   uss-general-hugh-j-gaffey-ix507-pkt-373-packet-md

2. [2]DANFS, 'Admiral W. L. Capps' (NHHC online edition, published 2015-06-11) [nhhc_danfs]

   Locator

   Full entry; AP-121 header line and narrative paragraphs

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   DANFS entry for Admiral W. L. Capps (AP-121): laid down 15 Dec 1942 at Alameda, Calif., by Bethlehem-Alameda Shipyard, Inc., under Maritime Commission contract (MC hull 679); launched 20 Feb 1944, sponsored by Mrs. James Reed; delivered to the Navy and commissioned 18 Sep 1944, Capt. N. S. Haugen, USCG, in command. Specs: dp. 20,120; l. 608'11"; b. 75'6"; dr. 26'6" (lim.); s. 19.0 k.; cpl. 367; trp. 4,680; a. 4x5", 8x40mm; cl. Admiral W. S. Benson; T. P2-SE2-R1. WWII Pacific transport service Nov 1944-Jul 1945 (Noumea, Guadalcanal, Espiritu Santo, Hollandia, Leyte, Okinawa troop lift of ~5,000); trans-Atlantic repatriation voyages Sep-Dec 1945 incl. 3,765 former Italian POWs; Magic Carpet runs Jan-Apr 1946; decommissioned 8 May 1946 at New York, returned to Maritime Commission, struck June 1946; transferred to the Army (renamed General Hugh J. Gaffey); reacquired by Navy 1 Mar 1950 for MSTS (not recommissioned); to MARAD temporarily 4 Nov 1968 (NDRF Suisun Bay), permanently 31 Aug 1969, struck 9 Oct 1969; reacquired and reinstated 1978, redesignated IX-507, in service Nov 1978 at Bremerton as barracks ship; on active service-craft list as of 1 Jan 1989.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-29

   Study period

   1942-1989

   Population

   WWII embarked troops (lifts of 3,500-5,000 documented); USCG crew; MSTS civil-service crew

   Limitations

   Establishes identity, construction, WWII/MSTS/IX-507 chronology. Contains no asbestos, insulation-material, or hazardous-material statement - supports no asbestos claim. Complement/speed figures conflict with USCG Historian's Office (367 vs 618; 19.0 vs 21.3 kt) - both logged in gaps.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-general-hugh-j-gaffey-ix507-01

3. [3]DANFS, 'General Hugh J. Gaffey' (NHHC online edition, published 2015-07-10) [nhhc_danfs]

   Locator

   Full entry (short; ends at the 1967 overhaul)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   DANFS entry for General Hugh J. Gaffey: namesake biography (Maj. Gen. Hugh Joseph Gaffey, killed in a B-25 crash at Goodman Field, Ky., June 1946); AP-121 'was reacquired by the Navy from the Army Transport Service as General Hugh J. Gaffey 1 March 1950 and assigned to MSTS'; civilian-crewed West Coast-Far East runs through the Korean conflict; 'almost 100 cruises' to Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Okinawa, and the Philippines 1954-1965; first Cam Ranh Bay cruise summer 1965; seven more Pacific voyages in 1966; carried Korean troops to Vietnam January 1967; arrived San Francisco late February 1967 for overhaul.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-29

   Study period

   1950-1967

   Population

   MSTS civil-service crew; embarked troops incl. Korean troop lift Jan 1967

   Limitations

   MSTS/Vietnam-era chronology only - the entry predates the IX-507 period and stops at 1967; the bulk of the ship's DANFS record sits under the Admiral W. L. Capps entry. No asbestos or insulation-material statement. Namesake-only biographical content occupies much of the entry.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-general-hugh-j-gaffey-ix507-02

4. [4]U.S. Maritime Administration, ShipHistory database - GENERAL HUGH J. GAFFEY (AP-121) Detail 1823; ADMIRAL W. L. CAPPS Detail 6543; USAT GENERAL HUGH J. GAFFREY Detail 12623 [marad_nrc]

   Locator

   ShipHistory detail pages, milestones tables, shipwreck information section

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   MARAD ShipHistory records (Details 1823, 6543, 12623): P2-SE2-R1 naval auxiliary transport built 1944 by Bethlehem Steel Shipbuilding Division; 608.00 ft x 75.50 ft; displacement 20,120 t summer / 9,676 t light. Vessel name history links the same hull across three records: ADMIRAL W. L. CAPPS (AP-121) -> GENERAL HUGH J. GAFFEY (AP-121) -> USAT GENERAL HUGH J. GAFFREY (sic). Milestones: delivered to USMC 9/18/1944; entered Navy Dept. and renamed General Hugh J. Gaffey 3/1/1950; NDRF entry/acquisition 11/14/1968; disposition + withdrawal 11/7/1978 'W/D to NISMF Bremerton, WA' (title transfer to Dept. of Navy). Fate: 'Sunk - No Further Info'; shipwreck record: incident date June 16, 2000, 'Sunk as RIMPAC 2000 missile target,' 23d35'01.0"N / 159d50'00.2"W. Mission tags: WWII, Korean War, Vietnam War.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-29

   Study period

   1944-2000

   Limitations

   Custody milestones and fate data - establishes disposition chain and sinking coordinates/date. No asbestos or hazmat statement. 'GAFFREY' spelling on the USAT record is a transcription artifact (logged). NDRF entry date (11/14/1968) differs from DANFS transfer date (11/4/1968) - logged in gaps.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-general-hugh-j-gaffey-ix507-03

5. [5]U.S. Coast Guard Historian's Office, 'USS Admiral W. L. Capps, AP-121' (history.uscg.mil, 2020-04-22; sources: Cutter History File, DANFS, Scheina USCG Cutters & Craft of WWII) [other_primary]

   Locator

   Full article; specification block and Coast Guard history section

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   U.S. Coast Guard Historian's Office ship page for USS Admiral W. L. Capps, AP-121: one of eleven Admiral W. S. Benson-class troop transports assigned to the Coast Guard from the Navy during WWII; first and only commanding officer Capt. Neil S. Haugen, USCG. Specs: displacement 9,676 t (lt)/20,120 t (fl); 608'11" x 75'6" x 26'6"; propulsion turbo-electric, two propellers, 19,000 SHP; top speed 21.3 knots; complement 618; troop capacity 5,200; armament 4x single 5"/38 DP, 4x twin 40mm, 16x twin 20mm (1945). Coast Guard crew removed 8 May 1946; transferred to Army Transportation Service, renamed USAT General Hugh J. Gaffey; reacquired 1 Mar 1950, MSTS USNS T-AP-121; out of service and struck 9 Oct 1969; NDRF layup; reacquired and reinstated 1 Nov 1978 as barracks hulk IX-507; laid up NISMF Pearl Harbor (date unknown); struck 25 Oct 1993; sunk during RIMPAC 2000 as missile target 16 Jun 2000 at 023d35'01.0"N 159d50'00.2"W, depth 2,730 fathoms.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-29

   Study period

   1944-2000

   Population

   USCG commissioning crew (1944-46)

   Limitations

   Official USCG history - confirms USCG manning and gives the final 1993 strike date and sinking depth that DANFS lacks. Complement 618/troops 5,200/speed 21.3 kt conflict with DANFS figures (367/4,680/19.0) - logged in gaps. No asbestos or insulation-material statement.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-general-hugh-j-gaffey-ix507-04

6. [6]Department of the Navy, 'Post SINKEX Report for Calendar Year 2000,' PEO Expeditionary Warfare letter to CNO (N43), enclosure (1) section (e); EPA docket EPA-HQ-OW-2013-0157, attachment 2 (regulations.gov) [other_primary]

   Locator

   Cover letter para. 2; SINKEX table row 'GEN HUGH J GAFFEY (IX 507)'; enclosure (1) section (e) 'Efforts to clean the ex-GENERAL HUGH J GAFFEY'

   Finding type

   environmental_record

   Finding

   Department of the Navy Post-SINKEX Report for Calendar Year 2000 (PEO Expeditionary Warfare to CNO N43, filed in EPA docket EPA-HQ-OW-2013-0157; reporting required by OPNAVINST 5090.1B s.21-6.1, 40 CFR 229.2(b), and EPA letter of 2 Aug 1999). Section (e) - ex-GENERAL HUGH J GAFFEY (IX 507): SINKEX prep done while berthed at Mare Island, Vallejo, CA; the ship 'had been partially scrapped under a Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service sale contract, which was defaulted and the Navy recovered the ship for temporary storage.' NISMF Bremerton surveyed for PCB equipment - no transformers or capacitors found aboard. George G. Sharp, Inc. performed hazmat removal under NISMF supervision; Foss Environmental Services and Chemical Waste Management handled transport/disposal. Removed: oily sludge 1,250 gal; mixed oils 40,100 gal; mercury articles 700 lbs; freon 423.63; batteries 600 lbs alkaline / 60 lbs gelled / 1,400 lbs lead-acid; waste paint 300 lbs; aerosol 10 lbs; trixylenyl phosphate 250 lbs; fire-fighting foam 350 lbs; isocyanate 15 lbs; ethanolamine 10 lbs; adhesive liquid 500 lbs; lead paint chips 400 lbs. Non-hazardous debris: 'wood, overhead insulation, ceiling tile, loose cable' 20 cubic yards; waste water 237,000 gal; floatables 260 cy; wood decking 885 cy. March 1999: tanks certified petroleum-free. SINKEX table: sunk 16 Jun 00, 23:35.1N 159:50.15W, 16,380 ft, est. 2.52 lbs PCBs in felt gaskets aboard at sinking.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-29

   Study period

   1999-2000

   Population

   SINKEX prep workers (NISMF Bremerton / George G. Sharp Inc. / Foss Environmental / Chemical Waste Management, ~1999-2000)

   Limitations

   Hull-specific remediation record - but it makes NO asbestos determination for this hull: no asbestos line item appears in section (e). The 'Asbestos-containing debris: 200 cubic yards' figure in the same document is in section (h), ex-ASHTABULA (AO-51) - a different ship; search snippets conflate them. 'Overhead insulation' was removed as non-hazardous debris without fiber characterization; the partial DRMS scrapping may have stripped material undocumented. Report header para. 2 typo'd the hull as '(IX 510)'; table and section (e) correctly use IX 507. Does not establish presence or absence of asbestos aboard; does not establish or defeat any exposure claim.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-general-hugh-j-gaffey-ix507-05

7. [7]DANFS, 'Enterprise (CVAN-65) VIII 1976-1980' (NHHC online edition) [nhhc_danfs]

   Locator

   1979 overhaul paragraph (Enterprise arrived Bremerton 11 Jan 1979, Dry Dock No. 6 through 30 Sep, Pier 3 through year-end)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   DANFS entry for Enterprise (CVN-65) records that during the carrier's Bremerton overhaul beginning January 1979, 'the auxiliary (former MSC transport) General Hugh J. Gaffey (IX-507) (ex-T-AP-121) was made available to them as an "off-ship berthing facility"' and that Enterprise assigned a '10-man dedicated maintenance crew' to the ship.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-29

   Study period

   1979

   Population

   USS Enterprise overhaul crew berthed aboard; 10-man dedicated maintenance crew

   Limitations

   Independent NHHC cross-reference confirming IX-507's Bremerton barracks-ship function and a named embarked population (Enterprise crew berthing plus a 10-man maintenance crew). No asbestos or material statement. Berthing aboard during overhaul = documented occupancy, not documented exposure.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-general-hugh-j-gaffey-ix507-06

8. [8]U.S. DefenseImagery photo DN-ST-87-03912, cataloged via Wikimedia Commons file page [other_primary]

   Locator

   Commons file description + EXIF (data generation 20 Feb 1987; source defenseimagery.mil VIRIN DN-ST-87-03912)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   U.S. Navy photo VIRIN DN-ST-87-03912 (Don S. Montgomery, USN), dated 20 Feb 1987, shows 'the U.S. Navy transport ship USS General Hugh J. Gaffey (IX-507) moored at quay F5 at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii' - establishing the ship's presence at Pearl Harbor by Feb 1987 (after the Bremerton period begun Nov 1978).

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-29

   Study period

   1987

   Limitations

   Photo + catalog caption only - fixes location (quay F5, Pearl Harbor) at a date, not the transfer date, which remains undocumented. Commons page title says 'c1986' but embedded data gives 20 Feb 1987. No material content.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-general-hugh-j-gaffey-ix507-07

9. [9]Illinois Attorney General, 'Consumer Alert: Attorney General Raoul Urges Veterans To Be On Alert For Scams During Veterans Day' (2022-11-10), reproducing the VA Agent Orange ships list [other_primary]

   Locator

   Appended VA ship list, alphabetical G section, 'USNS General Hugh J. Gaffey (T-AP-121)' entry

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   The VA Agent Orange Navy/Coast Guard ship list, as republished in an Illinois Attorney General consumer alert (Nov 2022), records: 'USNS General Hugh J. Gaffey (T-AP-121) entered Qui Nhon Bay November 6-8, 1966' - documenting in-country Vietnam service during the herbicide era.

   Verification

   partial

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-29

   Study period

   1966-11-06 to 1966-11-08

   Population

   MSTS civil-service crew and embarked troops during Qui Nhon Bay calls

   Limitations

   VA's own list page (publichealth.va.gov) was unreachable at access time - cited via a state-AG republication of the VA list; underlying list is VA's. Documents herbicide-era littoral service only - Agent Orange context, not asbestos. Qui Nhon Bay entry is open-water anchorage, not inland waterway; 'brown water' status beyond the VA entry's own wording is not asserted.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-general-hugh-j-gaffey-ix507-08

10. [10]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 Maritime Commission emergency-construction program under which this P2-SE2-R1 hull was built - and that wartime demand drove unprecedented asbestos utilization aboard merchant-type and naval hulls.

    Verification

    verified

    Role

    context

    Documentation level

    class_or_era

    Accessed

    2026-09-29

    Study period

    1940s era documented; article 1987

    Population

    WWII shipyard workers and ship crews (class context)

    Limitations

    Program/era-level scholarship; does not name this vessel and does not establish that asbestos was or remained aboard this hull, nor quantity, location, condition, exposure, or causation. The 1999-2000 SINKEX prep removed insulation/debris without asbestos characterization, and prior partial scrapping clouds any present-tense inference.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-general-hugh-j-gaffey-ix507-09

11. [11]MARAD ShipHistory Detail 1823 'P2-SE2-R1 Plan.pdf' (historical document, dated 9/8/1943); USCG Historian's Office propulsion specification [marad_nrc]

    Locator

    MARAD ShipHistory 1823 Documents section; USCG article specification block

    Finding type

    asbestos_application

    Finding

    This hull's documented propulsion plant is turbo-electric steam (USCG Historian: turbo-electric drive, two propellers, 19,000 SHP), built 1944 to Maritime Commission P2-SE2-R1 design - a genuine WWII-era steam plant of the type that carried asbestos in boiler and steam-line insulation, gaskets, and packing. MARAD's ShipHistory record for the hull includes the P2-SE2-R1 design plan document dated 9/8/1943.

    Verification

    inferred

    Role

    context

    Documentation level

    class_or_era

    Accessed

    2026-09-29

    Study period

    1942-1944

    Population

    Construction trades (Bethlehem-Alameda, 1942-44); engineering crew

    Limitations

    The steam plant is ship-specific (USCG spec); the asbestos content is era inference - the plan is a design drawing set (not full-text mined here) and no insulation schedule or material callout was extracted. Does not establish asbestos aboard this hull; the 1999-2000 remediation record lists no asbestos.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-general-hugh-j-gaffey-ix507-10

12. [12]National Archives Catalog search 'Admiral W. L. Capps' (90 archival descriptions; file units under WWII war diary series) [other_primary]

    Locator

    NARA Catalog results page; file-unit level war diary records

    Finding type

    historical_record

    Finding

    NARA Catalog returns ~90 archival descriptions for 'Admiral W. L. Capps,' including monthly World War II war diaries spanning 9/18-30/44 through 11/1-30/45 (e.g., NARA IDs 633391041, 78702492, 139798536, 139833924, 77499394, 139961348, 633437169, 140059850, 101730175, 77601489, 77564081, 77587305) and a photo item (ID 219777569). These are the ship's own operational records; deck logs for the commissioned period sit in Navy/USCG logbook series.

    Verification

    verified

    Role

    archival_lead

    Documentation level

    ship_specific

    Accessed

    2026-09-29

    Study period

    1944-1945 (war diary coverage)

    Limitations

    Catalog-level verification only - individual war-diary pages were not retrieved and no deck-log file units were separately confirmed. Content unknown; may contain repair/overhaul material references but nothing about the records' contents is asserted here.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-general-hugh-j-gaffey-ix507-11

13. [13]Batch-4818 search ledger (this record): NHHC/DANFS ship entries; MARAD ShipHistory (3 records + status cards + P2-SE2-R1 plan); USCG Historian's Office; EPA docket EPA-HQ-OW-2013-0157 Navy CY2000 post-SINKEX report; DoD imagery catalog; NARA Catalog; CourtListener API v4 name sweep [other_primary]

    Locator

    search_ledger rows sl-uss-general-hugh-j-gaffey-ix507-01 through sl-uss-general-hugh-j-gaffey-ix507-14

    Finding type

    historical_record

    Finding

    No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, insulation specification, abatement contract, or ACM determination naming this hull (under any designation - Admiral W. L. Capps, USAT/USNS General Hugh J. Gaffey, T-AP-121, IX-507) was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). The one hull-specific hazardous-materials record located (CY2000 post-SINKEX report, ev-05) contains no asbestos line item for this hull.

    Verification

    verified

    Role

    negative_finding

    Documentation level

    ship_specific

    Accessed

    2026-09-29

    Study period

    2026-09-29

    Limitations

    Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a WWII steam transport plausibly carried era-typical materials, and the pre-sinking remediation record's silence on asbestos is not a documented determination. Does not establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-general-hugh-j-gaffey-ix507-12

14. [14]CourtListener API v4 litigation sweep, batch-4818 (authenticated, fleet-paced helper cl-auth-search.py): '"General Hugh J. Gaffey"' type=o -> 2 hits (clusters 256128, 8748149), both Billeci non-asbestos; 'Admiral W. L. Capps'/'IX-507'/'T-AP-121' queries fleet-rate-limit blocked [court_record]

    Locator

    cl-auth-search.py run 2026-09-29; opinion clusters /opinion/256128/ and /opinion/8748149/

    Finding type

    litigation_documented

    Finding

    Litigation sweep result: zero qualifying asbestos litigation located. CourtListener opinion search '"General Hugh J. Gaffey"' (type=o) returned count=2, both the same non-asbestos admiralty matter: Billeci v. United States, 185 F. Supp. 711 (N.D. Cal. 1960) - longshoreman injured 29 Nov 1958 by a falling hatch board during unloading aboard USNS General Hugh J. Gaffey; libel dismissed, vessel held seaworthy and crew not negligent - and Ralph Billeci v. United States, 298 F.2d 703 (9th Cir. 1962) - judgment affirmed. Classified: other litigation (personal-injury unseaworthiness, not asbestos). Hull-number and earlier-name queries ('IX-507', 'Admiral W. L. Capps', 'T-AP-121') could not be completed - the fleet-wide pacing budget was spent at session cutoff; logged as blocked in the search ledger rather than retried into a ban.

    Verification

    verified

    Role

    negative_finding

    Documentation level

    ship_specific

    Accessed

    2026-09-29

    Study period

    2026-09-29

    Limitations

    CourtListener opinion coverage is not the full docket; hull-number and earlier-name opinion queries plus all RECAP docket-index surfaces are unqueried (blocked), not verified empty. Pleadings-only asbestos allegations would not appear in opinion search. The Billeci suits document stevedoring injury litigation only - they contain no asbestos claim and are merits-level for the injury issue, not exposure evidence.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-general-hugh-j-gaffey-ix507-13