USS General Oswald H. Ernst (AP-133)

Evidence

12 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-12).

1. [1]research packet crew-cw-packet.md (2 sources cited) [nhhc_danfs]

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Evidence ID

   uss-general-oswald-h-ernst-ap133-pkt-crew-cw-packet-md

2. [2]DANFS, General O. H. Ernst (AP-133) - construction, commissioning sequence, WWII service narrative, disposal (live NHHC page, published 5 Mar 2020) [nhhc_danfs]

   Locator

   DANFS entry, spec block and service narrative

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Documented for this hull (DANFS): laid down under Maritime Commission contract 29 June 1942 by Kaiser Co., Inc., Yard 3, Richmond, Calif.; launched 14 April 1943; sponsored by Mrs. L. M. Giannini; acquired by the Navy 31 March 1944; commissioned 22 April 1944, Comdr. R. W. Dole in command; transferred to Portland, Oregon for conversion to a transport by Commercial Iron Works; decommissioned 13 May 1944; recommissioned 15 July 1944. Spec block: dp 9,950 (lt.); l. 522'10"; b. 71'6"; dr. 26'6"; s. 16 k.; cpl. 426; trp. 3,343; a. 4 5", 8 1.1", 16 20mm.; cl. General G. O. Squier; T. C4-S-A1. Namesake Oswald Herbert Ernst (1842-1926): USMA 1864, Corps of Engineers, Superintendent of the Military Academy 1893-1898, brigade commander Puerto Rico (Spanish-American War), Inspector General of Cuba, original Isthmian Canal Commission member; retired 1906, promoted Major General 1916, died Washington D.C. 21 March 1926.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-10-05

   Study period

   1942-1964 (entry coverage)

   Population

   Kaiser Yard 3 construction trades (1942-44); Commercial Iron Works conversion trades (Apr-Jul 1944); crew and embarked troops (1944-46)

   Limitations

   Ship-specific history only; no asbestos or material content. DANFS compresses the 1946 disposition ('Returned to WSA the same day, she entered the National Defense Reserve Fleet at Suisun Bay') - it omits the ~2-month USAT period documented by NavSource/MARAD (see ev-04 correction row). DANFS narrative twice misprints the ship as 'General O. S. Ernst.' Note the live NHHC URL slug uses a zero: 'general-0-h-ernst-ap-133.html'.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-general-oswald-h-ernst-ap133-01

3. [3]DANFS, General O. H. Ernst (AP-133) - WWII voyage record and Magic Carpet service [nhhc_danfs]

   Locator

   DANFS service narrative, paragraphs 2-3

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   WWII service (DANFS): sailed from Seattle 27 August 1944; embarked more than 3,000 troops at Honolulu; transported troops to Guadalcanal, Manus, and Ulithi; returned to San Diego 4 December 1944. Underway 10 days later carrying troops to Guadalcanal; reached Seattle 20 January 1945. February round-trip Honolulu-San Francisco; 17 March - 22 May 1945 round-trip San Francisco to New Hebrides, New Caledonia, New Guinea, Leyte, and the Admiralties. Departed San Francisco 30 May 1945 via Panama Canal for Europe; embarked veterans at Le Havre; arrived Norfolk 2 July 1945. Departed a week later for Naples; carried troops via the Panama Canal to Hollandia, New Guinea (arrived 27 August); touched Manila 2 September; departed Tacloban 15 September; arrived San Pedro, California 1 October 1945. As part of the post-war Magic Carpet fleet she made six troop-rotation voyages between 1 November 1945 and 29 July 1946 out of San Pedro and Seattle to Japan, Korea, Okinawa, and Pearl Harbor. Returned to San Francisco from the Far East 29 July 1946.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-10-05

   Study period

   1944-1946

   Population

   Crew (~355-471 per conflicting sources) plus rotating embarked troop populations of 3,000+ per voyage

   Limitations

   Establishes the operating tempo relevant to exposure-relevant periods (continuous underway service Aug 1944 - Jul 1946 with large embarked populations) but contains no asbestos, maintenance, or material content.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-general-oswald-h-ernst-ap133-02

4. [4]NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive, USAT General Oswald H. Ernst ex USS General Oswald H. Ernst (AP-133) - milestone timeline, specifications, propulsion plant, commanding officer, photo record [other_primary]

   Locator

   NavSource 09/22/22133.htm - class header block, timeline, specifications, CO table (page last updated 19 Aug 2022)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   NavSource timeline and spec block for this hull: MC hull 656, Maritime Commission type C4-S-A1, Kaiser Shipbuilding Inc. Yard 3, Richmond CA; struck from the Naval Register 13 December 1946; placed in commission as USAT General Oswald H. Ernst (date unknown); returned to the Maritime Commission 24 October 1946 for lay up in the NDRF, Suisun Bay, Benicia CA; transferred (Exchange Program) 7 April 1964 to Bethlehem Steel Corp., Wilmington DE; converted to a general cargo ship, renamed SS Calmar 27 May 1964; sold 1975 to C. A. Venezolana de Navegacion, renamed SS Orinoco, reflagged Venezuela; scrapped at Puerto Cabello, Venezuela 1980. Propulsion: one Westinghouse geared turbine; two Babcock & Wilcox header-type boilers, 465 psi, 765F; double Falk main reduction gears; three turbo-drive 400kW 240V AC ship's service generators; single propeller, 9,000 shp; speed 16.5 kts; fuel NSFO 13,300 bbls. Complement: 39 officers, 432 enlisted; troop accommodations 228 officers, 3,216 enlisted; cargo 1,900 DWT non-refrigerated, 70,000 cu ft. Armament: four single 5"/38 cal dual-purpose mounts, two twin 40mm AA mounts, fifteen twin 20mm AA mounts. Radio call sign NJBN. Awards: American, EAME, Asiatic-Pacific, WWII Victory, Navy Occupation Service Medal (Asia clasp) - occupation periods 30 Dec 1945 - 17 Jan 1946, 9-21 Mar 1946, 8-21 May 1946. Sole CO listed: CDR Richard Wigglesworth Dole, USN (USNA 1922), both commissions 22 Apr 1944 - 15 Aug 1946. Photo captions add merchant-era detail: SS Calmar underway on the Delaware River in 1966 for Calmar SS Corp. (subsidiary of the Bethlehem Steel Company), 'carried steel products westbound and lumber eastbound' (Schell photo via NavSource).

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-10-05

   Study period

   1942-1980

   Population

   Kaiser Yard 3 construction trades; Commercial Iron Works conversion trades; crew and embarked troops 1944-46; Army Transport Service crews Aug-Oct 1946; Calmar SS Corp. merchant crews 1964-74; Orinoco crews 1974-80; Venezuelan shipbreakers 1980

   Limitations

   NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry - dates generally track DANFS/NVR but conflicts exist on complement/armament/speed figures and the Orinoco transfer year (NavSource 1975 vs MARAD status card 26 Dec 1974; see gaps and ev-04). Contains no asbestos content. Propulsion spec establishes a steam plant aboard this hull - the boiler/turbine lagging pathway exists as era inference only.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-general-oswald-h-ernst-ap133-03

5. [5]U.S. Maritime Administration, ShipHistory database - GENERAL OSWALD H. ERNST (AP-133), Ship History Detail 1836 (with digitized status cards) [marad_nrc]

   Locator

   MARAD ShipHistory Detail 1836 (milestones table, vessel data); status cards https://vesselhistory.marad.dot.gov/cards/ad618776-9338-42fe-8dc7-d55ed69b5e82.png (custody ledger), https://vesselhistory.marad.dot.gov/cards/6a68396c-ec2a-4fbb-8bc0-0c7e5cbd731a.png (Orinoco row), https://vesselhistory.marad.dot.gov/cards/1836_3398AF.jpg + 1836_3398AB.jpg (fleet entry/draft detail); NavSource 22133 photo captions (USAT Magic Carpet series, Strand Photos)

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   MARAD ShipHistory record for this hull (U.S. Official No. 294756; MARAD type C4-S-A1; 'Kaiser Company'; fate 'Transferred - Foreign'), plus its digitized vessel status cards transcribed this session. The custody ledger reads: basis to WSA 3-31-44 5:00 PM PWT at Richmond from builders to USMC (card shows 'Completed 3-31-44,' D.W.T. 6,094, gross 13,000, speed 17.5); allocated to Navy Dept. (AP-133) under LB agreement delivered Richmond 3-31-44; delivered to War Dept. under BB/LB agreement at San Francisco 8-15-46 10:00 AM PST ('from Navy Dept. - Surplus'); Reserve Fleet, Suisun Bay, 10-24-46 1 PM PST; then a mid-layup activation unrecorded elsewhere - allocated to 'Coastwise Line (Repair Program)' under a General Agency Agreement out of Suisun Bay 7-12-55 7:25 AM PDST, and returned to 'Reserve Fleet (Repair Program),' Suisun Bay, 9-16-55 2:00 PM PDST (withdrawal draft fwd 12'00", aft 22'00"). Disposal under Exchange Program PL 86-575: title transfer to Bethlehem Steel Corp. (Exchange), Washington DC, 4-7-64 12 noon EST (contract MA-3579; companion use agreement MA-3580 names transfer ship 'Yorkmar'); physical delivery from Suisun Bay 4-8-64 11:30 AM PST to purchaser Calmar SS Corp.; 'Renamed CALMAR 5-27-64'; '(Converted from Troopship to general cargo vessel 12-14-64)'; 'Transferred to Venezuela Flag 12/26/74 - C. A. Venezolana De Navegacion - Renamed ORINOCO 12/26/74.' CORRECTION to DANFS compression ('Returned to WSA the same day, she entered the National Defense Reserve Fleet at Suisun Bay'): the card confirms WSA custody 8-15-46 but shows immediate same-day allocation to the War Department - consistent with the documented USAT Magic Carpet arrival at San Francisco from Manila 30 Sep 1946 (124th Infantry Regiment aboard, Strand Photos via NavSource) - before actual NDRF entry 24 Oct 1946. The card also resolves the 7-vs-8-April-1964 conflict (title 7 Apr; physical delivery 8 Apr) and corrects NavSource's 'sold 1975': the Venezuelan-flag transfer and Orinoco rename were 26 December 1974. Card detail fields at NDRF entry: 1,721 barrels of Bunker C fuel aboard; last-voyage termination port Seattle; registered dimensions 496'7" x 71'6" x 43'6"; listed passenger capacity 3,528.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   correction

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-10-05

   Study period

   1944-1974 (custody coverage)

   Population

   USAT crews and embarked returning troops (Aug-Oct 1946); NDRF caretakers incl. 1955 Coastwise Line activation crews (Jul-Sep 1955); Calmar conversion-yard trades (1964)

   Limitations

   MARAD milestones and the NDRF status card are authoritative for government custody; the card's handwritten entries were transcribed from the scanned image this session and are partly stylized (e.g., fleet/unit notation, the 'Repair Program 1956' note's scope). The 1955 GAA-coastwise withdrawal records dates/times and the operator name only - the work performed, ports, and purpose of that activation are undocumented. MARAD carries no asbestos, materials, or condition-survey information. The 30 Sep 1946 Magic Carpet caption is NavSource-contributed photography (Strand Photos, San Francisco).

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-general-oswald-h-ernst-ap133-04

6. [6]Thomas Hayden (ship's company veteran), contributed ship's history 'U.S.S. General O.H. Ernst (AP-133)' (NavSource-hosted PDF, 22133a) [other_primary]

   Locator

   NavSource 09/22/pdf/22133a.pdf (Hayden contributed history; physical characteristics, crew figures, casualty capacity, port-call tables)

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   Veteran-contributed ship's record for this hull: manned by a crew of 31 officers, 294 enlisted Navy, and 30 enlisted Marines (Marines in guard/security function); troop-carrying capacity 2,962 enlisted and 221 officers, plus casualty capacity 147 stretcher cases, 755 ambulatory patients, and seven strong-rooms for Class-A mental patients. From commissioning to 1 October 1945 she traveled 90,884 miles and carried approximately 33,000 passengers - including sailors, soldiers, Marines, Army nurses, Red Cross workers, Japanese prisoners of war, and wounded - and in her first year put 5,078.7 hours on her engines (22,481,203 screw revolutions). Includes a full port-call itinerary with dates and leg mileages (Portland departure 24 Jul 1944 through San Pedro arrival 1 Oct 1945; total mileage 91,008).

   Verification

   partial

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-10-05

   Study period

   1944-1945

   Population

   Ship's company and embarked passengers, 1944-45

   Limitations

   A veteran-contributed document hosted on NavSource, not an official record - figures conflict with DANFS and NavSource spec blocks on complement and troop capacity (see gaps). Operationally detailed (ports, dates, engine hours) but contains no asbestos or material content.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-general-oswald-h-ernst-ap133-05

7. [7]Era inference built on: NavSource propulsion spec for this hull (two Babcock & Wilcox header-type boilers, 465 psi/765F; one Westinghouse geared turbine; three 400kW turbo-drive generators); Corn & Starr 1987 (ev-08); GAO HRD-80-2 (ev-09); Kaiser Richmond builder site CERCLA record (ev-07) [other_primary]

   Locator

   NavSource specifications block (propulsion plant); program-level sources cited in ev-07/08/09

   Finding type

   asbestos_application

   Finding

   A steam-turbine Maritime Commission C4-S-A1 transport built 1942-44 sits inside WWII shipbuilding's documented asbestos-use era; era-standard applications aboard a steam transport of this type and period were boiler and steam-drum insulation, steam-line lagging between boiler room and engine room, turbine lagging, valve and flange gaskets, machinery packing, electrical insulation, accommodation-space insulation, and brake linings on winches and windlass. Unlike a diesel-electric hull, this ship's two 465-psi B&W boilers and geared turbine establish the steam-plant lagging pathway as applicable to the type.

   Verification

   inferred

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-10-05

   Study period

   1942-1980

   Population

   Kaiser Yard 3 construction trades (1942-44); Commercial Iron Works conversion trades (1944); crew 1944-46; USAT crews 1946; NDRF Suisun Bay caretakers 1946-64; Calmar conversion yard trades 1964; merchant crews 1964-80; Venezuelan shipbreakers 1980

   Limitations

   Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation schedule, material list, survey, or work package located for AP-133. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials. No quantity, no manufacturer attribution, no present-day condition (hull scrapped 1980).

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-general-oswald-h-ernst-ap133-06

8. [8]EPA CERCLA Site Information: KAISER ALUM & CHEM CO SHIPYARD #2, EPA ID CAD980637557, Richmond CA (NFRAP); plus NPS Richmond Shipyard No. 3 page (Rosie the Riveter WWII Home Front NHP) [other_primary]

   Locator

   EPA CERCLA csitinfo.cfm?id=0901909 (site record); NPS https://www.nps.gov/places/richmond-shipyard-number-three.htm

   Finding type

   environmental_record

   Finding

   Government documentation for this hull's builder complex: the EPA CERCLA record covers the former Kaiser shipyard property at Richmond (KAISER ALUM & CHEM CO SHIPYARD #2, EPA ID CAD980637557, 'NFRAP - Site does not qualify for the NPL based on existing information'); the Atlas yard dataset documents asbestos-containing materials in soils and structures at the Kaiser Richmond Shipyard site under the Richmond Harbor Restoration Project (California DTSC Site ID 400137001). NPS documents that more than 747 vessels were built at the four Richmond Kaiser Shipyards during WWII and describes the yard's wartime hazardous-job conditions; this hull's builder, Yard 3, is the preserved yard within Rosie the Riveter - WWII Home Front National Historical Park.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-10-05

   Study period

   1940-1945 (operations); environmental record current

   Population

   Kaiser Richmond shipyard workers, 1940-1945 (peak ~90,000+ across the four yards per NPS/yard-dataset figures)

   Limitations

   Yard-level environmental/historic context only - documents the builder site, not materials aboard this hull. EPA's record is for the Shipyard #2 parcel (adjacent Kaiser Richmond yard, same operator/era), not Yard 3 specifically; the DTSC project page cited by the yard dataset (Site ID 400137001) returned 404 on 2026-10-05 - dead link, EPA CERCLA page verified live. No asbestos-fiber survey of the yard or the hull is established by these sources.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-general-oswald-h-ernst-ap133-07

9. [9]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 (1987), DOI 10.1002/ajim.4700110311

   Finding type

   historical_record

   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 construction program under which this C4-S-A1 hull was mass-produced at Kaiser Richmond - and that wartime demand drove unprecedented asbestos utilization in ship construction.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-10-05

   Study period

   1940s era documented; article 1987

   Population

   WWII shipyard workers and ship crews (class context)

   Limitations

   Program/era-level scholarly documentation of asbestos use in WWII shipbuilding generally; does not name this vessel or its builder yard and does not establish that asbestos was installed aboard this hull, nor quantity, location, condition, exposure, or causation. DOI resolves to Wiley (verified live 2026-10-05); article text itself not re-fetched.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-general-oswald-h-ernst-ap133-08

10. [10]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (published Oct 18, 1979; publicly released Oct 22, 1979) [gao]

    Locator

    GAO product page HRD-80-2 highlights (full PDF fetch blocked)

    Finding type

    gov_survey

    Finding

    GAO reviewed the Navy's efforts to protect workers from asbestos exposure at the Long Beach and Norfolk Naval Shipyards, covering the use of asbestos in Navy ships, the cost of removing asbestos from Navy ships, and compensation programs. Per the product page: the Navy's 1975 policy was to remove and replace with nonasbestos materials only insulation that was damaged or had to be removed for necessary repairs, modified in 1979 to selectively replace asbestos insulation in high-maintenance areas - documenting that asbestos insulation remained standard aboard the WWII-built fleet through this hull's entire naval service era (1944-46).

    Verification

    verified

    Role

    context

    Documentation level

    class_or_era

    Accessed

    2026-10-05

    Study period

    1975-1979 (policy window); construction-era 1944

    Population

    Navy shipyard workers; asbestos program review

    Limitations

    Program-level documentation; supports era context only, not any fact specific to this hull - fieldwork yards were Long Beach and Norfolk Naval Shipyards, not Kaiser or Commercial Iron Works. Full-report PDF unreachable this session (gao.gov asset fetch returned a 400-byte stub, 2026-10-05); content via live product-page highlights.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-general-oswald-h-ernst-ap133-09

11. [11]Kaiser Company Inc., Permanente 3, Richmond CA, 'USA - AP-130 USS General G O Squier General Arrangement (1944)' - Booklet of General Plans for the class lead ship (MC 653), Internet Archive ship-design-drawings collection [other_primary]

    Locator

    archive.org/details/ap130ga1944 (scanned BoGP; Foute Man Productions collection)

    Finding type

    historical_record

    Finding

    A digitized 1944 Kaiser builder's Booklet of General Plans survives for the lead ship of this class - AP-130 General G. O. Squier (MC hull 653), three hull numbers ahead of AP-133 (MC 656), same Maritime Commission C4-S-A1 design, same builder (Kaiser Permanente Yard 3, Richmond). BoGP booklets of this type carry tank-top-to-weather-deck arrangement drawings and insulation/material schedules - a direct archival lead for class-level material documentation.

    Verification

    partial

    Role

    archival_lead

    Documentation level

    class_or_era

    Accessed

    2026-10-05

    Study period

    1944 (document date)

    Limitations

    Archival lead only: the document exists and matches this hull's design and builder, but its insulation/material schedules were not extracted or examined this session - nothing in it is asserted for AP-133. Class document, not this hull's booklet (MC 653, not 656).

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-general-oswald-h-ernst-ap133-10

12. [12]Batch-2062 search ledger (this record): live DANFS/NHHC; NavSource 22133 (+22133a photo collections and Hayden PDF); MARAD ShipHistory 1836; EPA CERCLA; NPS Richmond Shipyard No. 3; GAO product page; Corn & Starr DOI; archive.org class BoGP; CourtListener four base queries + one overflow-justified variant; secondary web litigation sweep [other_primary]

    Locator

    CourtListener cluster 6284181 (Flynn v. Panama Railroad, /opinion/6284181/) - sole name-search hit; all other hits are docket-number collisions

    Finding type

    historical_record

    Finding

    No qualifying asbestos litigation naming this hull. CourtListener base queries (authenticated helper, --limit 20, 2026-10-05): (1) opinion search "General O. H. Ernst" OR "General Oswald H. Ernst" - 1 hit: Flynn v. Panama Railroad, 121 Misc. 239 (NYC Municipal Court 1923) = NAME COLLISION: the opinion concerns a 1921 accident aboard a Panama Railroad Co. steamer of the same name (the earlier USSB/Panama RR vessel renamed General O. H. Ernst in 1917), 21 years before this hull was laid down; also non-asbestos (seaman's personal injury / maintenance and cure). (2) same-name docket search - count 0, NO RESULT. (3) opinion search "AP-133" - 18 hits, all NAME COLLISIONS: court docket-number fragments (No. AP-133, 17-AP-133, 97-AP-133, 8:14-ap-00133, 14-C-AP-133, 1997-AP133) on unrelated matters - Florida property-tax appeal, Ohio judicial-disqualification cases, bankruptcy adversary proceeding, WV memo decision, immigration petition, negligence claims; zero asbestos/maritime/Ernst content. (4) docket search "AP-133" - 286 hits OVERFLOW; page-1 sample all bankruptcy adversary-proceeding dockets (X:YY-ap-00133 pattern; 'Navy' hits are Navy Federal Credit Union). Overflow rule applied: asbestos-qualified variant "AP-133" asbestos (docket, limit 20) returned 13 hits, all insurance-coverage disputes with zero vessel/Ernst/maritime content - confirms the overflow is docket-number noise, not litigation naming this hull. Secondary web sweep found no qualifying case and no law-firm page asserting an asbestos claim on this hull.

    Verification

    verified

    Role

    negative_finding

    Documentation level

    ship_specific

    Accessed

    2026-10-05

    Study period

    2026-10-05

    Limitations

    CourtListener coverage is opinions+dockets indexed by that service - state trial-court filings, unindexed federal pleadings, and settled/unreported claims are invisible to it; absence here does not prove no claimant ever named the vessel. The name-collision classification of Flynn v. Panama Railroad rests on the dates (1921 accident vs 1942 construction) plus the Panama Railroad fleet name; the earlier namesake steamer is documented in secondary sources and not cited as record evidence.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-general-oswald-h-ernst-ap133-11