Evidence
9 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-9).
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[1]Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS), 'Genesee III (AOG-8)', Naval History Division / HyperWar transcription [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- HyperWar DANFS transcription, aog8.html - full entry
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for the third Genesee (AOG-8): launched 23 September 1943 by Cargill, Inc., Savage, Minn., sponsored by Mrs. Helen Rae Clark; commissioned 27 May 1944, Lt. C.R. Heath in command. Specs: dp. 4,335; l. 310'9"; b. 48'6"; dr. 15'8"; s. 14 k.; cpl. 127; a. 4 3". First cargo of high-octane aviation gasoline at Aruba N.W.I. 14 July 1944; Pearl Harbor 11 August; five voyages Pearl Harbor-Canton (Phoenix Islands) through spring 1945; Eniwetok 5 March 1945; Ulithi/Leyte; Hollandia; Okinawa 20 May 1945; moored Yokohama Oil Docks 2 September 1945 - the day of Japan's formal surrender - 'one of the first Allied tankers to anchor in Japanese homeland waters since 1941'; departed 14 December 1945 for Long Beach, arriving 19 January 1946. One battle star for WWII service.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1943-1967
- Limitations
- Establishes identity, construction, and operational chronology through approximately 1967 (DANFS narrative ends there). Live NHHC DANFS page 404s (standing link rot per BATCH-01); the HyperWar transcription is the cited mirror. Contains no asbestos or materials information - supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-genesee-aog8-01
-
[2]DANFS, 'Genesee III (AOG-8)', Naval History Division / HyperWar transcription [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- HyperWar DANFS transcription, aog8.html - postwar paragraphs including NUC citation text
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS postwar record: Pacific operations to winter 1949 (Samoa, Guam, Jinsen, Yokosuka, Tsingtao, Seattle, Kwajalein, Kodiak; bases San Francisco, Pearl Harbor, San Diego); decommissioned at San Francisco '14 December' [1949]; recommissioned 28 July 1950; Pearl Harbor 5 October 1950; Japan from 8 January 1952 (Sasebo 23 January) with frequent fuel runs to Korea; Pearl Harbor-based until spring 1960; Sasebo home port June 1960; Subic Bay standby during Laotian crisis January 1961; Subic home port early 1962; Pearl Harbor home port 26 July 1964; Pearl Harbor yard overhaul 15 December 1964-March 1965; Vietnam deployment earning what DANFS terms the 'Navy Unit Citation' (NavSource's awards list records the Navy Unit Commendation) - quoted citation: 'delivering over 9.8 million gallons of petroleum fuel, pumping over 2 million gallons of salt water to aid in air strip construction, delivering diesel fuel from her bunkers and maintaining bottom lay fuel lines on a most demanding schedule and frequently under most adverse weather conditions in an open sea anchorage'; returned Pearl Harbor 16 November 1965; deployed again 2 May 1966, off Da Nang from 3 June supporting 3d Marine Amphibious Force, left war zone late October.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1946-1967
- Population
- Crew of ~127 during documented operations
- Limitations
- DANFS omits the decommissioning year inline ('14 December' follows 'winter of 1949' context); NavSource photo documentation places the ceremony at Mare Island on 16 December 1949 - see correction row ev-06. NUC text is quoted by DANFS; a crew memoir associates the award with the April 1968 Cua Viet action (ev-05). No asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-genesee-aog8-02
-
[3]NavSource Naval History, Service Ship Photo Archive, USS Genesee (AOG-8) page (navsource.net/archives/09/20/2008.htm) - secondary compilation of U.S. Navy, USACE, and museum photo/record data [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource AOG-8 page: chronology, awards table, campaign tables, specifications block, photo captions
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource Naval History photo-archive entry for USS Genesee (AOG-8): 'Patapsco Class Gasoline Tanker'; laid down date unknown at Cargill Inc., Savage, MN; launched 23 September 1943; commissioned 27 May 1944 LT. Charles R. Heath USNR. Awards list: Combat Action Ribbon (28 April 1968), Navy Unit Commendation, China Service Medal, American Campaign Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal (1 star), WWII Victory Medal, Navy Occupation Service Medal (Asia clasp), National Defense Service Medal (2), Korean Service Medal (1 star - Second Korean Winter campaign periods Feb-Apr 1952), Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal (Vietnam), Vietnam Service Medal (5 campaign stars), RVN Gallantry Cross Unit Citation, UN Service Medal, RVN Campaign Medal, ROK War Service Medal. Personnel awards: Navy and Marine Corps Medal (Steven C. Friedman SK2); Purple Heart - SFM3 Arthur Ball KIA 22 April 1968. Specifications: 1,850 t light / 4,335 t limiting; complement 9 officers + 118 enlisted; armament four 3"/50 DP + twelve 20mm AA; cargo 7,975 bbls oil + 410,500 gal gasoline; propulsion 'two General Motors 16-278A diesel engines, single Fairbanks Morse main reduction gear, two propellers, 3,300 shp'. Decommissioned 5 July 1972 and loaned to Chile; transferred to Chile under Security Assistance Program 9 November 1987, renamed Beagle; struck from U.S. Naval Register 25 June 1992; decommissioned by Chilean Navy January 1992; final disposition fate unknown. Photo documentation: launch at Cargill 23 Sep 1943; Mississippi River Lock No. 15 Rock Island IL 19 April 1944 in tow of Federal Barge Lines towboat James W. Good (USACE Rock Island District archival photo); decommissioning at Mare Island 16 December 1949; recommissioning preparations at Mare Island Naval Shipyard July 1950 (Vallejo Naval & Historical Museum photos).
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1943-1992
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer-run secondary archive, not an official Navy source - used here because the NVR excludes ships disposed before 1987 and DANFS ends its narrative ~1967. Individual datapoints corroborate official records where they overlap (launch/commission dates match DANFS; decommissioning photo documents Mare Island 16 Dec 1949 vs DANFS '14 December' at San Francisco - see ev-06). Chilean-era dates conflict with other secondary accounts (see gaps). No asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-genesee-aog8-03
-
[4]In re Asbestos Products Liability Litigation (No. VI), MDL-875, JPML docket (courtlistener.com/docket/1245688), entry 5838 filed 2009-05-08 - containing Dawson v. CBS Corp., Alameda County Super. Ct. RG-09-432149 plaintiff interrogatory responses (OCR-verified full text of scanned filing) [court_record]
- Locator
- RECAP PDF, 245 pages (image-scanned; content OCR-verified locally): USS Genesee entries at PDF page ~89 (Interrogatory No. 7 residence/service list: 'USS Genesee (1958-1962)'), ~91 (Interrogatory No. 10 service history: 'United States Navy, USS Genesee AOG-8'), ~104 (employment-history job-site block: Engineman, 1958-1962, asbestos-exposure claim 'Yes'), ~110/113 (ship list and career-wide product enumeration); caption 'Dawson v. CBS Corporation et al., Case No. RG-09-432149'
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Docketed asbestos litigation record naming this hull: 'Plaintiff William H. Dawson's Responses to Standard (Dieden) Interrogatories' in Dawson v. CBS Corporation et al., Alameda County Superior Court No. RG-09-432149 (removed to N.D. Cal. No. 3:09-903), filed within In re Asbestos Products Liability Litigation (No. VI), MDL-875, as an exhibit to defendant General Electric's response to motion to transfer (JPML/MDL docket entry 5838, filed 2009-05-08). Sworn responses state: Navy service 1958-1978; 'Employer's Name and Jobsite: United States Navy, USS Genesee AOG-8'; Job Title: Engineman; 1958 to 1962; 'Plaintiff worked with diesel engines and mechanical equipment aboard the ship... involved in the repair and overhaul of air conditioning systems, refrigeration units, boilers, evaporators and associated auxiliary equipment such as pumps and valves. He worked in the engine room and all over the ship'; response to 'Do YOU claim exposure to asbestos at this employment?' - 'Yes.' Other duty stations listed include USS Bache (DD-470), USS Proteus (AS-19), USS Hunley (AS-31), and shore billets.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1958-1962 (alleged exposure period); 2009 (filing)
- Population
- Engineman (plaintiff Dawson) aboard USS Genesee 1958-1962; ship's complement ~127
- Limitations
- Discovery-stage plaintiff allegation, not an adjudicated finding - sworn interrogatory responses exist and the hull is named with dates and duties, but the exposure claim is unadjudicated. The responses' equipment/product list (Allis Chalmers, Buffalo, Crane, Elliott, Northen, Peerless, Garlock, Goulds, DeLaval, Ingersoll-Rand pumps/gaskets/packing/turbomachinery) is a career-wide enumeration across all duty stations, NOT attributed to Genesee specifically; the 'boilers' phrasing is template language also used at diesel-ship duty stations. Does not establish that ACM was aboard, quantity, causation, or outcome; no published opinion adjudicating the Dawson claim was located.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-genesee-aog8-04
-
[5]NavSource-contributed firsthand narrative: 'A Vietnam History' by John Heatherman RMC USN Ret. (navsource.net/archives/09/20/2008v.htm) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Contributed memoir page, full text
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Firsthand crew memoir (contributed by John Heatherman RMC USN Ret., USS Genesee) hosted on NavSource: on 22 April 1968 the ship was anchored about a mile off Cua Viet, just south of the DMZ, refueling shore tanks with a fuel barge alongside; moved into the river mouth at Marines' request due to a faulty fuel hose; took about 40 incoming rounds while unable to move on unfavorable tides; DC3 William McMullin and SFFN Jack Neal boarded the flaming barge and extinguished the fire; SFM3 Arthur Ball, seriously wounded, died the next day aboard USS Sanctuary; HF antennas damaged, communications reduced to UHF. Days later while refueling the Army facility at Hue, an Army LARC backfired and exploded; SN Donald Shafer was lost. Memoir states 'The Genesee was awarded the Navy Unit Commendation.'
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1968
- Population
- Crew ~127 during April-May 1968 combat fueling operations
- Limitations
- First-person memoir on a secondary archive - ship-specific detail (dates, casualties, Cua Viet/Hue operations) corroborated only at award level by NavSource's ribbon list (Combat Action Ribbon 28 Apr 1968; Purple Heart for Ball). Memoir's linkage of the Navy Unit Commendation to the April 1968 action is the author's attribution; DANFS's quoted NUC text describes fuel-delivery operations in 1965-66. No asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-genesee-aog8-05
-
[6]DANFS entry (14 December at San Francisco) vs NavSource timeline/CO table/photo caption (16 December 1949 at Mare Island Navy Yard) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- HyperWar DANFS aog8.html (postwar paragraph) vs NavSource AOG-8 page timeline, CO table row 04, and decommissioning photo caption
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Source discrepancy on 1949 decommissioning: DANFS states Genesee 'decommissioned at San Francisco 14 December' (year implied 1949 by 'winter of 1949' context). NavSource's timeline records 'Decommissioned, 16 December 1949, at Mare Island Navy Yard'; its commanding-officer table ends LT. R. F. W. Hopkins's command on 14 December 1949; and its photo archive carries a documented caption 'USS Genesee (AOG-8) decommissioning at US Naval Shipyard Mare Island, Vallejo, CA., 16 December 1949.' Resolution: adopt 14 December 1949 as the decommissioning date (DANFS + NavSource CO table agree); Mare Island (Vallejo, CA) is the documented location - DANFS's 'San Francisco' is consistent as loose Bay-Area shorthand.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1949-12
- Limitations
- Two-day and location discrepancy between official narrative and photo-documented secondary record; both retained, 14 December adopted for the record field. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-genesee-aog8-06
-
[7]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), doi:10.1002/ajim.4700110311; Tim Colton, ShipbuildingHistory AOG table (Cargill hull 4, T1-MT-M1, delivered 27-May-44, 'To Chile 1987 as Beagle') [other_primary]
- Locator
- shipbuildinghistory.com navalships/aog.htm row 'AOG 8 Genesee Cargill 4 T1-MT-M1 ... 27-May-44 To Chile 1987 as Beagle'; Corn & Starr WWII shipbuilding asbestos study (as cited in batch-05 exemplar)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Class/era context only: Genesee is a Maritime Commission type T1-MT-M1 gasoline tanker built under MC contract at Cargill, Savage, MN (Cargill yard hull no. 4; type confirmed via shipbuildinghistory.com AOG table; class = Patapsco per NavSource). Peer-reviewed scholarship documents extensive asbestos use in U.S. WWII shipbuilding; wartime hulls of this era and type carried asbestos-containing gaskets, valve/pump packing, engine/exhaust insulation, electrical cable insulation, and interior insulating/deck materials. As a diesel-electric vessel she had no steam propulsion plant - the era-typical ACM footprint differs from steam auxiliaries (no boiler or main steam-line lagging).
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1943-1944
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - nothing in these sources names Genesee or documents asbestos aboard this hull; does not establish presence, quantity, individual exposure, or causation. ShipbuildingHistory is a respected secondary reference; MC contract detail is class-level (per NavSource Patapsco-page convention), Genesee's own MC hull number not located.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-genesee-aog8-07
-
[8]Batch-2024 search ledger (this record): CourtListener opinion+docket sweeps; NHHC/NVR/MARAD/NPS coverage checks; search_ledger rows sl-uss-genesee-aog8-01 through -12 [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-genesee-aog8-01 through -12
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Negative findings on ship-specific asbestos documentation and litigation: (a) no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat/environmental disclosure, or government materials record naming AOG-8 was located in public sources searched; (b) CourtListener opinion search 'USS Genesee' returned 0 hits; 'Genesee' + asbestos returned 71 hits, all name collisions (New York Genesee County / Genesee Hospital / Rochester-Genesee RTA entities - zero ship/Navy/tanker terms); 'Genesee' + ship + asbestos returned 11, all collisions; 'aboard the Genesee' returned 0; 'AOG-8' returned 1 collision (Arkansas Oklahoma Gas Corp.); (c) the second 'USS Genesee' docket hit is a non-asbestos False Claims Act case (U.S. v. QTC Medical Services, C.D. Cal. 2:14-cv-08961) where the phrase appears in complaint exhibit text - other litigation, not asbestos; (d) no adjudicated opinion in Dawson v. CBS located.
- 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 1943 wartime-built hull, and CourtListener covers only docketed/searchable U.S. litigation (many asbestos suits resolve without published opinions; state-court filings not indexed by CL may exist). Does not establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-genesee-aog8-08
-
[9]NARA vessel/deck-log research guidance (archives.gov/research/military/logbooks; navy-deck-logs-1941-1959 and navy-online pages); NHHC DANFS photo [other_primary]
- Locator
- NARA deck-log program pages; catalog search by ship name + hull + year per NARA guidance
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads (not retrieved - no spend authorized): NARA holds Navy deck logs for Genesee 1944-1972 (RG 24, National Archives at College Park); Vietnam-era deck logs were scanned by the VA under the Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act of 2019 project and are entering the National Archives Catalog in batches - Genesee's Vietnam-service logs should exist among them. NHHC photographic holdings include the DANFS entry image (Pearl Harbor). BuShips design/construction files for the T1-MT-M1 type and Cargill hull 4 may hold construction specifications. Chilean Navy records would cover the Beagle period (1972-1992).
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1944-1972 records
- Limitations
- Record-path mapping only - no box-level or catalog-item retrieval performed; whether Genesee's logs or design files contain materials/asbestos content is unknown until surveyed. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-genesee-aog8-09